Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Visakhapatnam and Chennai (Madras)

For one person, living is cheaper in Visakhapatnam: $375 a month against $414 in Chennai (Madras), rent and utilities included – about $470 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Chennai (Madras) outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

18

Cost of Living Index in Visakhapatnam
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Visakhapatnam Living Index
20

Cost of Living Index in Chennai (Madras)
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Chennai (Madras) Living Index

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Visakhapatnam

🇮🇳 India

$375

/mo nomad

Chennai (Madras)

🇮🇳 India

$414

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Visakhapatnam and in Chennai (Madras)

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

A single person spends $375 per month in Visakhapatnam vs $414 in Chennai (Madras), rent included.

Visakhapatnam $375
Chennai (Madras) $414

A couple spends around $588 per month in Visakhapatnam vs $693 in Chennai (Madras), rent included.

Visakhapatnam $588
Chennai (Madras) $693

A family of three spends $802 per month in Visakhapatnam vs $973 in Chennai (Madras), rent included.

Visakhapatnam $802
Chennai (Madras) $973

Visakhapatnam is about 9% cheaper than Chennai (Madras), and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both Visakhapatnam and Chennai (Madras) are more affordable than the global median – Visakhapatnam 72% lower, Chennai (Madras) 69% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.10 ₹199

$2.06 ₹196

1.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$8.27 ₹785

$12.41 ₹1,179

-33.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.56 ₹433

$4.25 ₹404

7.29%

Cappuccino

$1.68 ₹159

$1.81 ₹172

-7.18%

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

$0.30 ₹28.34

$0.36 ₹34.57

-16.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.09 ₹8.08

$0.18 ₹16.64

-50.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.15 ₹204

$1.56 ₹148

37.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.04 ₹289

$3.05 ₹289

-0.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.73 ₹69.7

$0.56 ₹53.4

30.36%

White Bread (500g)

$0.52 ₹49.71

$0.54 ₹51.6

-3.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.61 ₹57.7

$0.74 ₹70.2

-17.57%

Eggs

$0.82 ₹77.8

$0.82 ₹77.9

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.67 ₹538

$6.06 ₹575

-6.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.23 ₹307

Apples (1kg)

$2.53 ₹240

$2.89 ₹275

-12.46%

Banana (1kg)

$0.66 ₹62.4

$0.80 ₹76.2

-17.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.02 ₹96.7

$1.40 ₹133

-27.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.39 ₹37.35

$0.43 ₹40.70

-9.30%

Potato (1kg)

$0.38 ₹36.21

$0.45 ₹42.42

-15.56%

Onion (1kg)

$0.38 ₹36.19

$0.43 ₹40.45

-11.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.55 ₹52.6

$0.52 ₹49.61

5.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.32 ₹30.63

$0.28 ₹26.44

14.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.47 ₹425

$5.14 ₹488

-13.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.06 ₹860

$7.52 ₹714

20.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 ₹155

$1.85 ₹176

-11.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 ₹305

$2.68 ₹254

20.15%

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

$4.43 ₹421

$6.78 ₹644

-34.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.20 ₹18.99

$0.30 ₹28.41

-33.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$13.54 ₹1,286

$10.31 ₹979

31.33%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.04 ₹98.5

$1.07 ₹102

-2.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.17 ₹16.03

$0.32 ₹30.55

-46.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.66 ₹253

$2.14 ₹204

24.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.13 ₹107

$1.09 ₹104

3.67%

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

$13.3K ₹1.3M

$15.5K ₹1.5M

-13.91%

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

$21.7K ₹2.1M

$19.7K ₹1.9M

10.31%

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

$33.19 ₹3,152

$38.87 ₹3,691

-14.61%

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

$3.50 ₹332

$4.07 ₹387

-14.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$5.25 ₹499

$7.93 ₹753

-33.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$17.97 ₹1,706

$12.80 ₹1,216

40.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.41 ₹609

$6.83 ₹648

-6.15%

Cinema Ticket

$2.59 ₹246

$2.56 ₹243

1.17%

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

$49.93 ₹4,742

$86.7 ₹8,229

-42.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,566 ₹148.7K

$2,119 ₹201.2K

-26.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$22.87 ₹2,171

$20.39 ₹1,936

12.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$21.16 ₹2,009

$16.65 ₹1,581

27.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$29.75 ₹2,825

$35.60 ₹3,381

-16.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$30.97 ₹2,941

$30.60 ₹2,906

1.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$147 ₹14.0K

$181 ₹17.2K

-18.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$62.5 ₹5,937

$101 ₹9,611

-38.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$357 ₹33.9K

$506 ₹48.0K

-29.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$146 ₹13.8K

$300 ₹28.5K

-51.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$925 ₹87.8K

$2,083 ₹197.8K

-55.62%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$470 ₹44.6K

$797 ₹75.6K

-41.04%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$351 ₹33.3K

$654 ₹62.1K

-46.32%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.58

9.99

-14.11%

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

Last update for Visakhapatnam: October 12, 2026

Last update for Chennai (Madras): October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Visakhapatnam

$115 30.6%

Chennai (Madras)

$116 28% 1% $1.2

Eating Out

Visakhapatnam

$69 18.4%

Chennai (Madras)

$67 16.2% 2.9% $2

Accommodation & Living

Visakhapatnam

$63 16.7%

Chennai (Madras)

$101 24.5% 61.9% $39

Clothing & Footwear

Visakhapatnam

$47 12.6%

Chennai (Madras)

$46 11.2% 1.4% $0.7

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Visakhapatnam

$42 11.2%

Chennai (Madras)

$51 12.3% 21.3% $8.9

Sport & Entertainment

Visakhapatnam

$23 6.2%

Chennai (Madras)

$18 4.3% 22.6% $5.2

Getting Around

Visakhapatnam

$16 4.3%

Chennai (Madras)

$14 3.4% 12.5% $2

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $147 in Visakhapatnam versus $181 in Chennai (Madras). Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 86% higher in Chennai (Madras), which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $8.00 in Visakhapatnam versus $12.00 in Chennai (Madras). Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $115 vs $116 – making Visakhapatnam the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇳 Visakhapatnam

🇮🇳 Chennai (Madras)

🕒 Local time

15:01 3:01 PM

Same time as Visakhapatnam

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,526,000

4,681,087

💱 Currency

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 INR = 10.53 USD

1,000 INR = 9.37 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.53 USD

1,000 INR = 9.37 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Visakhapatnam Chennai (Madras) 610 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

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Visakhapatnam
Chennai (Madras)

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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

Visakhapatnam vs Chennai (Madras): Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chennai (Madras) costs about 10% more than Visakhapatnam, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from leisure. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $562 per month in Visakhapatnam and $620 in Chennai (Madras). That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Visakhapatnam, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $375 in Visakhapatnam and $414 in Chennai (Madras). That's a gap of about 10%.

Public transport costs about 31% less in Visakhapatnam. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$1,200 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $375 in Visakhapatnam and $414 in Chennai (Madras), leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Visakhapatnam costs $375 versus $414 in Chennai (Madras). 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 Visakhapatnam. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Chennai (Madras) makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.