Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ragama and Sao Paulo

For one person, living is cheaper in Ragama: $503 a month against $1,222 in Sao Paulo, rent and utilities included – about $8,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

24

Cost of Living Index in Ragama
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Ragama Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Sao Paulo
Learn more

Sao Paulo Living Index

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Ragama

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$503

/mo nomad

Sao Paulo

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,222

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ragama and in Sao Paulo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $503 in Ragama versus $1,222 in Sao Paulo.

Ragama $503
Sao Paulo $1,222

Estimated couple costs with rent: $814 in Ragama versus $2,044 in Sao Paulo.

Ragama $814
Sao Paulo $2,044

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,125 in Ragama versus $2,867 in Sao Paulo.

Ragama $1,125
Sao Paulo $2,867

Living in Ragama costs roughly 59% less than in Sao Paulo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Ragama 63% lower, Sao Paulo 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.73 LKR 1,237

$8.71 R$44.15

-57.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.62 LKR 8,154

$48.61 R$246

-49.35%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.63 LKR 2,528

$9.03 R$45.77

-15.50%

Cappuccino

$2.50 LKR 828

$2.55 R$12.94

-1.96%

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

$0.72 LKR 239

$1.35 R$6.83

-46.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.25 LKR 82.7

$0.91 R$4.63

-72.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.15 LKR 711

$3.07 R$15.55

-29.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.99 LKR 990

$4.38 R$22.21

-31.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.42 LKR 470

$1.19 R$6.05

19.33%

White Bread (500g)

$0.47 LKR 155

$1.80 R$9.14

-73.89%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.68 LKR 226

$1.48 R$7.51

-54.05%

Eggs

$1.73 LKR 573

$2.82 R$14.31

-38.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.87 LKR 4,593

$12.61 R$63.9

9.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.74 LKR 1,571

$5.40 R$27.36

-12.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.33 LKR 2,428

$10.76 R$54.6

-31.88%

Apples (1kg)

$6.69 LKR 2,217

$2.82 R$14.28

137.23%

Banana (1kg)

$0.81 LKR 268

$1.82 R$9.25

-55.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.27 LKR 1,414

$1.60 R$8.14

166.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.28 LKR 423

$2.03 R$10.28

-36.95%

Potato (1kg)

$1.03 LKR 341

$1.46 R$7.40

-29.45%

Onion (1kg)

$0.77 LKR 254

$1.25 R$6.35

-38.40%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 LKR 296

$1.25 R$6.32

-28.80%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.45 LKR 149

$0.98 R$4.98

-54.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.11 LKR 3,350

$3.00 R$15.18

237.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.09 LKR 4,336

$9.71 R$49.22

34.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.97 LKR 653

$1.84 R$9.32

7.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.94 LKR 974

$2.52 R$12.80

16.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.07 R$5.41

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$47.26 R$240

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.37 LKR 123

$1.81 R$9.16

-79.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.35 LKR 115

$1.01 R$5.14

-65.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 LKR 308

$10.24 R$51.9

-90.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.38 LKR 459

$1.29 R$6.52

6.98%

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

$44.6K LKR 14.8M

$23.5K R$119.3K

89.36%

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

$40.1K LKR 13.3M

$34.5K R$174.9K

16.09%

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

$59.5 LKR 19.7K

$104 R$527

-42.79%

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

$4.28 LKR 1,416

$16.60 R$84.1

-74.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.08 LKR 6,982

$22.04 R$112

-4.36%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.43 R$185

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$47.29 R$240

Cinema Ticket

$4.45 LKR 1,474

$9.69 R$49.12

-54.08%

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

$37.59 LKR 12.5K

$573 R$2,906

-93.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,188 LKR 393.5K

$16.9K R$85.8K

-92.98%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$18.21 LKR 6,030

$66.3 R$336

-72.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$16.89 LKR 5,595

$61.1 R$310

-72.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.8 LKR 26.4K

$98.8 R$501

-19.20%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$41.92 LKR 13.9K

$91.4 R$463

-54.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$654 R$3,316

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$418 R$2,120

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,524 R$7,724

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$992 R$5,028

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,670 R$13.5K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,019 R$10.2K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$900 R$4,563

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.69

11.68

8.65%

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

Last update for Ragama: October 20, 2026

Last update for Sao Paulo: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Ragama

$233 46.4%

Sao Paulo

$243 19.9% 4.3% $10

Eating Out

Ragama

$103 20.6%

Sao Paulo

$161 13.1% 55.4% $57

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ragama

$85 16.9%

Sao Paulo

$143 11.7% 68.1% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Ragama

$71 14%

Sao Paulo

$143 11.7% 103% $72

Sport & Entertainment

Ragama

$8.9 * 1.8%

Sao Paulo

$56 4.6% 527% $47

Getting Around

Ragama

$2.1 * 0.4%

Sao Paulo

$58 4.8% 2681% $56

Accommodation & Living

Ragama

- * 0%

Sao Paulo

$418 34.2%

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $25.00 in Ragama vs $49.00 in Sao Paulo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $233 vs $243 per month, with Ragama cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇱🇰 Ragama

🇧🇷 Sao Paulo

🕒 Local time

02:15 2:15 AM

17:45 5:45 PM

8 h 30 min behind Ragama

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,000

11,451,999

💱 Currency

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇱🇰 Sri Lankan Rupee (Rs)

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 331 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD). 1 EUR = 372 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

USD to LKR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Ragama Sao Paulo 14,030 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Ragama
Sao Paulo

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

Ragama vs Sao Paulo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ragama and Sao Paulo differ by about 143% in total monthly costs ($503 vs $1,222 including rent). Ragama is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $754 in Ragama and $1,833 in Sao Paulo to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Childcare runs $37.59 in Ragama versus $573 in Sao Paulo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Ragama – a meal for two runs $25.00 versus $49.00 in Sao Paulo. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $503 in Ragama versus $1,222 in Sao Paulo, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Ragama but tight or insufficient in Sao Paulo. The gap between the two cities makes Ragama the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Ragama gentler on the wallet – expenses run 143% less than in Sao Paulo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.