Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Toronto and Polonnaruwa

For one person, living is cheaper in Polonnaruwa: $506 a month against $2,561 in Toronto, rent and utilities included – about $24,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

125

Cost of Living Index in Toronto
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Toronto Living Index
25

Cost of Living Index in Polonnaruwa
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Polonnaruwa Living Index

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Toronto

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,561

/mo nomad

Polonnaruwa

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$506

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Toronto 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 Toronto and in Polonnaruwa actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $2,561 per month in Toronto vs $506 in Polonnaruwa, rent included.

Toronto $2,561
Polonnaruwa $506

A couple spends around $3,694 per month in Toronto vs $821 in Polonnaruwa, rent included.

Toronto $3,694
Polonnaruwa $821

A family of three spends $4,826 per month in Toronto vs $1,136 in Polonnaruwa, rent included.

Toronto $4,826
Polonnaruwa $1,136

Toronto costs about 406% more than Polonnaruwa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Toronto sits 90% above the global median, while Polonnaruwa is 63% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.18 CA$24.29

$4.44 LKR 1,472

286.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$76.0 CA$107

$24.02 LKR 7,957

216.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.54 CA$14.89

$7.53 LKR 2,495

39.97%

Cappuccino

$4.02 CA$5.68

$2.39 LKR 792

68.20%

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

$2.12 CA$3.00

$0.68 LKR 226

211.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 CA$2.48

$0.25 LKR 82.6

600.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.24 CA$8.83

$2.17 LKR 718

187.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.09 CA$10.02

$3.10 LKR 1,026

128.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.44 CA$3.45

$1.56 LKR 516

56.41%

White Bread (500g)

$2.68 CA$3.78

$0.57 LKR 190

370.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.24 CA$3.17

$0.76 LKR 250

194.74%

Eggs

$3.56 CA$5.03

$1.59 LKR 526

123.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.09 CA$12.85

$13.60 LKR 4,505

-33.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.33 CA$16.01

$4.88 LKR 1,618

132.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.53 CA$20.55

$7.63 LKR 2,527

90.43%

Apples (1kg)

$3.62 CA$5.12

$6.68 LKR 2,213

-45.81%

Banana (1kg)

$1.21 CA$1.72

$0.79 LKR 260

53.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.60 CA$5.09

$4.58 LKR 1,517

-21.40%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.21 CA$5.96

$1.21 LKR 402

247.93%

Potato (1kg)

$1.79 CA$2.53

$1.04 LKR 343

72.12%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 CA$2.25

$0.82 LKR 271

93.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.27 CA$3.21

$0.87 LKR 288

160.92%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 CA$1.77

$0.43 LKR 143

190.70%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.82 CA$19.53

$10.41 LKR 3,447

32.76%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.27 CA$20.18

$13.63 LKR 4,515

4.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.20 CA$3.10

$1.98 LKR 657

11.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.43 CA$3.44

$3.06 LKR 1,014

-20.59%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.39 CA$3.38

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$111 CA$157

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.91 CA$4.12

$0.40 LKR 133

627.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.20 CA$1.69

$0.37 LKR 123

224.32%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$21.38 CA$30.23

$0.87 LKR 288

2357.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.21 CA$1.71

$1.37 LKR 455

-11.68%

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

$28.2K CA$39.8K

$36.3K LKR 12.0M

-22.44%

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

$20.3K CA$28.6K

$41.1K LKR 13.6M

-50.73%

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

$120 CA$170

$53.9 LKR 17.8K

123.45%

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

$32.26 CA$45.60

$4.26 LKR 1,412

657.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.93 CA$67.8

$20.44 LKR 6,770

134.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.48 CA$54.4

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.96 CA$32.46

Cinema Ticket

$12.38 CA$17.50

$4.48 LKR 1,485

176.34%

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

$830 CA$1,173

$38.00 LKR 12.6K

2084.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.1K CA$32.6K

$1,192 LKR 394.8K

1837.27%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.7 CA$71.7

$17.97 LKR 5,953

182.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.02 CA$56.6

$16.63 LKR 5,508

140.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.0 CA$139

$79.8 LKR 26.4K

22.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 CA$171

$42.13 LKR 14.0K

186.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,592 CA$2,251

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,410 CA$1,994

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,670 CA$3,775

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,152 CA$3,042

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,945 CA$11.2K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,542 CA$9,249

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,727 CA$5,269

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.47

12.69

-64.78%

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

Last update for Toronto: October 12, 2026

Last update for Polonnaruwa: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Toronto

$1.4K 55.1%

Polonnaruwa

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Toronto

$340 13.3%

Polonnaruwa

$238 47.1% 30% $102

Eating Out

Toronto

$278 10.9%

Polonnaruwa

$108 21.3% 61.3% $171

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Toronto

$201 7.8%

Polonnaruwa

$79 15.5% 60.8% $122

Clothing & Footwear

Toronto

$139 5.4%

Polonnaruwa

$70 13.9% 49.4% $69

Getting Around

Toronto

$129 5.1%

Polonnaruwa

$2.3 * 0.5% 98.3% $127

Sport & Entertainment

Toronto

$63 2.5%

Polonnaruwa

$9 * 1.8% 85.8% $54

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 $76.0 in Toronto versus $24.00 in Polonnaruwa. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $340 vs $238 – making Polonnaruwa the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Toronto

🇱🇰 Polonnaruwa

🕒 Local time

10:59 10:59 AM

20:29 8:29 PM

9 h 30 min ahead of Toronto

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,731,571

15,000

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LKR, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 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 CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Toronto Polonnaruwa 13,950 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Toronto
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

Toronto vs Polonnaruwa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Toronto costs about 406% more than Polonnaruwa, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,841 per month in Toronto 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 $2,561 in Toronto and $506 in Polonnaruwa. That's a gap of about 406%.

Kindergarten costs $830 per month in Toronto 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 Toronto at $2,561. In Polonnaruwa it covers expenses comfortably, while in Toronto it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Polonnaruwa – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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, Toronto makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.