Cost of living comparison

Nicaragua

compared to

Sri Lanka

Colombo vs. Managua Cost of Living Summary

Colombo is 15.6% cheaper than Managua.

Restaurants: pay 42.8% less in Colombo
Groceries: pay 24.0% less in Colombo
Transportation: pay 4.5% more in Colombo
Housing: pay 37.2% more in Colombo
Childcare: pay 82.1% less in Colombo
Entertainment and Sports: pay 17.8% less in Colombo
Clothing: pay 65.4% less in Colombo

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

Planning a move to Sri Lanka? Get up to 5 free, no-obligation quotes from vetted international movers. Get free quotes →

Colombo vs. Managua Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 42.8% less for restaurants

	Managua	Colombo
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$10.00 NIO368.55	$3.82 LKR1,265.61	-61.8%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$7.61 NIO280.46	$7.56 LKR2,502.59	-0.7%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.88 NIO32.54	$0.70 LKR232.56	-20.5%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.71 NIO26.22	$0.26 LKR87.00	-63.1%
Average			-42.8%

Managua vs. Colombo - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 24.0% less for groceries

	Managua	Colombo
Bread 1 loaf	$2.37 NIO87.46	$0.55 LKR181.98	-76.8%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.80 NIO213.64	$6.89 LKR2,281.50	+18.8%
Milk (1 gallon)	$4.68 NIO172.61	$6.03 LKR1,996.25	+28.7%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.37 NIO87.18	$1.64 LKR541.78	-30.8%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.87 NIO105.79	$2.21 LKR731.08	-23.1%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.82 NIO67.08	$3.06 LKR1,014.37	+68.3%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.27 NIO10.03	$0.37 LKR122.81	+36.2%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.82 NIO30.09	$2.03 LKR672.87	+148.8%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.11 NIO41.05	$0.57 LKR187.42	-49.2%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.79 NIO65.90	$0.46 LKR150.85	-74.5%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.01 NIO37.13	$0.35 LKR116.82	-65.0%
Average			-24.0%

Managua vs. Colombo - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 4.5% more for transportation

	Managua	Colombo
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.06 NIO186.38	$5.14 LKR1,701.24	+1.6%
Monthly public transit pass	$6.01 NIO221.41	$7.19 LKR2,381.42	+19.7%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$22,973.64 NIO847K	$37,024.95 LKR12M	+61.2%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$14.69 NIO541.39	$3.29 LKR1,091.13	-77.6%
Average			+4.5%

Managua vs. Colombo - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 37.2% more for housing

	Managua	Colombo
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$32.47 NIO1,196.57	$20.78 LKR6,883.48	-36.0%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$256.40 NIO9,449.50	$589.61 LKR195K	+130.0%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$181.00 NIO6,670.67	$270.44 LKR89,571.04	+49.4%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$115.83 NIO4,268.74	$41.14 LKR13,624.66	-64.5%
Average			+37.2%

Managua vs. Colombo - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 82.1% less for childcare

	Managua	Colombo
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$235.82 NIO8,690.94	$37.78 LKR12,512.93	-84.0%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$6,060.00 NIO223K	$1,208.98 LKR400K	-80.0%
Average			-82.1%

Managua vs. Colombo - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 17.8% less for entertainment and sports

	Managua	Colombo
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.50 NIO55.28	$2.21 LKR730.76	+47.1%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.60 NIO95.82	$2.51 LKR832.69	-3.3%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.73 NIO100.51	$10.28 LKR3,403.52	+276.8%
Monthly membership at local gym	$34.79 NIO1,282.16	$13.99 LKR4,634.42	-59.8%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$9.00 NIO331.69	$4.53 LKR1,501.55	-49.6%
Average			-17.8%

Managua vs. Colombo - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 65.4% less for clothing

	Managua	Colombo
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$59.88 NIO2,206.90	$18.13 LKR6,006.21	-69.7%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$65.00 NIO2,395.54	$16.62 LKR5,505.69	-74.4%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$122.64 NIO4,519.99	$79.09 LKR26,193.74	-35.5%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$144.83 NIO5,337.49	$41.76 LKR13,832.48	-71.2%
Average			-65.4%

Managua vs. Colombo - Cost of clothing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this

Compare further: Managua vs. Colombo

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in Colombo?

More cost comparisons

Managua vs.

Berlin

Managua vs.

Canberra

Managua vs.

Ottawa

Managua vs.

Cairo

Managua vs.

Bangkok

Managua vs.

Vienna

Managua vs.

Dublin

Managua vs.

Hanoi

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

See the cost of living in Nicaragua vs. Sri Lanka. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Nicaragua 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

Add prices for Managua

Add prices for Colombo

Ask the Elsewhere Community

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Colombo or Managua. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.