Cost of living comparison
compared to
Vietnam vs. Lilongwe Cost of Living Summary
Vietnam is 25.1% more expensive than Lilongwe.
- Restaurants
-
pay 48.4% less in Vietnam
- Groceries
-
pay 14.7% less in Vietnam
- Transportation
-
pay 3.1% more in Vietnam
- Housing
-
pay 56.5% more in Vietnam
- Childcare
-
pay 2.9 times more in Vietnam
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 35.6% less in Vietnam
The cost of childcare, housing, and transportation in Vietnam are more expensive than in Lilongwe. Expenses including restaurants, entertainment and sports, and groceries are lower in Vietnam. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Vietnam.
Vietnam vs. Lilongwe Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Vietnam instead of Lilongwe, you would:
pay 48.4% less for restaurants
|
Lilongwe
|
Vietnam
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$5.00
MWK8,670.87
|
$1.88
₫49,598
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.25
MWK17,775.27
|
$4.13
₫108,658
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.94
MWK1,623.60
|
$0.53
₫13,934
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.40
MWK688.80
|
$0.29
₫7,503
|
|
Lilongwe vs. Vietnam - Cost of restaurants
pay 14.7% less for groceries
|
Lilongwe
|
Vietnam
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.22
MWK2,123.03
|
$0.86
₫22,621
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.88
MWK13,664.20
|
$5.32
₫139,920
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.70
MWK6,423.01
|
$5.20
₫136,929
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.66
MWK4,604.38
|
$1.45
₫38,092
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$1.45
MWK2,507.96
|
$1.56
₫40,967
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.17
MWK2,023.29
|
$1.18
₫31,162
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.56
MWK978.10
|
$0.47
₫12,396
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.68
MWK1,179.91
|
$0.58
₫15,140
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.70
MWK1,209.50
|
$0.49
₫12,917
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.62
MWK1,078.22
|
$0.46
₫12,222
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.56
MWK977.52
|
$0.47
₫12,276
|
|
Lilongwe vs. Vietnam - Cost of groceries
pay 3.1% more for transportation
|
Lilongwe
|
Vietnam
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.09
MWK10,569.03
|
$3.19
₫83,990
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$4.32
MWK7,495.00
|
$6.64
₫174,856
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) | ?? |
$33,225.24
₫874,348,535
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) | ?? |
$5.90
₫155,341
|
|
Lilongwe vs. Vietnam - Cost of transportation
pay 56.5% more for housing
|
Lilongwe
|
Vietnam
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$62.37
MWK108,156.28
|
$8.68
₫228,346
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area | ?? |
$310.38
₫8,167,763
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$67.61
MWK117,250.01
|
$223.57
₫5,883,465
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$34.63
MWK60,050.27
|
$43.27
₫1,138,771
|
|
Lilongwe vs. Vietnam - Cost of housing
pay 2.9 times more for childcare
|
Lilongwe
|
Vietnam
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$350.00
MWK606,960.57
|
$199.23
₫5,242,836
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$2,349.49
MWK4,074,415.44
|
$12,262.04
₫322,685,273
|
|
Lilongwe vs. Vietnam - Cost of childcare
pay 35.6% less for entertainment and sports
|
Lilongwe
|
Vietnam
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.73
MWK3,007.43
|
$0.93
₫24,499
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.04
MWK5,273.92
|
$1.60
₫42,057
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$1.59
MWK2,751.33
|
$1.28
₫33,640
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$37.45
MWK64,944.47
|
$20.38
₫536,285
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$3.95
MWK6,850.95
|
$3.19
₫84,052
|
|
Lilongwe vs. Vietnam - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay (unknown) more for clothing
|
Lilongwe
|
Vietnam
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
?? |
$31.66
₫833,176
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
?? |
$21.29
₫560,364
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
?? |
$72.72
₫1,913,626
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) | ?? |
$77.26
₫2,033,289
|
Lilongwe vs. Vietnam - 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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