Cost of living comparison

compared to

Cuba vs. Japan Cost of Living Summary

Cuba is 7.5% cheaper than Japan overall.

Restaurants: pay 30.9% more in Cuba
Groceries: pay 2.1% less in Cuba
Transportation: pay 10.6% more in Cuba
Housing: pay 4.6% less in Cuba
Childcare: pay 48.8% less in Cuba
Entertainment and Sports: pay 43.1% less in Cuba
Clothing: pay 4.4% more in Cuba

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

Cuba vs. Japan Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 30.9% more for restaurants

	Japan	Cuba
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$6.60 ¥1,031	$4.40 CUC4.40	-33.4%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.10 ¥796	$5.00 CUC5.00	-1.9%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.07 ¥166	$2.08 CUC2.08	+94.7%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.76 ¥119	$1.25 CUC1.25	+64.3%
Average			+30.9%

Japan vs. Cuba - Cost of restaurants

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pay 2.1% less for groceries

	Japan	Cuba
Bread 1 loaf	$1.50 ¥234	$1.22 CUC1.22	-19.0%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.07 ¥791	$2.89 CUC2.89	-43.0%
Milk (1 gallon)	$5.67 ¥885	$10.68 CUC10.68	+88.4%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.08 ¥324	$4.15 CUC4.15	+99.5%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.93 ¥457	$2.49 CUC2.49	-14.8%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.14 ¥334	$2.27 CUC2.27	+6.1%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.12 ¥175	$0.59 CUC0.59	-47.3%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.69 ¥264	$1.36 CUC1.36	-19.6%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$2.13 ¥333	$1.00 CUC1.00	-53.2%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.22 ¥190	$0.95 CUC0.95	-21.5%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.15 ¥180	$1.17 CUC1.17	+1.5%
Average			-2.1%

Japan vs. Cuba - Cost of groceries

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pay 10.6% more for transportation

	Japan	Cuba
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.39 ¥686	$4.77 CUC4.77	+8.7%
Monthly public transit pass	$59.14 ¥9,236	$25.00 CUC25.00	-57.7%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$22,599.51 ¥3,529,252	$60,000.00 CUC60,000.00	+165.5%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$25.32 ¥3,955	$6.60 CUC6.60	-73.9%
Average			+10.6%

Japan vs. Cuba - Cost of transportation

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pay 4.6% less for housing

	Japan	Cuba
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$33.91 ¥5,296	$75.00 CUC75.00	+121.2%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$543.18 ¥84,826	$251.37 CUC251.37	-53.7%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$353.61 ¥55,222	$322.73 CUC322.73	-8.7%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$118.72 ¥18,539	$27.15 CUC27.15	-77.1%
Average			-4.6%

Japan vs. Cuba - Cost of housing

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pay 48.8% less for childcare

	Japan	Cuba
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$296.89 ¥46,363	$112.00 CUC112.00	-62.3%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$13,159.48 ¥2,055,050	$8,500.00 CUC8,500.00	-35.4%
Average			-48.8%

Japan vs. Cuba - Cost of childcare

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pay 43.1% less for entertainment and sports

	Japan	Cuba
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$2.60 ¥407	$2.00 CUC2.00	-23.2%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.03 ¥473	$1.01 CUC1.01	-66.6%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$3.89 ¥607	$4.00 CUC4.00	+3.0%
Monthly membership at local gym	$59.54 ¥9,298	$37.75 CUC37.75	-36.6%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$12.46 ¥1,946	$1.00 CUC1.00	-92.0%
Average			-43.1%

Japan vs. Cuba - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 4.4% more for clothing

	Japan	Cuba
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$44.79 ¥6,995	$34.75 CUC34.75	-22.4%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$32.04 ¥5,003	$37.75 CUC37.75	+17.8%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$57.37 ¥8,959	$75.00 CUC75.00	+30.7%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$87.37 ¥13,644	$80.00 CUC80.00	-8.4%
Average			+4.4%

Japan vs. Cuba - Cost of clothing

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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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