International tourism, expenditures (current US$) in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: International tourism, expenditures was 803.00 million current US$ in 2020. ◆ Volatile
International tourism, expenditures in Sri Lanka, 1995–2020
Source: Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files, UN Tourism. Measured in current US$.
Analysis
The most recent figure for international tourism, expenditures in Sri Lanka is 803.00 million current US$, measured in 2020.
The figure is down 67.0% on the previous year and down 3.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, international tourism, expenditures in Sri Lanka peaked at 2.49 billion current US$ in 2018 and was at its lowest, 267.00 million current US$, in 1996.
That places Sri Lanka 75th out of 192 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
International tourism, expenditures in Sri Lanka, year by year
| Year | current US$ | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 279.00 million current US$ | — |
| 1996 | 267.00 million current US$ | -4.3% |
| 1997 | 280.00 million current US$ | +4.9% |
| 1998 | 326.00 million current US$ | +16.4% |
| 1999 | 341.00 million current US$ | +4.6% |
| 2000 | 383.00 million current US$ | +12.3% |
| 2001 | 402.00 million current US$ | +5.0% |
| 2002 | 438.00 million current US$ | +9.0% |
| 2003 | 462.00 million current US$ | +5.5% |
| 2004 | 499.00 million current US$ | +8.0% |
| 2005 | 552.00 million current US$ | +10.6% |
| 2006 | 666.00 million current US$ | +20.7% |
| 2007 | 709.00 million current US$ | +6.5% |
| 2008 | 777.00 million current US$ | +9.6% |
| 2009 | 735.00 million current US$ | -5.4% |
| 2010 | 828.00 million current US$ | +12.7% |
| 2011 | 926.00 million current US$ | +11.8% |
| 2012 | 1.22 billion current US$ | +31.6% |
| 2013 | 1.81 billion current US$ | +48.3% |
| 2014 | 1.92 billion current US$ | +6.3% |
| 2015 | 2.15 billion current US$ | +12.0% |
| 2016 | 2.29 billion current US$ | +6.6% |
| 2017 | 2.41 billion current US$ | +5.0% |
| 2018 | 2.49 billion current US$ | +3.2% |
| 2019 | 2.44 billion current US$ | -2.1% |
| 2020 | 803.00 million current US$ | -67.0% |
Sri Lanka compared with similar countries
- Sri Lanka's 803.00 million current US$ is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 346.00 million current US$, 2.3× the median. (56 countries reporting)
- Sri Lanka's 803.00 million current US$ is above the median for South Asia, which is 463.00 million current US$, 1.7× the median. (6 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where International tourism, expenditures in Sri Lanka changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | -67.0% | 2.44 billion current US$ | 803.00 million current US$ |
| 2013 | +48.3% | 1.22 billion current US$ | 1.81 billion current US$ |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 298.60 million current US$ | 267.00 million current US$ | 341.00 million current US$ | 5 |
| 2000s | 562.30 million current US$ | 383.00 million current US$ | 777.00 million current US$ | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.85 billion current US$ | 828.00 million current US$ | 2.49 billion current US$ | 10 |
| 2020s | 803.00 million current US$ | 803.00 million current US$ | 803.00 million current US$ | 1 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
More private sector data for Sri Lanka
- Merchandise trade 32.2% (2025)
- Food imports 15.3% (2024)
- Manufactures imports 59.7% (2024)
- Merchandise imports 21.48 billion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 27.3% (2024)
- Manufactures exports 66.0% (2024)
- Merchandise exports 13.58 billion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 624.24 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.1248 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate 6.33 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is international tourism, expenditures in Sri Lanka?
- International tourism, expenditures in Sri Lanka was 803.00 million current US$ in 2020, according to Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files, UN Tourism.
- What is the highest international tourism, expenditures recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 2.49 billion current US$ in 2018.
- What is the lowest international tourism, expenditures recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was 267.00 million current US$ in 1996.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for international tourism, expenditures?
- Sri Lanka ranks 75th out of 192 countries with data for 2020.
- Is international tourism, expenditures rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is down 3.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Sri Lanka data come from?
- The figures come from Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files, UN Tourism, published as part of International tourism, expenditures (current US$). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
International tourism expenditures are expenditures of international outbound visitors in other countries, including payments to foreign carriers for international transport. These expenditures may include those by residents traveling abroad as same-day visitors, except in cases where these are important enough to justify separate classification. For some countries they do not include expenditures for passenger transport items. Data are in current U.S. dollars.