Cost of living comparison
compared to
Sri Lanka vs. North Carolina Cost of Living Summary
Sri Lanka is 59.5% cheaper than North Carolina.
- Restaurants
-
pay 63.1% less in Sri Lanka
- Groceries
-
pay 38.0% less in Sri Lanka
- Transportation
-
pay 38.9% less in Sri Lanka
- Housing
-
pay 81.2% less in Sri Lanka
- Childcare
-
pay 97.7% less in Sri Lanka
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 47.1% less in Sri Lanka
- Clothing
-
pay 50.4% less in Sri Lanka
Expenses including childcare, housing, restaurants, clothing, entertainment and sports, and transportation are lower in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka vs. North Carolina Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Sri Lanka instead of North Carolina, you would:
pay 63.1% less for restaurants
|
North Carolina
|
Sri Lanka
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.06
|
$3.63
LKR1,121.25
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.47
|
$7.90
LKR2,436.18
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.28
|
$0.73
LKR225.20
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.82
|
$0.35
LKR106.57
|
|
North Carolina vs. Sri Lanka - Cost of restaurants
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pay 38.0% less for groceries
|
North Carolina
|
Sri Lanka
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.79
|
$0.48
LKR147.65
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.80
|
$5.72
LKR1,764.95
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.73
|
$6.01
LKR1,854.87
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.98
|
$1.94
LKR599.72
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.20
|
$2.05
LKR632.42
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.47
|
$2.40
LKR739.83
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.71
|
$0.44
LKR137.02
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.20
|
$2.17
LKR668.54
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.38
|
$0.55
LKR169.10
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.74
|
$0.45
LKR140.33
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.80
|
$0.51
LKR156.59
|
|
North Carolina vs. Sri Lanka - Cost of groceries
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pay 38.9% less for transportation
|
North Carolina
|
Sri Lanka
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.98
|
$4.12
LKR1,269.87
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$60.67
|
$10.74
LKR3,312.79
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$33,588.64
|
$24,680.98
LKR7,614,323.25
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$19.99
|
$3.00
LKR925.54
|
|
North Carolina vs. Sri Lanka - Cost of transportation
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pay 81.2% less for housing
|
North Carolina
|
Sri Lanka
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$72.77
|
$12.84
LKR3,959.91
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,488.15
|
$289.17
LKR89,212.31
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,261.77
|
$178.38
LKR55,032.97
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$132.31
|
$31.64
LKR9,761.22
|
|
North Carolina vs. Sri Lanka - Cost of housing
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pay 97.7% less for childcare
|
North Carolina
|
Sri Lanka
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,261.89
|
$33.87
LKR10,448.03
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$24,633.15
|
$466.09
LKR143,792.13
|
|
North Carolina vs. Sri Lanka - Cost of childcare
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pay 47.1% less for entertainment and sports
|
North Carolina
|
Sri Lanka
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.12
|
$2.08
LKR642.17
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.82
|
$2.39
LKR738.64
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$7.77
|
$9.25
LKR2,854.10
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$48.40
|
$15.04
LKR4,638.51
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$12.98
|
$3.12
LKR963.26
|
|
North Carolina vs. Sri Lanka - Cost of entertainment and sports
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pay 50.4% less for clothing
|
North Carolina
|
Sri Lanka
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$49.30
|
$25.05
LKR7,728.15
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$37.76
|
$17.03
LKR5,252.90
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$88.37
|
$62.69
LKR19,340.26
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$111.01
|
$35.07
LKR10,819.36
|
|
North Carolina vs. Sri Lanka - 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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cost of living in United States vs. Sri Lanka.
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