Cost of living comparison

compared to

Harare vs. Lusaka Cost of Living Summary

Harare is 29.7% more expensive than Lusaka.

Restaurants: pay 34.5% more in Harare
Groceries: pay 23.7% more in Harare
Transportation: pay 80.6% more in Harare
Housing: pay 43.8% more in Harare
Childcare: pay 10.1% more in Harare
Entertainment and Sports: pay 35.4% more in Harare
Clothing: pay 20.1% less in Harare

The cost of transportation, housing, entertainment and sports, restaurants, groceries, and childcare in Harare are more expensive than in Lusaka. Notably, transportation is significantly more expensive in Harare.

Harare vs. Lusaka Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 34.5% more for restaurants

	Lusaka	Harare
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$7.48 ZMW172.19	$10.00 ZWL3,220.00	+33.7%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$3.82 ZMW87.99	$6.00 ZWL1,932.00	+57.0%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.62 ZMW14.25	$0.69 ZWL223.71	+12.2%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.34 ZMW7.79	$0.46 ZWL147.28	+35.2%
Average			+34.5%

Lusaka vs. Harare - Cost of restaurants

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pay 23.7% more for groceries

	Lusaka	Harare
Bread 1 loaf	$0.77 ZMW17.67	$1.00 ZWL322.00	+30.3%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$3.76 ZMW86.62	$5.77 ZWL1,857.25	+53.3%
Milk (1 gallon)	$4.99 ZMW114.88	$6.10 ZWL1,963.08	+22.2%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.77 ZMW40.70	$2.09 ZWL672.39	+18.1%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$1.78 ZMW41.08	$2.97 ZWL956.35	+66.5%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.22 ZMW28.12	$1.34 ZWL430.38	+9.5%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.73 ZMW16.77	$0.74 ZWL239.53	+2.1%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.22 ZMW28.16	$1.02 ZWL328.63	-16.5%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.50 ZMW11.50	$0.75 ZWL242.73	+50.9%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.89 ZMW20.40	$0.71 ZWL229.11	-19.7%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.67 ZMW15.41	$0.97 ZWL311.47	+44.5%
Average			+23.7%

Lusaka vs. Harare - Cost of groceries

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pay 80.6% more for transportation

	Lusaka	Harare
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.58 ZMW105.38	$5.94 ZWL1,912.67	+29.8%
Monthly public transit pass	$38.52 ZMW886.94	$55.00 ZWL17,710.00	+42.8%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$8,004.53 ZMW184,318.08	$22,000.00 ZWL7,084,000.00	+174.8%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$12.00 ZMW276.33	$21.00 ZWL6,762.00	+75.0%
Average			+80.6%

Lusaka vs. Harare - Cost of transportation

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pay 43.8% more for housing

	Lusaka	Harare
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$118.37 ZMW2,725.66	$93.58 ZWL30,133.83	-20.9%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$226.58 ZMW5,217.38	$402.94 ZWL129,747.06	+77.8%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$123.07 ZMW2,833.97	$284.62 ZWL91,646.15	+131.3%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$52.70 ZMW1,213.60	$45.88 ZWL14,774.12	-12.9%
Average			+43.8%

Lusaka vs. Harare - Cost of housing

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pay 10.1% more for childcare

	Lusaka	Harare
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$176.79 ZMW4,070.88	$255.56 ZWL82,288.89	+44.6%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$11,677.88 ZMW268,903.36	$8,812.50 ZWL2,837,625.00	-24.5%
Average			+10.1%

Lusaka vs. Harare - Cost of childcare

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pay 35.4% more for entertainment and sports

	Lusaka	Harare
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$0.98 ZMW22.49	$1.50 ZWL483.00	+53.6%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.05 ZMW47.14	$2.91 ZWL937.59	+42.2%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$3.67 ZMW84.61	$1.20 ZWL386.40	-67.3%
Monthly membership at local gym	$50.47 ZMW1,162.12	$55.38 ZWL17,833.85	+9.7%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$4.18 ZMW96.36	$10.00 ZWL3,220.00	+139.0%
Average			+35.4%

Lusaka vs. Harare - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 20.1% less for clothing

	Lusaka	Harare
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$18.93 ZMW435.83	$18.92 ZWL6,091.17	-0.1%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$16.99 ZMW391.23	$21.50 ZWL6,923.00	+26.5%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$84.33 ZMW1,941.82	$33.85 ZWL10,898.46	-59.9%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$73.12 ZMW1,683.80	$38.85 ZWL12,508.46	-46.9%
Average			-20.1%

Lusaka vs. Harare - Cost of clothing

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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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