Cost of living comparison
compared to
Sri Lanka vs. United Arab Emirates Cost of Living Summary
Sri Lanka is 48.3% cheaper than United Arab Emirates overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 31.1% less in Sri Lanka
- Groceries
-
pay 12.4% more in Sri Lanka
- Transportation
-
pay 35.6% less in Sri Lanka
- Housing
-
pay 80.8% less in Sri Lanka
- Childcare
-
pay 93.8% less in Sri Lanka
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 48.0% less in Sri Lanka
- Clothing
-
pay 61.5% less in Sri Lanka
Expenses including childcare, housing, clothing, entertainment and sports, transportation, and restaurants are lower in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka vs. United Arab Emirates Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Sri Lanka instead of United Arab Emirates, you would:
pay 31.1% less for restaurants
|
United Arab Emirates
|
Sri Lanka
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$7.91
AED29.06
|
$3.63
LKR1,116.85
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$8.65
AED31.75
|
$7.90
LKR2,426.61
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.04
AED3.83
|
$0.73
LKR224.32
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.50
AED1.85
|
$0.35
LKR106.15
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. Sri Lanka - Cost of restaurants
pay 12.4% more for groceries
|
United Arab Emirates
|
Sri Lanka
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.47
AED5.39
|
$0.48
LKR147.07
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.36
AED19.68
|
$5.72
LKR1,758.02
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.96
AED25.56
|
$6.01
LKR1,847.59
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.81
AED10.34
|
$1.94
LKR597.37
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.68
AED13.51
|
$2.05
LKR629.94
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$0.98
AED3.59
|
$2.40
LKR736.93
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.75
AED2.75
|
$0.44
LKR136.48
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.73
AED2.69
|
$2.17
LKR665.91
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.59
AED2.15
|
$0.55
LKR168.43
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.48
AED1.76
|
$0.45
LKR139.78
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.53
AED1.93
|
$0.51
LKR155.98
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. Sri Lanka - Cost of groceries
pay 35.6% less for transportation
|
United Arab Emirates
|
Sri Lanka
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.91
AED10.69
|
$4.12
LKR1,264.88
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$53.10
AED195.00
|
$10.74
LKR3,299.78
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$40,680.12
AED149,397.75
|
$24,680.98
LKR7,584,425.30
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$8.50
AED31.21
|
$3.00
LKR921.91
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. Sri Lanka - Cost of transportation
pay 80.8% less for housing
|
United Arab Emirates
|
Sri Lanka
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$101.41
AED372.42
|
$12.84
LKR3,944.37
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,438.18
AED5,281.71
|
$289.17
LKR88,862.02
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$990.79
AED3,638.67
|
$178.38
LKR54,816.88
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$122.67
AED450.49
|
$31.64
LKR9,722.89
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. Sri Lanka - Cost of housing
pay 93.8% less for childcare
|
United Arab Emirates
|
Sri Lanka
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$497.28
AED1,826.25
|
$33.87
LKR10,407.01
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$8,164.49
AED29,984.10
|
$466.09
LKR143,227.52
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. Sri Lanka - Cost of childcare
pay 48.0% less for entertainment and sports
|
United Arab Emirates
|
Sri Lanka
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$10.43
AED38.31
|
$2.08
LKR639.65
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.99
AED18.32
|
$2.39
LKR735.74
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$6.23
AED22.88
|
$9.25
LKR2,842.89
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$75.55
AED277.45
|
$15.04
LKR4,620.30
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.19
AED48.44
|
$3.12
LKR959.48
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. Sri Lanka - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 61.5% less for clothing
|
United Arab Emirates
|
Sri Lanka
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$75.04
AED275.58
|
$25.05
LKR7,697.80
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$59.50
AED218.51
|
$17.03
LKR5,232.27
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$105.66
AED388.03
|
$62.69
LKR19,264.32
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$106.53
AED391.23
|
$35.07
LKR10,776.88
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. Sri Lanka - 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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