Cost of studying and living in Chennai

Every year, a large number of students from all over the country move to southern states like Karnataka, Kerala, Telangana and Tamil Nadu etc to study. Chennai, is among the top choices for a degree in engineering.

It is always better to know about your host city. Information about public transport, living expenses, food expenses etc help in planning in advance. If you have been accepted by a college in Chennai or aspire to pursue engineering in Chennai at colleges like College of Engineering (Anna University), Chennai Institute of Technology, Sri Sivasubramaniya Nadar College aka SSN College of Engineering, Rajalakshmi Engineering College etc, you need not worry as we have got the answers to every necessary question from a student’s point of view.

Careers360 talked with four engineering students who are currently studying and living in Chennai. Their experiences will not only help one in budgeting one’s expenses but also give one a fair idea of what one should expect to incur on rent, food, traveling etc.

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Supratheesh Iyer (SI): I belong to Chennai. Currently, I am pursuing BE (Civil Engineering) from Sri Sai Ram Engineering College, Chennai.

Ajay Mani (AM): I am a final year student of PGDM course at ITM Institute for Technology and Management, Chennai. I belong to Andhra Pradesh.

Lasya Nair (LN): I am from Karnataka. Currently, I am pursuing BTech (Information Technology) from Anna University, Chennai.

Arvind Kumar (AK): I belong to Bihar. I am a second year student of BE (Computer Science Engineering) in Rajalakshmi Engineering College, Chennai.

What Is The Rent Cost In Chennai?

SI: As I am a permanent resident of Chennai, I live at my own home here. However, I have friends who live in rented apartments and hostels. They tell me the average rent of a 2BHK flat in the main city is between Rs 18,000 - 20,000 + electricity and water charges whereas the rent far from the main city is around Rs 10,000 - 12,000 for a 2BHK flat. For hostels and PGs, some of my friends pay Rs 6,000 per month and some pay Rs 8,000 with additional facilities like AC and washing machine.

AM: I live in a PG which is about three kilometers away from my college. I share a room with two of my classmates. My monthly rent is Rs 6,000 including everything.

LN: I live in a girls PG near the college. I pay Rs 6,500 per month.

AK: I live in a 3 BHK flat with three other guys. My flat is around 12 km from the college. The total monthly rent of our flat is Rs 18,500 which gets divided equally among four of us.

What Is Your Monthly Expenditure On Food?

SI: I live with my family so I don’t have anything to say on this.

AM: In my PG, I get morning breakfast and dinner. I do lunch outside or in the college's canteen. Also, on weekends, I hangout with my friends, so my monthly expenses on food is around Rs 2,500.

LN: I spend around Rs 3,000 on food which includes local street food, and expenses on food on weekends etc.

AK: All four of us cook by ourselves and we avoid eating outside food. But at times, on holidays and weekends, we do go out and I spend around Rs 2,000.

What About Travelling In Chennai?

SI: I spend around Rs 1,500 per month. I commute to the college by my scooty.

AM: My expenses on travelling is roughly Rs 1,000 per month as my college is not very far from my PG.

LN: It’s around Rs 2,000 per month.

AK: I use public transport to commute. My expenses fall around Rs 1,200 - Rs 1,500 per month.

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How Much Do You Spend On Weekend Leisure?

SI: I don’t have any expenses as such.

AM: I spend around Rs 2,500 per month.

LN: Not much, it’s nearly Rs 500 - Rs 1000 depending upon what I am doing on the weekend.

AK: It’s around Rs 1,500 per month. I go to Marina Beach at least twice a month and enjoy it there.

Other Expenses

SI: Nothing as such.

AM: I spend around Rs 2,000 per month for my mobile recharge, internet connection and personal expenses.

LN: It’s around Rs 500 - Rs 800 on cosmetics etc. At times, when I go shopping, it increases to Rs 2,000 -Rs 3,000.

AK: It’s roughly Rs 1,000 a month.

Are There Any Inexpensive Places To Live In Chennai?

SI: I would say Teynampet, Annanur, Walajabad, Avadi,Kottivakkam, Tambaram, Guduvanchery, GST Road and Madipakkam

AM: Places like Avadi, Tambaram, GST Road, Madipakkam and Anna Nagar are cheaper.

LN: Guduvanchery, Anna Nagar, Kottivakkam, Adambakkam and Annaur are some of the economical places to live in Chennai.

AK: Tambaram, Adambakkam, Anna Nagar etc.

Student Experiences In Chennai

SI: Not many people here understand Hindi and English. You should learn some basic words in Tamil. Words like milk, water, come, go etc. The people here are very helpful and friendly.

AM: If you are coming from North India, be ready to eat South Indian cuisine because North Indian food here is expensive and not available at every place. You should also be ready to face the language barrier and humid climate of Chennai.

LN: Learn basic and common Tamil words and a few common sentences in order to converse with the locals. In some places, the availability of drinking water is a big problem in Chennai so choose the place to live wisely.

AK: If you are fine with eating South Indian dishes like dosa, idli-sambhar, vada, uttapam, upma etc. then you are sorted. But if you are not okay then either cook for yourself or spend a lot of money on the food of your choice. For non-Tamil speakers, it’s a big problem to converse with people, so learn some basic Tamil words and sentences. Majority of the people are good but some landlords may be biased.

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By now, you must have understood what it is like to live and study in Chennai and what all things are there that will be coming your way when you will shift here and how you should prepare yourself to face them. The experiences of all the four students will definitely help you prepare yourself better, budget your expenses and most importantly get a fair idea about life in Chennai.

We wish you all the best!