Malawi vs Zimbabwe - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Malawi Zimbabwe
🚶 Cost of living one person
$544
$860
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$1338
$2180
🏠 One person rent
$213
$318
🏘️ Family rent
$340
$517
🍽️ Food expenses
$221
$327
🚐 Transport expenses
$60.9
$145
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$105
$233
💸 GDP per capita
$523
$2497
😃 Human freedom index
6.63
5.02
❤️ Life expectancy
67.4
62.8
👮 Corruption perceptions index
34
22
🌐 English speaking %
3.9%
82.1%
🎓 Higher education
31
49
😀 Quality of life
24
27
🏙️ Population
21.7M
16.6M

The average cost of living in Malawi ($544) is 37% less expensive than in Zimbabwe ($860). Malawi ranked 177th vs 120th for Zimbabwe in the list of the most expensive countries in the world.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 0.2 months in Malawi compared to 0.3 months in Zimbabwe. Ranked 166th and 158th best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Share this picture

Prices in Malawi vs Zimbabwe

We calculate prices for Malawi and Zimbabwe as a population-weighted mean of 9 and 10 cities, respectively. Since large cities tend to have a higher cost of living, it's better to visit specific city pages below for more relevant information.

Malawi Zimbabwe
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$4.11
$8.13
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$19.3
$46.9
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$6.86
$5.49
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.3
$1.26
 Cappuccino
$2.17
$2.81
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$1.21
$0.69
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$300
$285
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$109
$205
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$559
$632
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$509
$554
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$27.6
$36.7
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$42.3
$56.1
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$40.2
$66
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
12.84%
13.66%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$7714
$1093
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$395
$926
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$0.75
$0.84
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$13
$43.5
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$10.4
$20.2
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.26
$1.64
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.89
$1.58
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$0.93
$1
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.25
$1.6
🥚 Eggs, x12
$1.94
$1.91
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$9.34
$11.1
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.68
$5.82
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.99
$5.99
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.07
$2.73
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.68
$1.63
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.88
$2.03
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.11
$1.37
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.05
$1.62
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.29
$1.64
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.47
$0.66
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$0.94
$2.32
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$10.1
$8.2
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$0.9
$1.25
🚬 Cigarette pack
$1.78
$1.71
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$1.85
$8.65
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$2.99
$5.13
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$0.75
$2.67
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$0.68
$1.49
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$34.3
$46.7
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$3.27
$9.96
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$17
$33
💇 Haircut, simple
$3.34
$6.67
👖 Brand Jeans
$27
$22.6
👟 Brand Sneakers
$49.1
$37.7
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$367
$328
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$1644
$8241

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in Malawi vs Zimbabwe

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In Malawi

City Cost of living Population
Lilongwe
$587
989K
Mzimba
$559
936K
Blantyre
$495
800K
Mzuzu
$522
150K
Zomba
$452
101K
Mangochi
$494
53.5K
Mulanje
$456
14.8K
Monkey Bay
$516
14.6K
Ntcheu
$489
14.6K

In Zimbabwe

City Cost of living Population
Harare
$1015
2.15M
Masvingo
$840
1.64M
Bulawayo
$632
666K
Chitungwiza
$780
371K
Mutare
$754
225K
Gweru
$565
141K
Kadoma
$727
116K
Kwekwe
$677
93.1K
Marondera
$755
52.3K
Chinhoyi
$629
56.8K