Cost of living comparison
Jamaica vs. Laos Cost of Living Summary
Jamaica is 30.3% more expensive than Laos overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 2.7 times more in Jamaica
- Groceries
-
pay 86.0% more in Jamaica
- Transportation
-
pay 18.4% more in Jamaica
- Housing
-
pay 7.2% less in Jamaica
- Childcare
-
pay 21.6% less in Jamaica
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 2.2 times more in Jamaica
- Clothing
-
pay 13.0% less in Jamaica
The cost of restaurants, entertainment and sports, groceries, and transportation in Jamaica are more expensive than in Laos. Expenses including childcare, clothing, and housing are lower in Jamaica. Notably, restaurants, entertainment and sports, and groceries are significantly more expensive in Jamaica.
Jamaica vs. Laos Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Jamaica instead of Laos, you would:
pay 2.7 times more for restaurants
|
Laos
|
Jamaica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$2.23
LAK50,211
|
$12.69
JMD2,020.87
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$5.35
LAK121K
|
$8.18
JMD1,302.71
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.79
LAK17,779
|
$1.08
JMD172.18
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.46
LAK10,439
|
$0.71
JMD113.81
|
|
pay 86.0% more for groceries
|
Laos
|
Jamaica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.14
LAK25,737
|
$3.00
JMD477.64
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$12.87
LAK290K
|
$5.70
JMD907.58
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.94
LAK156K
|
$13.76
JMD2,190.28
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$1.87
LAK42,101
|
$3.54
JMD563.17
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$2.81
LAK63,330
|
$2.86
JMD454.54
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$0.84
LAK18,975
|
$2.46
JMD391.14
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.52
LAK11,662
|
$1.56
JMD247.72
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.19
LAK26,832
|
$2.98
JMD475.04
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.69
LAK15,639
|
$1.30
JMD206.83
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.66
LAK14,918
|
$1.36
JMD216.67
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.49
LAK10,995
|
$1.20
JMD191.12
|
|
pay 18.4% more for transportation
|
Laos
|
Jamaica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.01
LAK113K
|
$5.18
JMD823.90
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$52.98
LAK1M
|
$37.77
JMD6,012.49
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$27,872.00
LAK628M
|
$44,062.55
JMD7M
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$9.14
LAK206K
|
$26.21
JMD4,172.00
|
|
pay 7.2% less for housing
|
Laos
|
Jamaica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$9.51
LAK214K
|
$51.12
JMD8,137.47
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$885.68
LAK20M
|
$697.95
JMD111K
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$631.74
LAK14M
|
$438.00
JMD69,728.23
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$65.79
LAK1M
|
$114.56
JMD18,237.90
|
|
pay 21.6% less for childcare
|
Laos
|
Jamaica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$435.49
LAK10M
|
$324.59
JMD51,673.95
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$9,982.68
LAK225M
|
$8,236.21
JMD1M
|
|
pay 2.2 times more for entertainment and sports
|
Laos
|
Jamaica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.32
LAK29,812
|
$2.20
JMD350.73
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$1.66
LAK37,366
|
$5.31
JMD845.51
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$1.78
LAK40,169
|
$9.44
JMD1,503.12
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$64.54
LAK1M
|
$55.18
JMD8,784.92
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$3.32
LAK74,750
|
$11.65
JMD1,853.85
|
|
pay 13.0% less for clothing
|
Laos
|
Jamaica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$48.46
LAK1M
|
$23.60
JMD3,757.81
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$62.95
LAK1M
|
$31.47
JMD5,010.41
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$64.36
LAK1M
|
$74.84
JMD11,913.64
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$46.02
LAK1M
|
$93.02
JMD14,808.55
|
|
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
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