Cost of living comparison

Cuba

compared to

Zambia

Zambia vs. Cuba Cost of Living Summary

Zambia is 1.7% cheaper than Cuba overall.

Restaurants: pay 1.9% less in Zambia
Groceries: pay 19.4% less in Zambia
Transportation: pay 25.4% less in Zambia
Housing: pay 1.0% less in Zambia
Childcare: pay 71.3% more in Zambia
Entertainment and Sports: pay 2.5 times more in Zambia
Clothing: pay 31.2% less in Zambia

The cost of entertainment and sports and childcare in Zambia are more expensive than in Cuba. Expenses including clothing, transportation, groceries, restaurants, and housing are lower in Zambia. Notably, entertainment and sports is significantly more expensive in Zambia.

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Zambia vs. Cuba Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Zambia instead of Cuba, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 1.9% less for restaurants

	Cuba	Zambia
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$3.71 CUC3.71	$5.53 ZMW110.20	+49.2%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.00 CUC5.00	$5.03 ZMW100.18	+0.5%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.70 CUC1.70	$0.63 ZMW12.52	-63.0%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.00 CUC1.00	$0.36 ZMW7.20	-63.9%
Average			-1.9%

Cuba vs. Zambia - Cost of restaurants

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pay 19.4% less for groceries

	Cuba	Zambia
Bread 1 loaf	$1.49 CUC1.49	$1.18 ZMW23.48	-21.0%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$2.22 CUC2.22	$5.15 ZMW102.63	+132.0%
Milk (1 gallon)	$14.20 CUC14.20	$6.37 ZMW126.88	-55.1%
Eggs 1 dozen	$3.71 CUC3.71	$1.77 ZMW35.36	-52.2%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.07 CUC2.07	$2.87 ZMW57.22	+38.7%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.75 CUC2.75	$1.11 ZMW22.03	-59.7%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.48 CUC0.48	$1.10 ZMW21.94	+127.6%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.79 CUC1.79	$1.65 ZMW32.94	-7.5%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.04 CUC1.04	$0.70 ZMW13.88	-33.3%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.73 CUC1.73	$1.16 ZMW23.20	-32.5%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.85 CUC1.85	$0.83 ZMW16.51	-55.2%
Average			-19.4%

Cuba vs. Zambia - Cost of groceries

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pay 25.4% less for transportation

	Cuba	Zambia
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.83 CUC4.83	$5.47 ZMW108.98	+13.3%
Monthly public transit pass	$22.50 CUC22.50	$50.15 ZMW999.41	+122.9%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$60,000.00 CUC60,000.00	$7,541.11 ZMW150K	-87.4%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$6.20 CUC6.20	$14.58 ZMW290.52	+135.2%
Average			-25.4%

Cuba vs. Zambia - Cost of transportation

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pay 1.0% less for housing

	Cuba	Zambia
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$90.21 CUC90.21	$54.99 ZMW1,095.72	-39.0%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$254.03 CUC254.03	$280.45 ZMW5,588.55	+10.4%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$214.40 CUC214.40	$165.11 ZMW3,290.10	-23.0%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$36.20 CUC36.20	$61.51 ZMW1,225.74	+69.9%
Average			-1.0%

Cuba vs. Zambia - Cost of housing

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pay 71.3% more for childcare

	Cuba	Zambia
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$112.00 CUC112.00	$138.25 ZMW2,754.96	+23.4%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$7,000.00 CUC7,000.00	$16,638.36 ZMW332K	+137.7%
Average			+71.3%

Cuba vs. Zambia - Cost of childcare

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pay 2.5 times more for entertainment and sports

	Cuba	Zambia
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.60 CUC1.60	$1.26 ZMW25.05	-21.6%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$1.11 CUC1.11	$2.82 ZMW56.21	+154.1%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.00 CUC2.00	$3.02 ZMW60.11	+50.8%
Monthly membership at local gym	$19.00 CUC19.00	$54.67 ZMW1,089.46	+187.8%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$0.85 CUC0.85	$6.03 ZMW120.22	+609.8%
Average			+154.3%

Cuba vs. Zambia - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 31.2% less for clothing

	Cuba	Zambia
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$37.00 CUC37.00	$23.28 ZMW463.85	-37.1%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$37.00 CUC37.00	$15.45 ZMW307.88	-58.2%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$68.67 CUC68.67	$45.19 ZMW900.42	-34.2%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$56.00 CUC56.00	$72.53 ZMW1,445.30	+29.5%
Average			-31.2%

Cuba vs. Zambia - Cost of clothing

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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

Compare further: Cuba vs. Zambia

Salary Calculator · Free tool

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Quality of Life Comparison · 23 statistics

Be 3.4 times more likely to be unemployed in Zambia

Size Comparison · See true size

Cuba is about 7 times smaller than Zambia.

Moving from Cuba to Zambia · Cost, visas & climate

Compare cost of living, salary and climate.

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