Cost of living comparison
compared to
Mogadishu vs. Lilongwe Cost of Living Summary
Mogadishu is 16.8% more expensive than Lilongwe.
- Restaurants
-
pay 37.7% less in Mogadishu
- Groceries
-
pay 6.3% more in Mogadishu
- Transportation
-
pay 2.6 times more in Mogadishu
- Housing
-
pay 39.7% more in Mogadishu
- Childcare
-
pay 80.7% less in Mogadishu
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 10.0% more in Mogadishu
The cost of transportation, housing, entertainment and sports, and groceries in Mogadishu are more expensive than in Lilongwe. Expenses including childcare and restaurants are lower in Mogadishu. Notably, transportation is significantly more expensive in Mogadishu.
Mogadishu vs. Lilongwe Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Mogadishu instead of Lilongwe, you would:
pay 37.7% less for restaurants
|
Lilongwe
|
Mogadishu
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$5.00
MWK8,656.49
|
$3.50
SOS1,994
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.25
MWK17,745.80
|
$4.50
SOS2,563
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.94
MWK1,620.91
|
$0.50
SOS285
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.40
MWK687.66
|
$0.32
SOS185
|
|
Lilongwe vs. Mogadishu - Cost of restaurants
pay 6.3% more for groceries
|
Lilongwe
|
Mogadishu
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.22
MWK2,119.51
|
$1.62
SOS926
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.88
MWK13,641.55
|
$2.50
SOS1,424
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.70
MWK6,412.36
|
$5.36
SOS3,054
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.66
MWK4,596.75
|
$1.95
SOS1,108
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$1.45
MWK2,503.80
|
$1.64
SOS937
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.17
MWK2,019.93
|
$1.36
SOS775
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.56
MWK976.48
|
$0.45
SOS258
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.68
MWK1,177.96
|
$1.25
SOS710
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.70
MWK1,207.49
|
$0.58
SOS331
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.62
MWK1,076.43
|
$0.55
SOS314
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.56
MWK975.90
|
$0.68
SOS388
|
|
Lilongwe vs. Mogadishu - Cost of groceries
pay 2.6 times more for transportation
|
Lilongwe
|
Mogadishu
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.09
MWK10,551.51
|
$3.91
SOS2,228
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$4.32
MWK7,482.57
|
$20.00
SOS11,392
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) | ?? |
$7,500.00
SOS4,271,848
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) | ?? |
$5.80
SOS3,304
|
|
Lilongwe vs. Mogadishu - Cost of transportation
pay 39.7% more for housing
|
Lilongwe
|
Mogadishu
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$62.37
MWK107,976.93
|
$66.67
SOS37,972
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area | ?? |
$157.50
SOS89,709
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$67.61
MWK117,055.58
|
$87.50
SOS49,838
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$34.63
MWK59,950.69
|
$63.28
SOS36,043
|
|
Lilongwe vs. Mogadishu - Cost of housing
pay 80.7% less for childcare
|
Lilongwe
|
Mogadishu
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$350.00
MWK605,954.12
|
$50.00
SOS28,479
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$2,349.49
MWK4,067,659.31
|
$570.00
SOS324,660
|
|
Lilongwe vs. Mogadishu - Cost of childcare
pay 10.0% more for entertainment and sports
|
Lilongwe
|
Mogadishu
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.73
MWK3,002.44
|
$4.00
SOS2,278
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.04
MWK5,265.17
|
$1.50
SOS854
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$1.59
MWK2,746.77
|
$1.20
SOS684
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$37.45
MWK64,836.78
|
$31.67
SOS18,037
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$3.95
MWK6,839.59
|
?? | |
Lilongwe vs. Mogadishu - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay (unknown) more for clothing
|
Lilongwe
|
Mogadishu
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
?? |
$17.50
SOS9,968
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
?? |
$24.33
SOS13,860
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
?? |
$26.67
SOS15,189
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) | ?? |
$60.50
SOS34,460
|
Lilongwe vs. Mogadishu - 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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