Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Matara and London

For one person, living is cheaper in Matara: $579 a month against $3,986 in London, rent and utilities included – about $40,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

28

Cost of Living Index in Matara
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Matara Living Index
194

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index

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Matara

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$579

/mo nomad

London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,986

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Matara and in London

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Matara and in London actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $579 per month in Matara vs $3,986 in London, rent included.

Matara $579
London $3,986

A couple spends around $845 per month in Matara vs $5,791 in London, rent included.

Matara $845
London $5,791

A family of three spends $1,112 per month in Matara vs $7,595 in London, rent included.

Matara $1,112
London $7,595

Matara is about 85% cheaper than London, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Matara sits 57% below the global median, while London is 195% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.81 LKR 1,262

$25.93 £19.45

-85.31%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.67 LKR 8,171

$107 £79.9

-76.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.70 LKR 2,551

$10.71 £8.03

-28.10%

Cappuccino

$2.46 LKR 815

$5.47 £4.11

-55.03%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.67 LKR 222

$2.97 £2.23

-77.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 LKR 89.5

$2.20 £1.65

-87.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.22 LKR 735

$9.13 £6.85

-75.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.04 LKR 1,006

$7.94 £5.96

-61.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 LKR 516

$1.86 £1.40

-16.13%

White Bread (500g)

$0.53 LKR 176

$2.07 £1.55

-74.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.76 LKR 251

$2.42 £1.81

-68.60%

Eggs

$1.52 LKR 504

$5.09 £3.82

-70.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.89 LKR 4,601

$12.87 £9.66

7.93%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.98 LKR 1,651

$10.43 £7.82

-52.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.39 LKR 2,449

$16.87 £12.66

-56.19%

Apples (1kg)

$6.70 LKR 2,220

$3.11 £2.33

115.43%

Banana (1kg)

$0.47 LKR 155

$1.40 £1.05

-66.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.48 LKR 1,485

$3.08 £2.31

45.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.85 LKR 281

$3.27 £2.45

-74.01%

Potato (1kg)

$0.97 LKR 322

$1.58 £1.19

-38.61%

Onion (1kg)

$0.62 LKR 206

$1.74 £1.31

-64.37%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.93 LKR 308

$1.40 £1.05

-33.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.46 LKR 151

$1.80 £1.35

-74.44%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.74 LKR 3,227

$23.28 £17.46

-58.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.05 LKR 4,321

$13.03 £9.77

0.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.85 LKR 612

$3.17 £2.38

-41.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.91 LKR 963

$4.42 £3.32

-34.16%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.29 LKR 94.6

$4.07 £3.05

-92.87%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$247 £185

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.40 LKR 134

$5.58 £4.18

-92.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.37 LKR 123

$3.36 £2.52

-88.99%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$0.87 LKR 288

$56.8 £42.58

-98.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.32 LKR 437

$2.13 £1.60

-38.03%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$36.8K LKR 12.2M

$38.2K £28.6K

-3.75%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$40.5K LKR 13.4M

$40.9K £30.7K

-0.87%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$46.01 LKR 15.2K

$372 £279

-87.64%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$4.29 LKR 1,420

$17.82 £13.37

-75.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.18 LKR 7,016

$40.37 £30.29

-47.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$60.0 £44.99

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.29 £15.97

Cinema Ticket

$4.42 LKR 1,464

$17.74 £13.31

-75.08%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$38.19 LKR 12.6K

$2,864 £2,149

-98.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,210 LKR 400.7K

$35.3K £26.5K

-96.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$18.27 LKR 6,051

$114 £85.5

-83.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$16.83 LKR 5,575

$54.3 £40.71

-68.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.0 LKR 26.5K

$124 £93.2

-35.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$41.05 LKR 13.6K

$163 £122

-74.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$184 LKR 61.0K

$2,869 £2,152

-93.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$89.1 LKR 29.5K

$2,233 £1,675

-96.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,266 £3,951

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,778 £2,835

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$18.3K £13.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,024 £6,020

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$106 LKR 35.2K

$5,037 £3,779

-97.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.69

4.74

167.72%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Matara: October 13, 2026

Last update for London: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Groceries & Markets

Matara

$232 40%

London

$349 8.8% 50.8% $118

Eating Out

Matara

$104 18%

London

$388 9.7% 272% $283

Accommodation & Living

Matara

$89 15.4%

London

$2.2K 56% 2406% $2.1K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Matara

$71 12.4%

London

$430 10.8% 502% $359

Clothing & Footwear

Matara

$70 12.1%

London

$205 5.1% 192% $135

Sport & Entertainment

Matara

$8.8 * 1.5%

London

$95 2.4% 980% $87

Getting Around

Matara

$3.4 * 0.6%

London

$285 7.2% 8295% $282

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $184 in Matara versus $2,869 in London. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 4639% higher in London, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $25.00 in Matara versus $107 in London. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $232 vs $349 – making Matara the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇱🇰 Matara

🇬🇧 London

🕒 Local time

01:52 1:52 AM

21:22 9:22 PM

4 h 30 min behind Matara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

100,000

8,908,083 Capital

💱 Currency

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to LKR – Sri Lankan Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇱🇰 Sri Lankan Rupee (Rs)

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 331 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD). 1 EUR = 372 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

USD to LKR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Matara London 8,850 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Matara
London

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Matara vs London: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $579 in Matara, $3,986 in London – roughly 589% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $868 per month in Matara and $5,979 in London. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Matara, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $579 in Matara and $3,986 in London. That's a gap of about 589%.

Kindergarten costs $38.19 per month in Matara and $2,864 in London. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Matara, where all-in costs run around $579, than in London at $3,986. In Matara it covers expenses comfortably, while in London it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. London has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $579 in Matara to $3,986 in London. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Matara. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, London makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.