Bhutan vs. Sri Lanka Cost of Living Summary

Bhutan is 54.1% more expensive than Sri Lanka overall.

Restaurants
pay 38.5% less in Bhutan
Groceries
pay 23.6% less in Bhutan
Transportation
pay 2.5 times more in Bhutan
Housing
pay 13.8% less in Bhutan
Childcare
pay 4.2 times more in Bhutan
Entertainment and Sports
pay 30.8% more in Bhutan
Clothing
pay 40.0% less in Bhutan

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

Bhutan vs. Sri Lanka Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Bhutan instead of Sri Lanka, you would:

pay 38.5% less for restaurants

 
Sri Lanka
Bhutan
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $3.63
LKR1,116.85
$2.82
BTN251.43
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$7.90
LKR2,426.61
$3.38
BTN301.71
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $0.73
LKR224.32
$0.53
BTN47.27

Improve prices ·

pay 23.6% less for groceries

 
Sri Lanka
Bhutan
Bread
1 loaf
$0.48
LKR147.07
$0.89
BTN79.45
Local cheese (8 oz) $5.72
LKR1,758.02
$1.61
BTN143.31
Milk (1 gallon) $6.01
LKR1,847.59
$3.03
BTN270.30

Improve prices ·

pay 2.5 times more for transportation

 
Sri Lanka
Bhutan
Gasoline (1 gallon) $4.12
LKR1,264.88
$3.03
BTN270.45
Monthly public transit pass $10.74
LKR3,299.78
$4.01
BTN357.20
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $24,680.98
LKR7,584,425.30
??

Improve prices ·

pay 13.8% less for housing

 
Sri Lanka
Bhutan
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$12.84
LKR3,944.37
$26.44
BTN2,358.11
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $289.17
LKR88,862.02
$122.58
BTN10,932.01
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $178.38
LKR54,816.88
$71.54
BTN6,380.34

Improve prices ·

pay 4.2 times more for childcare

 
Sri Lanka
Bhutan
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $33.87
LKR10,407.01
$235.40
BTN20,994.09
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $466.09
LKR143,227.52
$648.40
BTN57,828.02

Improve prices ·

pay 30.8% more for entertainment and sports

 
Sri Lanka
Bhutan
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $2.08
LKR639.65
$2.82
BTN251.43
Cappuccino in mid-range area $2.39
LKR735.74
$1.40
BTN124.71
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$9.25
LKR2,842.89
$3.66
BTN326.85

Improve prices ·

pay 40.0% less for clothing

 
Sri Lanka
Bhutan
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$25.05
LKR7,697.80
$9.02
BTN804.56
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$17.03
LKR5,232.27
$11.28
BTN1,005.70
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$62.69
LKR19,264.32
$31.01
BTN2,765.69

Improve prices ·
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
Share this

Compare by city

For example, try comparing the cost of living in Colombo vs. Thimphu

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 Bhutan or Sri Lanka. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.