Cost of living comparison
Gaborone vs. Asmara Cost of Living Summary
Gaborone is 3.0% cheaper than Asmara.
- Restaurants
-
pay 34.9% less in Gaborone
- Groceries
-
pay 28.7% less in Gaborone
- Transportation
-
pay 24.1% less in Gaborone
- Housing
-
pay 26.5% more in Gaborone
- Childcare
-
pay 2.2 times more in Gaborone
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 2.8 times more in Gaborone
- Clothing
-
pay 69.0% less in Gaborone
The cost of entertainment and sports, childcare, and housing in Gaborone are more expensive than in Asmara. Expenses including clothing, restaurants, groceries, and transportation are lower in Gaborone. Notably, entertainment and sports and childcare are significantly more expensive in Gaborone.
Gaborone vs. Asmara Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Gaborone instead of Asmara, you would:
pay 34.9% less for restaurants
|
Asmara
|
Gaborone
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$21.00
ERN315.00
|
$10.85
BWP148.87
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$5.99
ERN89.85
|
$5.79
BWP79.40
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.00
ERN15.00
|
$0.72
BWP9.92
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.00
ERN15.00
|
$0.42
BWP5.71
|
|
pay 28.7% less for groceries
|
Asmara
|
Gaborone
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
?? |
$0.88
BWP12.02
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$1.50
ERN22.50
|
$3.16
BWP43.42
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.06
ERN90.85
|
$5.47
BWP75.12
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.38
ERN65.70
|
$2.47
BWP33.83
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$12.17
ERN182.57
|
$2.11
BWP28.88
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$5.54
ERN83.16
|
$0.75
BWP10.31
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.58
ERN8.69
|
$0.64
BWP8.75
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.91
ERN13.61
|
$0.90
BWP12.38
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.53
ERN7.94
|
$0.74
BWP10.15
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.82
ERN12.25
|
$0.58
BWP7.97
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.42
ERN6.35
|
$0.53
BWP7.25
|
|
pay 24.1% less for transportation
|
Asmara
|
Gaborone
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$9.46
ERN141.95
|
$5.15
BWP70.71
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$8.00
ERN120.00
|
$29.66
BWP406.91
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$66,666.00
ERN1000K
|
$19,891.73
BWP273K
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) | ?? |
$20.87
BWP286.32
|
|
pay 26.5% more for housing
|
Asmara
|
Gaborone
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$200.00
ERN3,000.00
|
$42.10
BWP577.61
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$250.00
ERN3,750.00
|
$356.36
BWP4,889.51
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$200.00
ERN3,000.00
|
$221.34
BWP3,036.92
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$19.12
ERN286.76
|
$45.63
BWP626.12
|
|
pay 2.2 times more for childcare
|
Asmara
|
Gaborone
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$25.00
ERN375.00
|
$127.13
BWP1,744.25
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$2,600.00
ERN39,000.00
|
$2,500.03
BWP34,301.86
|
|
pay 2.8 times more for entertainment and sports
|
Asmara
|
Gaborone
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$0.60
ERN9.00
|
$1.99
BWP27.29
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$0.80
ERN12.00
|
$2.32
BWP31.83
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
?? |
$3.62
BWP49.62
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$27.00
ERN405.00
|
$33.58
BWP460.78
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$1.20
ERN18.00
|
$6.15
BWP84.36
|
|
pay 69.0% less for clothing
|
Asmara
|
Gaborone
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$135.00
ERN2,025.00
|
$47.53
BWP652.19
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$120.00
ERN1,800.00
|
$16.75
BWP229.75
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$200.00
ERN3,000.00
|
$72.33
BWP992.46
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$150.00
ERN2,250.00
|
$78.36
BWP1,075.16
|
|
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this
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