Cost of living comparison
compared to
Colombo vs. Chennai Cost of Living Summary
Colombo is 37.2% more expensive than Chennai.
- Restaurants
-
pay 89.0% more in Colombo
- Groceries
-
pay 2.3 times more in Colombo
- Transportation
-
pay 1.5% less in Colombo
- Housing
-
pay 48.1% more in Colombo
- Childcare
-
pay 61.6% less in Colombo
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 47.3% more in Colombo
- Clothing
-
pay 8.5% more in Colombo
The cost of groceries, restaurants, housing, entertainment and sports, and clothing in Colombo are more expensive than in Chennai. Expenses including childcare and transportation are lower in Colombo. Notably, groceries and restaurants are significantly more expensive in Colombo.
Colombo vs. Chennai Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Colombo instead of Chennai, you would:
pay 89.0% more for restaurants
|
Chennai
|
Colombo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$2.25
₹202.85
|
$4.13
LKR1,273.88
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$3.95
₹354.99
|
$8.26
LKR2,547.76
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.47
₹42.22
|
$0.76
LKR234.13
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.18
₹16.17
|
$0.36
LKR111.85
|
|
Chennai vs. Colombo - Cost of restaurants
pay 2.3 times more for groceries
|
Chennai
|
Colombo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$0.49
₹43.99
|
$0.52
LKR160.70
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$3.32
₹299.10
|
$6.78
LKR2,091.71
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$2.21
₹198.61
|
$6.70
LKR2,068.08
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$0.87
₹78.01
|
$1.95
LKR603.00
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$1.61
₹144.46
|
$2.05
LKR632.29
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.36
₹122.24
|
$3.42
LKR1,055.80
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.40
₹35.69
|
$0.50
LKR152.94
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.62
₹55.44
|
$2.69
LKR829.96
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.20
₹18.10
|
$0.55
LKR169.06
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.23
₹20.46
|
$0.51
LKR157.76
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.22
₹20.13
|
$0.58
LKR178.36
|
|
Chennai vs. Colombo - Cost of groceries
pay 1.5% less for transportation
|
Chennai
|
Colombo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.35
₹391.07
|
$4.12
LKR1,269.60
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$11.27
₹1,014.26
|
$6.61
LKR2,038.21
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$16,912.06
₹1,521,383.47
|
$26,432.11
LKR8,152,842.32
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$3.61
₹324.56
|
$3.04
LKR937.58
|
|
Chennai vs. Colombo - Cost of transportation
pay 48.1% more for housing
|
Chennai
|
Colombo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$8.99
₹808.75
|
$14.01
LKR4,322.46
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$193.40
₹17,398.39
|
$360.90
LKR111,317.65
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$121.20
₹10,903.25
|
$177.21
LKR54,661.01
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$37.31
₹3,356.79
|
$38.78
LKR11,961.31
|
|
Chennai vs. Colombo - Cost of housing
pay 61.6% less for childcare
|
Chennai
|
Colombo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$71.36
₹6,419.39
|
$33.87
LKR10,445.83
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$1,725.52
₹155,225.21
|
$505.51
LKR155,923.11
|
|
Chennai vs. Colombo - Cost of childcare
pay 47.3% more for entertainment and sports
|
Chennai
|
Colombo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.97
₹177.49
|
$2.31
LKR713.37
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$1.98
₹178.25
|
$2.67
LKR823.16
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$3.61
₹324.56
|
$10.24
LKR3,159.23
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$15.97
₹1,436.86
|
$13.33
LKR4,112.82
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$2.82
₹253.56
|
$3.30
LKR1,019.11
|
|
Chennai vs. Colombo - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 8.5% more for clothing
|
Chennai
|
Colombo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$24.75
₹2,226.54
|
$26.56
LKR8,193.18
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$20.94
₹1,883.62
|
$17.76
LKR5,477.69
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$50.07
₹4,504.66
|
$67.21
LKR20,730.75
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$35.41
₹3,185.51
|
$38.07
LKR11,743.98
|
|
Chennai vs. Colombo - Cost of clothing
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025
Change currency:
Compare countries by overall cost of living
See the
cost of living in India vs. Sri Lanka.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within India and Sri Lanka.
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Colombo or Chennai. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.