Cost of living comparison

compared to

Kigali vs. Kampala Cost of Living Summary

Kigali is 19.1% more expensive than Kampala.

Restaurants: pay 40.8% more in Kigali
Groceries: pay 22.2% less in Kigali
Transportation: pay 93.0% more in Kigali
Housing: pay 13.2% more in Kigali
Childcare: pay 53.4% more in Kigali
Entertainment and Sports: pay 35.5% less in Kigali
Clothing: pay 9.2% less in Kigali

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

Kigali vs. Kampala Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Kigali instead of Kampala, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 40.8% more for restaurants

	Kampala	Kigali
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$2.86 UGX10,119	$3.45 RWF5,016	+20.5%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$8.80 UGX31,130	$6.89 RWF10,031	-21.7%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.49 UGX1,729	$0.86 RWF1,248	+75.6%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.30 UGX1,071	$0.57 RWF833	+88.9%
Average			+40.8%

Kampala vs. Kigali - Cost of restaurants

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pay 22.2% less for groceries

	Kampala	Kigali
Bread 1 loaf	$1.17 UGX4,122	$1.05 RWF1,521	-10.3%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$2.18 UGX7,725	$2.26 RWF3,283	+3.3%
Milk (1 gallon)	$2.80 UGX9,909	$2.64 RWF3,845	-5.7%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.82 UGX6,443	$1.65 RWF2,407	-9.2%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.24 UGX7,911	$2.10 RWF3,048	-6.3%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.29 UGX4,580	$1.15 RWF1,678	-10.9%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.65 UGX2,295	$0.37 RWF537	-43.1%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.77 UGX2,724	$0.70 RWF1,021	-8.8%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.73 UGX2,577	$0.48 RWF698	-34.2%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.73 UGX2,570	$0.23 RWF331	-68.7%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.78 UGX2,754	$0.39 RWF569	-49.8%
Average			-22.2%

Kampala vs. Kigali - Cost of groceries

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pay 93.0% more for transportation

	Kampala	Kigali
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.73 UGX20,270	$4.42 RWF6,434	-22.8%
Monthly public transit pass	$42.91 UGX151,787	$29.30 RWF42,632	-31.7%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$10,011.73 UGX35,416,974	$26,543.61 RWF38,619,482	+165.1%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$4.00 UGX14,167	$14.48 RWF21,065	+261.5%
Average			+93.0%

Kampala vs. Kigali - Cost of transportation

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pay 13.2% more for housing

	Kampala	Kigali
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$46.09 UGX163,031	$19.48 RWF28,338	-57.7%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$411.55 UGX1,455,893	$575.44 RWF837,239	+39.8%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$206.19 UGX729,421	$322.51 RWF469,235	+56.4%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$35.00 UGX123,811	$39.98 RWF58,170	+14.2%
Average			+13.2%

Kampala vs. Kigali - Cost of housing

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pay 53.4% more for childcare

	Kampala	Kigali
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$173.88 UGX615,099	$166.62 RWF242,417	-4.2%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$3,718.64 UGX13,154,876	$7,842.43 RWF11,410,301	+110.9%
Average			+53.4%

Kampala vs. Kigali - Cost of childcare

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pay 35.5% less for entertainment and sports

	Kampala	Kigali
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.43 UGX5,060	$1.03 RWF1,505	-27.7%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.86 UGX10,119	$2.31 RWF3,366	-19.1%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$3.65 UGX12,902	$1.72 RWF2,508	-52.7%
Monthly membership at local gym	$45.77 UGX161,906	$31.41 RWF45,697	-31.4%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$6.44 UGX22,768	$3.45 RWF5,016	-46.4%
Average			-35.5%

Kampala vs. Kigali - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 9.2% less for clothing

	Kampala	Kigali
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$16.81 UGX59,450	$19.19 RWF27,920	+14.2%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$15.94 UGX56,378	$19.30 RWF28,087	+21.1%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$43.26 UGX153,052	$22.98 RWF33,437	-46.9%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$50.77 UGX179,615	$37.92 RWF55,171	-25.3%
Average			-9.2%

Kampala vs. Kigali - 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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