Cost of living comparison
compared to
Lilongwe vs. Hamilton Cost of Living Summary
Lilongwe is 73.1% cheaper than Hamilton.
- Restaurants
-
pay 70.6% less in Lilongwe
- Groceries
-
pay 68.8% less in Lilongwe
- Transportation
-
pay 62.5% less in Lilongwe
- Housing
-
pay 79.3% less in Lilongwe
- Childcare
-
pay 82.0% less in Lilongwe
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 75.5% less in Lilongwe
Expenses including childcare, housing, entertainment and sports, restaurants, groceries, and transportation are lower in Lilongwe.
Lilongwe vs. Hamilton Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Lilongwe instead of Hamilton, you would:
pay 70.6% less for restaurants
|
Hamilton
|
Lilongwe
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$60.00
BMD60.00
|
$5.00
MWK8,669.98
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$15.00
BMD15.00
|
$10.25
MWK17,773.46
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.42
BMD3.42
|
$0.94
MWK1,623.44
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.92
BMD2.92
|
$0.40
MWK688.73
|
|
Hamilton vs. Lilongwe - Cost of restaurants
pay 68.8% less for groceries
|
Hamilton
|
Lilongwe
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$8.38
BMD8.38
|
$1.22
MWK2,122.82
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.09
BMD6.09
|
$7.88
MWK13,662.81
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$16.74
BMD16.74
|
$3.70
MWK6,422.36
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$7.53
BMD7.53
|
$2.66
MWK4,603.91
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$10.49
BMD10.49
|
$1.45
MWK2,507.70
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$5.80
BMD5.80
|
$1.17
MWK2,023.08
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$3.01
BMD3.01
|
$0.56
MWK978.00
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$4.38
BMD4.38
|
$0.68
MWK1,179.79
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$3.18
BMD3.18
|
$0.70
MWK1,209.37
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$3.40
BMD3.40
|
$0.62
MWK1,078.11
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.71
BMD1.71
|
$0.56
MWK977.42
|
|
Hamilton vs. Lilongwe - Cost of groceries
pay 62.5% less for transportation
|
Hamilton
|
Lilongwe
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$8.89
BMD8.89
|
$6.09
MWK10,567.96
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$69.00
BMD69.00
|
$4.32
MWK7,494.24
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$32,500.00
BMD32,500.00
|
?? | |
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$36.83
BMD36.83
|
?? | |
Hamilton vs. Lilongwe - Cost of transportation
pay 79.3% less for housing
|
Hamilton
|
Lilongwe
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$151.67
BMD151.67
|
$62.37
MWK108,145.26
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$3,616.67
BMD3,616.67
|
?? | |
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,266.67
BMD2,266.67
|
$67.61
MWK117,238.07
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$193.88
BMD193.88
|
$34.63
MWK60,044.15
|
|
Hamilton vs. Lilongwe - Cost of housing
pay 82.0% less for childcare
|
Hamilton
|
Lilongwe
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,320.00
BMD1,320.00
|
$350.00
MWK606,898.76
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$24,500.00
BMD24,500.00
|
$2,349.49
MWK4,074,000.49
|
|
Hamilton vs. Lilongwe - Cost of childcare
pay 75.5% less for entertainment and sports
|
Hamilton
|
Lilongwe
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$10.00
BMD10.00
|
$1.73
MWK3,007.12
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$6.44
BMD6.44
|
$3.04
MWK5,273.38
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$17.62
BMD17.62
|
$1.59
MWK2,751.05
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$188.00
BMD188.00
|
$37.45
MWK64,937.85
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.50
BMD13.50
|
$3.95
MWK6,850.26
|
|
Hamilton vs. Lilongwe - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay (unknown) more for clothing
|
Hamilton
|
Lilongwe
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$80.00
BMD80.00
|
?? | |
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$60.00
BMD60.00
|
?? | |
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$142.50
BMD142.50
|
?? | |
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$127.17
BMD127.17
|
?? |
Hamilton vs. Lilongwe - Cost of clothing
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025
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