Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sao Paulo and Polonnaruwa

For one person, living is cheaper in Polonnaruwa: $506 a month against $1,235 in Sao Paulo, rent and utilities included – about $8,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

60

Cost of Living Index in Sao Paulo
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Sao Paulo Living Index
25

Cost of Living Index in Polonnaruwa
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Polonnaruwa Living Index

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Sao Paulo

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,235

/mo nomad

Polonnaruwa

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$506

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,235 per month in Sao Paulo vs $506 in Polonnaruwa, rent included.

Sao Paulo $1,235
Polonnaruwa $506

A couple spends around $2,073 per month in Sao Paulo vs $821 in Polonnaruwa, rent included.

Sao Paulo $2,073
Polonnaruwa $821

A family of three spends $2,911 per month in Sao Paulo vs $1,136 in Polonnaruwa, rent included.

Sao Paulo $2,911
Polonnaruwa $1,136

Sao Paulo costs about 144% more than Polonnaruwa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Sao Paulo and Polonnaruwa are more affordable than the global median – Sao Paulo 9% lower, Polonnaruwa 63% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.81 R$44.68

$4.44 LKR 1,472

98.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.37 R$250

$24.02 LKR 7,957

105.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.80 R$44.63

$7.53 LKR 2,495

16.87%

Cappuccino

$2.49 R$12.63

$2.39 LKR 792

4.18%

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

$1.42 R$7.19

$0.68 LKR 226

108.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.85 R$4.31

$0.25 LKR 82.6

240.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.98 R$15.11

$2.17 LKR 718

37.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.34 R$22.02

$3.10 LKR 1,026

40.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.24 R$6.28

$1.56 LKR 516

-20.51%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 R$9.66

$0.57 LKR 190

235.09%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.43 R$7.25

$0.76 LKR 250

88.16%

Eggs

$2.81 R$14.23

$1.59 LKR 526

76.73%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.74 R$64.6

$13.60 LKR 4,505

-6.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.41 R$27.44

$4.88 LKR 1,618

10.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.64 R$54.0

$7.63 LKR 2,527

39.45%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 R$13.95

$6.68 LKR 2,213

-58.83%

Banana (1kg)

$1.81 R$9.19

$0.79 LKR 260

129.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.63 R$8.27

$4.58 LKR 1,517

-64.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.00 R$10.16

$1.21 LKR 402

65.29%

Potato (1kg)

$1.40 R$7.10

$1.04 LKR 343

34.62%

Onion (1kg)

$1.27 R$6.43

$0.82 LKR 271

54.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 R$6.47

$0.87 LKR 288

47.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.95 R$4.83

$0.43 LKR 143

120.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.99 R$15.15

$10.41 LKR 3,447

-71.28%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.96 R$50.5

$13.63 LKR 4,515

-26.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.85 R$9.37

$1.98 LKR 657

-6.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 R$12.90

$3.06 LKR 1,014

-16.99%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.09 R$5.50

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$48.78 R$247

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.85 R$9.39

$0.40 LKR 133

362.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 R$4.99

$0.37 LKR 123

167.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.29 R$52.2

$0.87 LKR 288

1082.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 R$6.78

$1.37 LKR 455

-2.19%

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

$24.4K R$123.8K

$36.3K LKR 12.0M

-32.79%

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

$33.9K R$172.1K

$41.1K LKR 13.6M

-17.43%

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

$104 R$529

$53.9 LKR 17.8K

93.93%

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

$16.71 R$84.7

$4.26 LKR 1,412

292.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.18 R$112

$20.44 LKR 6,770

8.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.82 R$182

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$47.28 R$240

Cinema Ticket

$10.06 R$51.0

$4.48 LKR 1,485

124.55%

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

$579 R$2,936

$38.00 LKR 12.6K

1424.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.1K R$86.6K

$1,192 LKR 394.8K

1333.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$65.7 R$333

$17.97 LKR 5,953

265.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$61.0 R$309

$16.63 LKR 5,508

266.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100 R$509

$79.8 LKR 26.4K

25.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$92.1 R$467

$42.13 LKR 14.0K

118.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$659 R$3,341

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$428 R$2,170

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,515 R$7,678

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,026 R$5,201

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,773 R$14.1K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,007 R$10.2K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$909 R$4,609

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.68

12.69

-7.96%

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

Last update for Sao Paulo: October 13, 2026

Last update for Polonnaruwa: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sao Paulo

$428 34.7%

Polonnaruwa

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Sao Paulo

$244 19.8%

Polonnaruwa

$238 47.1% 2.6% $6.3

Eating Out

Sao Paulo

$159 12.9%

Polonnaruwa

$108 21.3% 32.5% $52

Clothing & Footwear

Sao Paulo

$144 11.6%

Polonnaruwa

$70 13.9% 51% $73

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sao Paulo

$143 11.6%

Polonnaruwa

$79 15.5% 45.2% $65

Getting Around

Sao Paulo

$60 4.9%

Polonnaruwa

$2.3 * 0.5% 96.2% $58

Sport & Entertainment

Sao Paulo

$56 4.5%

Polonnaruwa

$9 * 1.8% 84% $47

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 $49.00 in Sao Paulo versus $24.00 in Polonnaruwa. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $244 vs $238 – making Polonnaruwa the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Sao Paulo

🇱🇰 Polonnaruwa

🕒 Local time

11:11 11:11 AM

19:41 7:41 PM

8 h 30 min ahead of Sao Paulo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

11,451,999

15,000

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LKR, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

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).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Sao Paulo Polonnaruwa 14,180 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Sao Paulo
Polonnaruwa

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

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

Sao Paulo costs about 144% more than Polonnaruwa, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from clothing. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,852 per month in Sao Paulo and $759 in Polonnaruwa. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,235 in Sao Paulo and $506 in Polonnaruwa. That's a gap of about 144%.

Kindergarten costs $579 per month in Sao Paulo and $38.00 in Polonnaruwa. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Polonnaruwa, where all-in costs run around $506, than in Sao Paulo at $1,235. In Polonnaruwa it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sao Paulo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Polonnaruwa costs $506 versus $1,235 in Sao Paulo. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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 Polonnaruwa. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Sao Paulo makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.