Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia

For one person, living is cheaper in Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia: $491 a month against $1,294 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $9,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
24

Cost of Living Index in Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia
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Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,294

/mo nomad

Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$491

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia

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

A single person spends $1,294 per month in Phuket vs $491 in Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia, rent included.

Phuket $1,294
Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia $491

A couple spends around $2,204 per month in Phuket vs $795 in Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia, rent included.

Phuket $2,204
Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia $795

A family of three spends $3,115 per month in Phuket vs $1,100 in Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia, rent included.

Phuket $3,115
Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia $1,100

Phuket costs about 163% more than Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both Phuket and Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia are more affordable than the global median – Phuket 4% lower, Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia 64% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.39 ฿147

$1.47 LKR 488

198.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.31 ฿1,085

$24.34 LKR 8,097

32.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.70 ฿292

$7.55 LKR 2,512

15.23%

Cappuccino

$2.72 ฿91.5

$2.52 LKR 837

7.94%

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

$0.93 ฿31.25

$0.72 LKR 238

29.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.50 ฿16.78

$0.25 LKR 82.2

100.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.53 ฿85.0

$2.16 LKR 718

17.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ฿122

$3.09 LKR 1,026

17.48%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.4

$1.58 LKR 524

10.13%

White Bread (500g)

$1.45 ฿48.73

$0.53 LKR 175

173.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$0.82 LKR 272

82.93%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿73.0

$1.65 LKR 550

31.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.09 ฿641

$15.22 LKR 5,063

25.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.40 ฿114

$4.86 LKR 1,617

-30.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.90 ฿366

$7.69 LKR 2,559

41.74%

Apples (1kg)

$2.94 ฿98.8

$6.73 LKR 2,239

-56.32%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿56.8

$0.82 LKR 272

106.10%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿73.7

$4.08 LKR 1,357

-46.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 ฿71.4

$1.34 LKR 445

58.21%

Potato (1kg)

$1.46 ฿48.99

$1.04 LKR 345

40.38%

Onion (1kg)

$1.37 ฿45.95

$0.82 LKR 273

67.07%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 ฿36.14

$1.21 LKR 401

-10.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ฿18.32

$0.42 LKR 141

30.95%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.43 ฿149

$10.40 LKR 3,461

-57.40%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.25 ฿613

$13.45 LKR 4,473

35.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 ฿59.5

$1.91 LKR 635

-7.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.88 ฿96.8

$2.87 LKR 955

0.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.62

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.9 ฿1,844

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.51 ฿50.8

$0.38 LKR 125

297.37%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 ฿26.06

$0.33 LKR 110

136.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.84 ฿129

$0.94 LKR 311

308.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ฿49.96

$1.32 LKR 437

12.88%

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

$26.9K ฿902.9K

$42.9K LKR 14.3M

-37.37%

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

$26.3K ฿884.9K

$45.8K LKR 15.2M

-42.51%

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

$97.8 ฿3,285

$58.0 LKR 19.3K

68.61%

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

$11.29 ฿379

$4.26 LKR 1,418

165.02%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.19 ฿577

$20.55 LKR 6,835

-16.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.3 ฿2,295

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.92 ฿367

Cinema Ticket

$7.43 ฿250

$4.40 LKR 1,464

68.86%

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

$530 ฿17.8K

$40.73 LKR 13.5K

1202.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.8K ฿630.9K

$17.1K LKR 5.7M

9.70%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.7 ฿2,072

$18.26 LKR 6,075

237.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.25 ฿949

$17.08 LKR 5,682

65.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.0 ฿3,225

$78.6 LKR 26.1K

22.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.8 ฿2,916

$40.86 LKR 13.6K

112.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 ฿24.2K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$509 ฿17.1K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,950 ฿65.5K

$451 LKR 149.9K

332.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,397 ฿46.9K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,192 ฿140.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,298 ฿110.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$492 ฿16.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

12.5

-55.44%

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

Last update for Phuket: November 2, 2026

Last update for Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$509 39.3%

Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$267 20.6%

Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia

$242 49.4% 9.2% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$126 9.8%

Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia

$83 16.9% 34.4% $43

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$123 9.5%

Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia

$70 14.2% 43.3% $53

Eating Out

Phuket

$120 9.2%

Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia

$85 17.4% 28.6% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$83 6.4%

Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia

$8.8 * 1.8% 89.4% $74

Getting Around

Phuket

$66 5.1%

Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia

$2 * 0.4% 96.9% $64

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32 in Phuket versus $24 in Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $267 vs $242 – making Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇱🇰 Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia

🕒 Local time

07:58 7:58 AM

06:28 6:28 AM

1 h 30 min behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

219,827

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.98 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LKR, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 33.59 THB (100 THB = 2.98 USD). 1 EUR = 37.81 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 333 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD). 1 EUR = 374 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.67 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia 2,050 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia

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

Phuket vs Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket costs about 163% more than Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from leisure. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,940 per month in Phuket and $737 in Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32 in Phuket and $24 in Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 10% more in Phuket, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia, where all-in costs run around $491, than in Phuket at $1,294. In Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia it covers expenses comfortably, while in Phuket it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia costs $491 versus $1,294 in Phuket. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.