Spending by international visitors while visiting a country in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka: Spending by international visitors while visiting a country was 2.37 billion current US$ in 2023. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2023)
2.37 billion current US$
Change on year
up 74.8%
World rank
88th
of 203 countries
All-time high
5.61 billion current US$
in 2018
All-time low
282.00 million current US$
in 1996
Years of data
29
1995–2023

Spending by international visitors while visiting a country in Sri Lanka, 1995–2023

02.0B4.0B6.0B1995200920231995: 367.0M current US$1996: 282.0M current US$1997: 351.0M current US$1998: 369.0M current US$1999: 414.0M current US$2000: 388.0M current US$2001: 347.0M current US$2002: 594.0M current US$2003: 709.0M current US$2004: 808.0M current US$2005: 729.0M current US$2006: 733.0M current US$2007: 750.0M current US$2008: 803.0M current US$2009: 754.0M current US$2010: 1.0B current US$2011: 1.4B current US$2012: 1.8B current US$2013: 2.5B current US$2014: 3.3B current US$2015: 4.0B current US$2016: 4.6B current US$2017: 5.1B current US$2018: 5.6B current US$2019: 4.7B current US$2020: 1.1B current US$2021: 614.9M current US$2022: 1.4B current US$2023: 2.4B current US$

Source: UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in current US$.

Analysis

In 2023, spending by international visitors while visiting a country in Sri Lanka stood at 2.37 billion current US$.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 74.8% on the previous year and down 5.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, spending by international visitors while visiting a country in Sri Lanka peaked at 5.61 billion current US$ in 2018 and was at its lowest, 282.00 million current US$, in 1996.

That places Sri Lanka 88th out of 203 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 356.60 million current US$ 282.00 million current US$ 414.00 million current US$ 5
2000s 661.50 million current US$ 347.00 million current US$ 808.00 million current US$ 10
2010s 3.39 billion current US$ 1.04 billion current US$ 5.61 billion current US$ 10
2020s 1.36 billion current US$ 614.90 million current US$ 2.37 billion current US$ 4

Countries ranked near Sri Lanka

  1. 85 Myanmar 2.50 billion current US$ compare
  2. 86 Israel 2.47 billion current US$ compare
  3. 87 Azerbaijan 2.44 billion current US$ compare
  4. 89 Estonia 2.36 billion current US$ compare
  5. 90 Uruguay 2.30 billion current US$ compare
  6. 91 Mauritius 2.17 billion current US$ compare

See the full ranking of 203 places →

More reference data data for Sri Lanka

All data for Sri Lanka →

Frequently asked questions

What is spending by international visitors while visiting a country in Sri Lanka?
Spending by international visitors while visiting a country in Sri Lanka was 2.37 billion current US$ in 2023, according to UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest spending by international visitors while visiting a country recorded in Sri Lanka?
The highest recorded value was 5.61 billion current US$ in 2018.
What is the lowest spending by international visitors while visiting a country recorded in Sri Lanka?
The lowest recorded value was 282.00 million current US$ in 1996.
How does Sri Lanka rank for spending by international visitors while visiting a country?
Sri Lanka ranks 88th out of 203 countries with data for 2023.
Is spending by international visitors while visiting a country rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
Over the last ten years it is down 5.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Sri Lanka data come from?
The figures come from UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Spending by international visitors while visiting a country. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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About this data

Indicator
Spending by international visitors while visiting a country
Unit
current US$
Source
UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
203 places, 4,579 data points, 1995–2024
Last refreshed

Money received by the destination country from foreign visitors, including spending on accommodation, food, local transport, entertainment, shopping, and fares paid to the country’s own airlines. The data is expressed in current US dollars and is not adjusted for inflation or differences in living costs between countries.