Cost of living comparison
compared to
Kampala vs. Lilongwe Cost of Living Summary
Kampala is 85.9% more expensive than Lilongwe.
- Restaurants
-
pay 32.1% less in Kampala
- Groceries
-
pay 1.8% more in Kampala
- Transportation
-
pay 5.4 times more in Kampala
- Housing
-
pay 60.0% more in Kampala
- Childcare
-
pay 4.0% more in Kampala
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 38.3% more in Kampala
The cost of transportation, housing, entertainment and sports, childcare, and groceries in Kampala are more expensive than in Lilongwe. Notably, transportation is significantly more expensive in Kampala.
Kampala vs. Lilongwe Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Kampala instead of Lilongwe, you would:
pay 32.1% less for restaurants
|
Lilongwe
|
Kampala
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$5.00
MWK8,669.98
|
$2.86
UGX10,119
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.25
MWK17,773.46
|
$8.80
UGX31,130
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.94
MWK1,623.44
|
$0.49
UGX1,729
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.40
MWK688.73
|
$0.30
UGX1,071
|
|
Lilongwe vs. Kampala - Cost of restaurants
pay 1.8% more for groceries
|
Lilongwe
|
Kampala
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.22
MWK2,122.82
|
$1.17
UGX4,122
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.88
MWK13,662.81
|
$2.18
UGX7,725
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.70
MWK6,422.36
|
$2.80
UGX9,909
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.66
MWK4,603.91
|
$1.82
UGX6,443
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$1.45
MWK2,507.70
|
$2.24
UGX7,911
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.17
MWK2,023.08
|
$1.29
UGX4,580
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.56
MWK978.00
|
$0.65
UGX2,295
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.68
MWK1,179.79
|
$0.77
UGX2,724
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.70
MWK1,209.37
|
$0.73
UGX2,577
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.62
MWK1,078.11
|
$0.73
UGX2,570
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.56
MWK977.42
|
$0.78
UGX2,754
|
|
Lilongwe vs. Kampala - Cost of groceries
pay 5.4 times more for transportation
|
Lilongwe
|
Kampala
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.09
MWK10,567.96
|
$5.73
UGX20,270
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$4.32
MWK7,494.24
|
$42.91
UGX151,787
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) | ?? |
$10,011.73
UGX35,416,974
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) | ?? |
$4.00
UGX14,167
|
|
Lilongwe vs. Kampala - Cost of transportation
pay 60.0% more for housing
|
Lilongwe
|
Kampala
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$62.37
MWK108,145.26
|
$46.09
UGX163,031
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area | ?? |
$411.55
UGX1,455,893
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$67.61
MWK117,238.07
|
$206.19
UGX729,421
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$34.63
MWK60,044.15
|
$35.00
UGX123,811
|
|
Lilongwe vs. Kampala - Cost of housing
pay 4.0% more for childcare
|
Lilongwe
|
Kampala
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$350.00
MWK606,898.76
|
$173.88
UGX615,099
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$2,349.49
MWK4,074,000.49
|
$3,718.64
UGX13,154,876
|
|
Lilongwe vs. Kampala - Cost of childcare
pay 38.3% more for entertainment and sports
|
Lilongwe
|
Kampala
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.73
MWK3,007.12
|
$1.43
UGX5,060
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.04
MWK5,273.38
|
$2.86
UGX10,119
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$1.59
MWK2,751.05
|
$3.65
UGX12,902
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$37.45
MWK64,937.85
|
$45.77
UGX161,906
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$3.95
MWK6,850.26
|
$6.44
UGX22,768
|
|
Lilongwe vs. Kampala - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay (unknown) more for clothing
|
Lilongwe
|
Kampala
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
?? |
$16.81
UGX59,450
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
?? |
$15.94
UGX56,378
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
?? |
$43.26
UGX153,052
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) | ?? |
$50.77
UGX179,615
|
Lilongwe vs. Kampala - 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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