Cost of living comparison

Zambia

compared to

Gambia

Banjul vs. Lusaka Cost of Living Summary

Banjul is 51.1% cheaper than Lusaka.

Restaurants: pay 69.5% more in Banjul
Groceries: pay 41.9% less in Banjul
Transportation: pay 65.3% less in Banjul
Housing: pay 63.3% less in Banjul
Childcare: pay 98.0% less in Banjul
Entertainment and Sports: pay 5.8% less in Banjul
Clothing: pay 2.1 times more in Banjul

The cost of clothing and restaurants in Banjul are more expensive than in Lusaka. Expenses including childcare, transportation, housing, groceries, and entertainment and sports are lower in Banjul. Notably, clothing is significantly more expensive in Banjul.

Planning a move to Gambia? Get up to 5 free, no-obligation quotes from vetted international movers. Get free quotes →

Banjul vs. Lusaka Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Banjul instead of Lusaka, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 69.5% more for restaurants

	Lusaka	Banjul
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$5.53 ZMW110.20	$7.31 GMD536.99	+32.1%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.03 ZMW100.18	$7.86 GMD577.36	+56.2%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.75 ZMW15.03	$2.64 GMD193.83	+249.7%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.47 ZMW9.39	$1.58 GMD116.16	+235.3%
Average			+69.5%

Lusaka vs. Banjul - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 41.9% less for groceries

	Lusaka	Banjul
Bread 1 loaf	$1.20 ZMW23.92	$0.63 GMD46.35	-47.5%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.15 ZMW102.63	$3.04 GMD223.48	-41.0%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.52 ZMW129.88	$5.12 GMD375.98	-21.5%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.94 ZMW38.66	$1.93 GMD141.54	-0.7%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.87 ZMW57.22	$1.23 GMD90.11	-57.3%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.53 ZMW30.42	$0.92 GMD67.58	-39.8%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.10 ZMW21.94	$0.56 GMD41.30	-49.0%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.65 ZMW32.94	$0.82 GMD60.07	-50.6%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.70 ZMW13.88	$0.61 GMD45.05	-12.0%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.16 ZMW23.20	$0.41 GMD30.04	-64.9%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.83 ZMW16.51	$0.44 GMD32.29	-47.0%
Average			-41.9%

Lusaka vs. Banjul - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 65.3% less for transportation

	Lusaka	Banjul
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.77 ZMW115.01	$4.00 GMD294.08	-30.7%
Monthly public transit pass	$50.15 ZMW999.41	$6.55 GMD481.43	-86.9%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$7,541.11 ZMW150K	$2,635.13 GMD194K	-65.1%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$14.58 ZMW290.52	??
Average			-65.3%

Lusaka vs. Banjul - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 63.3% less for housing

	Lusaka	Banjul
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$54.99 ZMW1,095.72	$45.05 GMD3,310.81	-18.1%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$384.95 ZMW7,670.79	$102.56 GMD7,538.16	-73.4%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$179.40 ZMW3,574.79	$81.08 GMD5,959.46	-54.8%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$61.51 ZMW1,225.74	$23.25 GMD1,708.96	-62.2%
Average			-63.3%

Lusaka vs. Banjul - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 98.0% less for childcare

	Lusaka	Banjul
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$138.25 ZMW2,754.96	$6.76 GMD496.62	-95.1%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$16,638.36 ZMW332K	$135.14 GMD9,932.43	-99.2%
Average			-98.0%

Lusaka vs. Banjul - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 5.8% less for entertainment and sports

	Lusaka	Banjul
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.26 ZMW25.05	$5.61 GMD412.40	+346.4%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.82 ZMW56.21	$3.69 GMD271.01	+30.7%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$3.02 ZMW60.11	$1.69 GMD124.16	-44.0%
Monthly membership at local gym	$54.67 ZMW1,089.46	$23.65 GMD1,738.18	-56.7%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$6.03 ZMW120.22	$3.38 GMD248.31	-44.0%
Average			-5.8%

Lusaka vs. Banjul - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 2.1 times more for clothing

	Lusaka	Banjul
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$23.28 ZMW463.85	$56.00 GMD4,116.00	+140.6%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$15.45 ZMW307.88	$44.34 GMD3,258.99	+187.0%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$45.19 ZMW900.42	$99.43 GMD7,308.11	+120.0%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$72.53 ZMW1,445.30	$86.99 GMD6,393.77	+19.9%
Average			+106.6%

Lusaka vs. Banjul - Cost of clothing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

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

Compare further: Lusaka vs. Banjul

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in Banjul?

More cost comparisons

Lusaka vs.

Reykjavik

Lusaka vs.

Vienna

Lusaka vs.

Berlin

Lusaka vs.

London

Lusaka vs.

Warsaw

Lusaka vs.

Lima

Lusaka vs.

Paris

Lusaka vs.

Bangkok

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

See the cost of living in Zambia vs. Gambia. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Zambia and Gambia.

Help us improve these prices

MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate. Learn more

Add prices for Lusaka

Add prices for Banjul

Ask the Elsewhere Community

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Banjul or Lusaka. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.