Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nepal and India

Name: India
Address: IN

For one person, living is cheaper in India: $399 a month against $413 in Nepal, rent and utilities included – about $170 less a year. The total is higher in Nepal despite lower rent and utilities.

20

Cost of Living Index in Nepal
Learn more

Nepal Living Index
19

Cost of Living Index in India
Learn more

India Living Index

Jump to prices

🇳🇵 Nepal

$413

/mo nomad

🇮🇳 India

$399

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nepal and in India

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $413 in Nepal versus $399 in India.

Nepal $413
India $399

Estimated couple costs with rent: $672 in Nepal versus $639 in India.

Nepal $672
India $639

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $932 in Nepal versus $879 in India.

Nepal $932
India $879

Nepal ($24–$498) and India ($230–$813) have similar cost spreads. Where you settle within each country has roughly equal impact on the budget.

Living in Nepal is roughly 3% more expensive than in India on average.

Both countries sit below the global median: Nepal 70% lower, India 71% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.94 NPR 294

$2.14 ₹203

-9.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$16.46 NPR 2,499

$10.46 ₹993

57.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.48 NPR 983

$3.80 ₹361

70.53%

Cappuccino

$1.37 NPR 208

$1.68 ₹159

-18.45%

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

$0.51 NPR 77.7

$0.38 ₹35.93

34.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.16 NPR 23.58

$0.15 ₹14.58

6.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.32 NPR 352

$1.87 ₹177

24.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.19 NPR 484

$3.18 ₹302

0.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.70 NPR 107

$0.62 ₹59.1

12.90%

White Bread (500g)

$0.48 NPR 72.7

$0.50 ₹47.69

-4.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.78 NPR 119

$0.63 ₹60.2

23.81%

Eggs

$1.55 NPR 236

$0.96 ₹91.1

61.46%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.48 NPR 984

$4.85 ₹460

33.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.94 NPR 447

$2.84 ₹270

3.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$5.45 NPR 827

Apples (1kg)

$2.00 NPR 304

$2.00 ₹190

Banana (1kg)

$1.05 NPR 160

$0.65 ₹61.3

61.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.17 NPR 178

$0.97 ₹92.1

20.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.57 NPR 86.9

$0.47 ₹44.23

21.28%

Potato (1kg)

$0.36 NPR 54.1

$0.34 ₹31.82

5.88%

Onion (1kg)

$0.52 NPR 79.6

$0.42 ₹39.66

23.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.43 NPR 65.7

$0.47 ₹44.32

-8.51%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.25 NPR 38.18

$0.31 ₹29.63

-19.35%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.65 NPR 402

$5.08 ₹482

-47.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.05 NPR 1,070

$7.31 ₹694

-3.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.37 NPR 359

$1.63 ₹154

45.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.83 NPR 430

$2.76 ₹262

2.54%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$5.11 ₹485

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.22 NPR 33.93

$0.26 ₹24.82

-15.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$9.89 NPR 1,502

$8.58 ₹815

15.27%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.62 NPR 246

$1.00 ₹94.5

62.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 NPR 157

$0.27 ₹25.69

281.48%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.36 NPR 511

$1.54 ₹146

118.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.23 NPR 186

$1.07 ₹102

14.95%

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

$33.2K NPR 5.0M

$11.2K ₹1.1M

195.98%

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

$34.4K NPR 5.2M

$20.1K ₹1.9M

71.47%

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

$32.71 NPR 4,965

$37.08 ₹3,521

-11.79%

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

$4.03 NPR 611

$3.58 ₹340

12.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$7.59 NPR 1,152

$7.15 ₹679

6.15%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$21.04 NPR 3,194

$15.00 ₹1,424

40.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.18 NPR 939

$7.17 ₹681

-13.81%

Cinema Ticket

$2.62 NPR 398

$3.20 ₹303

-18.13%

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

$51.4 NPR 7,809

$58.8 ₹5,583

-12.52%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,441 NPR 522.4K

$1,667 ₹158.2K

106.49%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$20.23 NPR 3,071

$23.03 ₹2,187

-12.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.12 NPR 4,116

$24.17 ₹2,295

12.21%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$46.19 NPR 7,013

$41.20 ₹3,912

12.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$24.87 NPR 3,775

$29.62 ₹2,812

-16.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$133 NPR 20.2K

$146 ₹13.9K

-9.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$65.4 NPR 9,924

$96.4 ₹9,150

-32.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$288 NPR 43.6K

$343 ₹32.6K

-16.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$154 NPR 23.4K

$234 ₹22.2K

-34.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,150 NPR 326.5K

$1,177 ₹111.7K

82.73%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,148 NPR 174.3K

$633 ₹60.1K

81.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$212 NPR 32.2K

$409 ₹38.8K

-48.19%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.57

8.93

18.37%

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

Last update for Nepal: October 26, 2026

Last update for India: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Nepal

$134 32.4%

India

$102 25.6% 23.7% $32

Eating Out

Nepal

$72 17.5%

India

$67 16.7% 7.7% $5.5

Accommodation & Living

Nepal

$65 15.8%

India

$96 24.1% 47.4% $31

Clothing & Footwear

Nepal

$53 12.9%

India

$53 13.3% 0.3% $0.2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nepal

$44 10.7%

India

$48 12% 7.9% $3.5

Sport & Entertainment

Nepal

$26 6.4%

India

$21 5.4% 18.6% $4.9

Getting Around

Nepal

$18 4.3%

India

$12 3% 31.8% $5.6

Cost Breakdown

National rent averages: $78 in Nepal, $120 in India. Capital cities: $217 in Kathmandu vs $277 in Delhi.

National salary averages: $202 in Nepal, $412 in India. Higher pay doesn’t always mean more spending money – weigh income against local costs.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 54% higher in India.

Dining out costs 45% more in Nepal.

Public transport is 50% more expensive in Nepal.

Salaries are about 2 times higher in India, and purchasing power comes out stronger in India.

Good to know

🇳🇵 Nepal

🇮🇳 India

🕒 Local time

17:48 5:48 PM

17:33 5:33 PM

15 min behind Nepal

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

29,164,578

1,326,093,247

💱 Currency

Nepalese Rupee NPR रु

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 NPR = 6.59 USD

1,000 NPR = 5.9 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.53 USD

1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, USD, EUR to NPR – Nepalese Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇵 Nepalese Rupee (रु)

Nepalese Rupee exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 152 NPR (1,000 NPR = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 170 NPR (1,000 NPR = 5.9 EUR).

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 94.95 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 106 INR (1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR).

USD to NPR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Nepal India 800 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Nepal
India

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

Nepal vs India: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

At $399 per month in India and $413 in Nepal, India comes out about 3% cheaper. Keep in mind it varies by city – the difference can be bigger or smaller depending on where you settle within each country.

Day-to-day life is cheaper in India: lower grocery prices, cheaper commutes, and more affordable meals out. Over time, those daily savings make a real difference to your monthly budget and ability to put money away.

It depends on what you’re after: India wins on affordability, while salaries, visas, language, and lifestyle can tip the balance either way.