Cost of living comparison

compared to

Kabul vs. Colombo Cost of Living Summary

Kabul is 4.6% more expensive than Colombo.

Restaurants: pay 48.6% less in Kabul
Groceries: pay 57.2% less in Kabul
Transportation: pay 32.5% more in Kabul
Housing: pay 2.1 times more in Kabul
Childcare: pay 73.9% more in Kabul
Entertainment and Sports: pay 39.3% less in Kabul
Clothing: pay 34.6% less in Kabul

The cost of housing, childcare, and transportation in Kabul are more expensive than in Colombo. Expenses including groceries, restaurants, entertainment and sports, and clothing are lower in Kabul. Notably, housing is significantly more expensive in Kabul.

Kabul vs. Colombo Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Kabul instead of Colombo, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 48.6% less for restaurants

	Colombo	Kabul
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$4.13 LKR1,269.15	$2.66 AFN176	-35.6%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$8.26 LKR2,538.29	$4.43 AFN293	-46.4%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.76 LKR233.26	$0.36 AFN24	-53.0%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.36 LKR111.43	$0.15 AFN10	-59.3%
Average			-48.6%

Colombo vs. Kabul - Cost of restaurants

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pay 57.2% less for groceries

	Colombo	Kabul
Bread 1 loaf	$0.52 LKR160.10	$0.21 AFN14	-59.4%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$6.78 LKR2,083.94	$1.93 AFN128	-71.5%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.70 LKR2,060.40	$2.94 AFN194	-56.1%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.95 LKR600.76	$1.43 AFN94	-27.0%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.05 LKR629.94	$1.57 AFN104	-23.5%
Apples (1 lb)	$3.42 LKR1,051.88	$0.25 AFN17	-92.6%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.50 LKR152.38	$0.36 AFN24	-27.0%
Oranges (1 lb)	$2.69 LKR826.88	$0.33 AFN22	-87.6%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.55 LKR168.43	$0.21 AFN14	-62.1%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.51 LKR157.17	$0.21 AFN14	-58.1%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.58 LKR177.69	$0.20 AFN13	-64.8%
Average			-57.2%

Colombo vs. Kabul - Cost of groceries

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pay 32.5% more for transportation

	Colombo	Kabul
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.12 LKR1,264.88	$3.72 AFN246	-9.6%
Monthly public transit pass	$6.61 LKR2,030.64	$10.34 AFN683	+56.4%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$26,432.11 LKR8,122,543.83	$8,122.57 AFN537,000	-69.3%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$3.04 LKR934.09	$7.68 AFN508	+152.6%
Average			+32.5%

Colombo vs. Kabul - Cost of transportation

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pay 2.1 times more for housing

	Colombo	Kabul
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$14.01 LKR4,306.40	$93.04 AFN6,151	+563.9%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$360.90 LKR110,903.96	$87.13 AFN5,761	-75.9%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$177.21 LKR54,457.87	$59.07 AFN3,905	-66.7%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$38.78 LKR11,916.86	$39.53 AFN2,613	+1.9%
Average			+105.8%

Colombo vs. Kabul - Cost of housing

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pay 73.9% more for childcare

	Colombo	Kabul
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$33.87 LKR10,407.01	$18.90 AFN1,250	-44.2%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$505.51 LKR155,343.65	$1,476.83 AFN97,636	+192.1%
Average			+73.9%

Colombo vs. Kabul - Cost of childcare

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pay 39.3% less for entertainment and sports

	Colombo	Kabul
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$2.31 LKR710.72	$2.36 AFN156	+2.2%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.67 LKR820.10	$1.06 AFN70	-60.3%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$10.24 LKR3,147.49	$2.66 AFN176	-74.0%
Monthly membership at local gym	$13.33 LKR4,097.53	$9.16 AFN605	-31.3%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$3.30 LKR1,015.32	$2.22 AFN146	-33.0%
Average			-39.3%

Colombo vs. Kabul - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 34.6% less for clothing

	Colombo	Kabul
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$26.56 LKR8,162.73	$9.60 AFN635	-63.9%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$17.76 LKR5,457.33	$17.72 AFN1,172	-0.2%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$67.21 LKR20,653.71	$33.97 AFN2,246	-49.5%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$38.07 LKR11,700.33	$28.68 AFN1,896	-24.7%
Average			-34.6%

Colombo vs. Kabul - Cost of clothing

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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

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