Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tbilisi and Hikkaduwa

For one person, living is cheaper in Hikkaduwa: $505 a month against $1,269 in Tbilisi, rent and utilities included – about $9,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

61

Cost of Living Index in Tbilisi
Learn more

Tbilisi Living Index
24

Cost of Living Index in Hikkaduwa
Learn more

Hikkaduwa Living Index

Jump to prices

Tbilisi

🇬🇪 Georgia

$1,269

/mo nomad

Hikkaduwa

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$505

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Tbilisi and in Hikkaduwa

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,269 in Tbilisi versus $505 in Hikkaduwa.

Tbilisi $1,269
Hikkaduwa $505

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,016 in Tbilisi versus $820 in Hikkaduwa.

Tbilisi $2,016
Hikkaduwa $820

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,763 in Tbilisi versus $1,134 in Hikkaduwa.

Tbilisi $2,763
Hikkaduwa $1,134

Living in Tbilisi is roughly 152% more expensive than in Hikkaduwa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Tbilisi 7% lower, Hikkaduwa 63% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.63 ₾30.07

$3.87 LKR 1,287

200.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.83 ₾97.8

$25.21 LKR 8,384

50.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.66 ₾24.98

$7.67 LKR 2,551

25.95%

Cappuccino

$3.57 ₾9.24

$2.48 LKR 826

43.95%

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

$1.08 ₾2.78

$0.67 LKR 223

61.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₾1.45

$0.25 LKR 82.3

124.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.62 ₾6.78

$2.21 LKR 736

18.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.04 ₾7.85

$3.03 LKR 1,008

0.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.17 ₾5.60

$1.63 LKR 543

33.13%

White Bread (500g)

$0.80 ₾2.06

$0.53 LKR 177

50.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.74 ₾4.51

$0.76 LKR 253

128.95%

Eggs

$2.83 ₾7.31

$1.64 LKR 544

72.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.31 ₾24.07

$13.51 LKR 4,493

-31.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.52 ₾16.85

$4.95 LKR 1,648

31.72%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.95 ₾33.50

$7.25 LKR 2,410

78.62%

Apples (1kg)

$1.68 ₾4.33

$6.58 LKR 2,188

-74.47%

Banana (1kg)

$1.85 ₾4.79

$0.86 LKR 287

115.12%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.97 ₾5.10

$4.50 LKR 1,497

-56.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.42 ₾6.25

$1.27 LKR 423

90.55%

Potato (1kg)

$0.82 ₾2.11

$1.00 LKR 334

-18.00%

Onion (1kg)

$0.74 ₾1.91

$0.79 LKR 263

-6.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.34 ₾3.47

$0.87 LKR 289

54.02%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 ₾2.00

$0.46 LKR 152

67.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.57 ₾9.24

$10.16 LKR 3,378

-64.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.67 ₾19.83

$12.67 LKR 4,212

-39.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 ₾4.39

$1.88 LKR 624

-9.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.40 ₾6.21

$3.06 LKR 1,019

-21.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.40 ₾1.05

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$15.23 ₾39.38

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.14 ₾2.95

$0.37 LKR 124

208.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 ₾2.02

$0.38 LKR 125

105.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.83 ₾30.58

$0.96 LKR 318

1132.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ₾3.75

$1.39 LKR 463

4.32%

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

$24.6K ₾63.6K

$44.4K LKR 14.8M

-44.60%

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

$22.3K ₾57.8K

$40.1K LKR 13.3M

-44.29%

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

$88.8 ₾230

$58.5 LKR 19.5K

51.69%

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

$13.12 ₾33.93

$4.30 LKR 1,428

205.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.67 ₾50.9

$20.97 LKR 6,974

-6.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.1 ₾166

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.04 ₾49.24

Cinema Ticket

$7.12 ₾18.42

$4.58 LKR 1,525

55.46%

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

$375 ₾971

$37.54 LKR 12.5K

900.13%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.5K ₾27.1K

$1,195 LKR 397.5K

775.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 ₾268

$17.81 LKR 5,924

481.92%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.26 ₾102

$16.65 LKR 5,536

135.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$117 ₾303

$79.4 LKR 26.4K

47.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 ₾315

$41.17 LKR 13.7K

195.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$695 ₾1,798

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$451 ₾1,167

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 ₾3,504

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$906 ₾2,343

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,295 ₾5,934

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,345 ₾3,478

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$664 ₾1,718

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.62

12.69

-0.55%

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

Last update for Tbilisi: October 27, 2026

Last update for Hikkaduwa: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Tbilisi

$451 35.6%

Hikkaduwa

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Tbilisi

$234 18.4%

Hikkaduwa

$235 46.6% 0.5% $1.2

Eating Out

Tbilisi

$191 15%

Hikkaduwa

$105 20.7% 45.1% $86

Clothing & Footwear

Tbilisi

$172 13.5%

Hikkaduwa

$70 13.8% 59.4% $102

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tbilisi

$122 9.6%

Hikkaduwa

$84 16.6% 31.1% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Tbilisi

$78 6.2%

Hikkaduwa

$9.2 * 1.8% 88.3% $69

Getting Around

Tbilisi

$22 1.7%

Hikkaduwa

$2.3 * 0.5% 89.7% $20

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $38 in Tbilisi vs $25 in Hikkaduwa. Groceries flip the comparison at $234 vs $235, with Tbilisi cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇪 Tbilisi

🇱🇰 Hikkaduwa

🕒 Local time

23:19 11:19 PM

00:49 12:49 AM

1 h 30 min ahead of Tbilisi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,241,700 Capital

101,342

💱 Currency

Georgian Lari GEL ₾

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

📈 Exchange rate

1 GEL = 0.387 USD

1 GEL = 0.346 EUR

1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LKR, USD, EUR to GEL – Georgian Lari Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇪 Georgian Lari (₾)

Georgian Lari exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 2.59 GEL (1 GEL = 0.387 USD). 1 EUR = 2.89 GEL (1 GEL = 0.346 EUR).

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 333 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD). 1 EUR = 371 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR).

USD to GEL in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Tbilisi Hikkaduwa 5,270 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Tbilisi
Hikkaduwa

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

Tbilisi vs Hikkaduwa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Hikkaduwa is about 60% cheaper overall, especially in clothing, eating out, and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $1,904 in Tbilisi and $757 in Hikkaduwa 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.

Dining out is cheaper in Hikkaduwa – a meal for two runs $25 versus $38 in Tbilisi. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Childcare runs $375 in Tbilisi versus $38 in Hikkaduwa. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $505 in Hikkaduwa versus $1,269 in Tbilisi, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Hikkaduwa but tight or insufficient in Tbilisi. The gap between the two cities makes Hikkaduwa 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.