Cost of living comparison
compared to
Colombo vs. Manila Cost of Living Summary
Colombo is 20.4% cheaper than Manila.
- Restaurants
-
pay 2.7% more in Colombo
- Groceries
-
pay 3.9% less in Colombo
- Transportation
-
pay 11.3% less in Colombo
- Housing
-
pay 42.2% less in Colombo
- Childcare
-
pay 86.3% less in Colombo
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 30.1% more in Colombo
- Clothing
-
pay 31.6% less in Colombo
The cost of entertainment and sports and restaurants in Colombo are more expensive than in Manila. Expenses including childcare, housing, clothing, transportation, and groceries are lower in Colombo.
Colombo vs. Manila Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Colombo instead of Manila, you would:
pay 2.7% more for restaurants
|
Manila
|
Colombo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$6.02
₱353.05
|
$4.13
LKR1,269.15
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$4.30
₱252.18
|
$8.26
LKR2,538.29
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.97
₱56.95
|
$0.76
LKR233.26
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.50
₱29.53
|
$0.36
LKR111.43
|
|
Manila vs. Colombo - Cost of restaurants
pay 3.9% less for groceries
|
Manila
|
Colombo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.33
₱78.20
|
$0.52
LKR160.10
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.28
₱250.71
|
$6.78
LKR2,083.94
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$7.32
₱429.22
|
$6.70
LKR2,060.40
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.21
₱129.78
|
$1.95
LKR600.76
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$2.28
₱133.88
|
$2.05
LKR629.94
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.52
₱88.87
|
$3.42
LKR1,051.88
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.82
₱48.21
|
$0.50
LKR152.38
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.64
₱95.97
|
$2.69
LKR826.88
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.02
₱60.03
|
$0.55
LKR168.43
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.17
₱68.60
|
$0.51
LKR157.17
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.37
₱80.59
|
$0.58
LKR177.69
|
|
Manila vs. Colombo - Cost of groceries
pay 11.3% less for transportation
|
Manila
|
Colombo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.18
₱245.08
|
$4.12
LKR1,264.88
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$13.76
₱806.96
|
$6.61
LKR2,030.64
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$25,288.58
₱1,482,795.87
|
$26,432.11
LKR8,122,543.83
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$2.92
₱171.48
|
$3.04
LKR934.09
|
|
Manila vs. Colombo - Cost of transportation
pay 42.2% less for housing
|
Manila
|
Colombo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$27.10
₱1,589.12
|
$14.01
LKR4,306.40
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$512.96
₱30,077.69
|
$360.90
LKR110,903.96
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$251.74
₱14,760.64
|
$177.21
LKR54,457.87
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$100.49
₱5,892.28
|
$38.78
LKR11,916.86
|
|
Manila vs. Colombo - Cost of housing
pay 86.3% less for childcare
|
Manila
|
Colombo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$138.58
₱8,125.68
|
$33.87
LKR10,407.01
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$17,035.39
₱998,869.80
|
$505.51
LKR155,343.65
|
|
Manila vs. Colombo - Cost of childcare
pay 30.1% more for entertainment and sports
|
Manila
|
Colombo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.46
₱85.74
|
$2.31
LKR710.72
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.59
₱151.71
|
$2.67
LKR820.10
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$3.27
₱191.65
|
$10.24
LKR3,147.49
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$42.13
₱2,470.49
|
$13.33
LKR4,097.53
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$7.48
₱438.79
|
$3.30
LKR1,015.32
|
|
Manila vs. Colombo - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 31.6% less for clothing
|
Manila
|
Colombo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$49.23
₱2,886.45
|
$26.56
LKR8,162.73
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$29.70
₱1,741.30
|
$17.76
LKR5,457.33
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$80.85
₱4,740.84
|
$67.21
LKR20,653.71
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$49.70
₱2,913.92
|
$38.07
LKR11,700.33
|
|
Manila 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
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