Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Vijayawada and Madurai

For one person, living is cheaper in Vijayawada: $395 a month against $416 in Madurai, rent and utilities included – about $250 less a year. The total is higher in Madurai despite lower rent and utilities.

19

Cost of Living Index in Vijayawada
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Vijayawada Living Index
20

Cost of Living Index in Madurai
Learn more

Madurai Living Index

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Vijayawada

🇮🇳 India

$395

/mo nomad

Madurai

🇮🇳 India

$416

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Vijayawada and in Madurai

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $395 in Vijayawada versus $416 in Madurai.

Vijayawada $395
Madurai $416

Estimated couple costs with rent: $639 in Vijayawada versus $703 in Madurai.

Vijayawada $639
Madurai $703

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $883 in Vijayawada versus $989 in Madurai.

Vijayawada $883
Madurai $989

Living in Vijayawada costs roughly 5% less than in Madurai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Vijayawada 71% lower, Madurai 69% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.55 ₹147

$1.71 ₹162

-9.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$8.75 ₹831

$10.45 ₹992

-16.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.52 ₹430

$4.23 ₹402

6.86%

Cappuccino

$3.63 ₹345

$2.28 ₹216

59.21%

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

$0.41 ₹38.80

$0.58 ₹55.1

-29.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.16 ₹15.10

$0.25 ₹23.87

-36.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.92 ₹182

$2.14 ₹203

-10.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 ₹217

$3.72 ₹353

-38.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.76 ₹72.5

$0.55 ₹52.5

38.18%

White Bread (500g)

$0.54 ₹51.1

$0.56 ₹53.4

-3.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.62 ₹59.1

$0.68 ₹65.0

-8.82%

Eggs

$0.77 ₹73.0

$0.84 ₹79.5

-8.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.35 ₹602

$6.12 ₹581

3.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.57 ₹244

$2.96 ₹281

-13.18%

Apples (1kg)

$1.82 ₹172

$2.98 ₹283

-38.93%

Banana (1kg)

$0.72 ₹68.7

$0.74 ₹70.3

-2.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.80 ₹76.1

$1.68 ₹159

-52.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.43 ₹40.91

$0.50 ₹47.65

-14.00%

Potato (1kg)

$0.37 ₹35.42

$0.62 ₹59.2

-40.32%

Onion (1kg)

$0.46 ₹43.51

$0.70 ₹66.8

-34.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.64 ₹61.1

$0.67 ₹63.9

-4.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.31 ₹29.64

$0.29 ₹27.13

6.90%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.07 ₹481

$5.16 ₹490

-1.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.29 ₹692

$10.63 ₹1,010

-31.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.86 ₹176

$2.13 ₹202

-12.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.12 ₹296

$4.44 ₹421

-29.73%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$3.39 ₹322

$9.72 ₹923

-65.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 ₹29.76

$0.20 ₹18.95

55.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$6.69 ₹635

$10.41 ₹988

-35.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.62 ₹154

$1.17 ₹111

38.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 ₹40.69

$0.33 ₹31.24

30.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.08 ₹197

$1.29 ₹122

61.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.08 ₹102

$1.11 ₹106

-2.70%

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

$11.4K ₹1.1M

$11.2K ₹1.1M

1.76%

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

$20.5K ₹2.0M

$23.7K ₹2.2M

-13.25%

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

$32.67 ₹3,102

$23.27 ₹2,210

40.40%

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

$3.26 ₹309

$4.76 ₹452

-31.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$7.76 ₹737

$7.55 ₹717

2.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$16.02 ₹1,521

$15.81 ₹1,501

1.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.08 ₹1,051

$6.46 ₹614

71.52%

Cinema Ticket

$3.13 ₹297

$2.67 ₹253

17.23%

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

$69.2 ₹6,567

$42.17 ₹4,004

64.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,951 ₹185.3K

$1,576 ₹149.6K

23.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.87 ₹1,697

$25.37 ₹2,409

-29.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$18.78 ₹1,783

$25.52 ₹2,423

-26.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$38.78 ₹3,682

$53.2 ₹5,047

-27.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$35.32 ₹3,354

$32.85 ₹3,119

7.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$120 ₹11.4K

$135 ₹12.8K

-11.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$74.3 ₹7,058

$79.7 ₹7,570

-6.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$273 ₹25.9K

$433 ₹41.1K

-36.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$206 ₹19.5K

$264 ₹25.0K

-21.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$680 ₹64.5K

$987 ₹93.7K

-31.19%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$418 ₹39.6K

$440 ₹41.8K

-5.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$305 ₹29.0K

$363 ₹34.4K

-15.78%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.2

9.59

6.36%

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

Last update for Vijayawada: October 27, 2026

Last update for Madurai: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Vijayawada

$108 27.2%

Madurai

$129 31% 19.9% $21

Eating Out

Vijayawada

$86 21.7%

Madurai

$75 18% 12.6% $11

Accommodation & Living

Vijayawada

$74 18.8%

Madurai

$80 19.2% 7.3% $5.4

Clothing & Footwear

Vijayawada

$50 12.6%

Madurai

$62 14.8% 23.6% $12

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Vijayawada

$44 11.1%

Madurai

$36 8.6% 18.6% $8.1

Sport & Entertainment

Vijayawada

$22 5.6%

Madurai

$21 5.1% 5% $1.1

Getting Around

Vijayawada

$12 3%

Madurai

$14 3.4% 19.7% $2.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $120 in Vijayawada and $135 in Madurai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Madurai pays 19% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $9 in Vijayawada vs $10 in Madurai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $108 vs $129 per month, with Vijayawada cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇳 Vijayawada

🇮🇳 Madurai

🕒 Local time

10:17 10:17 AM

Same time as Vijayawada

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,048,240

1,700,000

💱 Currency

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 INR = 10.53 USD

1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.53 USD

1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Vijayawada Madurai 780 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Vijayawada
Madurai

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

Vijayawada vs Madurai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $395 in Vijayawada and $416 in Madurai, so Vijayawada is about 5% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 16% lower in Vijayawada. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $120 in Vijayawada versus $135 in Madurai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 20% higher in Madurai. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Vijayawada – a meal for two runs $9 versus $10 in Madurai. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Vijayawada gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Expats usually find Vijayawada gentler on the wallet – expenses run 5% less than in Madurai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.