Cost of living comparison

compared to

Kampala vs. Kigali Cost of Living Summary

Kampala is 12.3% more expensive than Kigali.

Restaurants: pay 19.9% less in Kampala
Groceries: pay 45.4% more in Kampala
Transportation: pay 14.6% less in Kampala
Housing: pay 14.9% more in Kampala
Childcare: pay 24.1% less in Kampala
Entertainment and Sports: pay 61.2% more in Kampala
Clothing: pay 23.1% more in Kampala

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

Kampala vs. Kigali Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 19.9% less for restaurants

	Kigali	Kampala
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$3.45 RWF5,030	$2.86 UGX10,754	-17.0%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$6.89 RWF10,060	$8.80 UGX33,084	+27.6%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.86 RWF1,252	$0.49 UGX1,837	-43.0%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.57 RWF835	$0.30 UGX1,139	-47.1%
Average			-19.9%

Kigali vs. Kampala - Cost of restaurants

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pay 45.4% more for groceries

	Kigali	Kampala
Bread 1 loaf	$1.05 RWF1,526	$1.17 UGX4,381	+11.4%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$2.26 RWF3,292	$2.18 UGX8,210	-3.2%
Milk (1 gallon)	$2.64 RWF3,856	$2.80 UGX10,531	+6.0%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.65 RWF2,414	$1.82 UGX6,848	+10.1%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.10 RWF3,057	$2.24 UGX8,407	+6.7%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.15 RWF1,683	$1.29 UGX4,868	+12.3%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.37 RWF538	$0.65 UGX2,439	+75.8%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.70 RWF1,024	$0.77 UGX2,895	+9.7%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.48 RWF700	$0.73 UGX2,738	+51.9%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.23 RWF332	$0.73 UGX2,732	+219.3%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.39 RWF570	$0.78 UGX2,927	+99.2%
Average			+45.4%

Kigali vs. Kampala - Cost of groceries

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pay 14.6% less for transportation

	Kigali	Kampala
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.42 RWF6,453	$5.73 UGX21,542	+29.6%
Monthly public transit pass	$29.30 RWF42,756	$42.91 UGX161K	+46.4%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$26,543.61 RWF39M	$10,011.73 UGX38M	-62.3%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$14.48 RWF21,126	$4.00 UGX15,056	-72.3%
Average			-14.6%

Kigali vs. Kampala - Cost of transportation

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pay 14.9% more for housing

	Kigali	Kampala
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$19.48 RWF28,420	$46.09 UGX173K	+136.6%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$575.44 RWF840K	$411.55 UGX2M	-28.5%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$322.51 RWF471K	$206.19 UGX775K	-36.1%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$39.98 RWF58,339	$35.00 UGX132K	-12.5%
Average			+14.9%

Kigali vs. Kampala - Cost of housing

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pay 24.1% less for childcare

	Kigali	Kampala
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$166.62 RWF243K	$173.88 UGX654K	+4.4%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$7,842.43 RWF11M	$3,718.64 UGX14M	-52.6%
Average			-24.1%

Kigali vs. Kampala - Cost of childcare

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pay 61.2% more for entertainment and sports

	Kigali	Kampala
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.03 RWF1,509	$1.43 UGX5,377	+38.3%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.31 RWF3,375	$2.86 UGX10,754	+23.7%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$1.72 RWF2,515	$3.65 UGX13,712	+111.6%
Monthly membership at local gym	$31.41 RWF45,830	$45.77 UGX172K	+45.7%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$3.45 RWF5,030	$6.44 UGX24,197	+86.7%
Average			+61.2%

Kigali vs. Kampala - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 23.1% more for clothing

	Kigali	Kampala
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$19.19 RWF28,001	$16.81 UGX63,180	-12.4%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$19.30 RWF28,169	$15.94 UGX59,916	-17.4%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$22.98 RWF33,534	$43.26 UGX163K	+88.3%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$37.92 RWF55,331	$50.77 UGX191K	+33.9%
Average			+23.1%

Kigali vs. Kampala - 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: March 2026

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