Cost of living comparison

Zambia

compared to

Nicaragua

Managua vs. Lusaka Cost of Living Summary

Managua is 3.6% more expensive than Lusaka.

Restaurants: pay 59.8% more in Managua
Groceries: pay 1.5% less in Managua
Transportation: pay 21.5% less in Managua
Housing: pay 8.6% less in Managua
Childcare: pay 21.2% less in Managua
Entertainment and Sports: pay 0.4% less in Managua
Clothing: pay 2.8 times more in Managua

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

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

Managua vs. Lusaka Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 59.8% more for restaurants

	Lusaka	Managua
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$5.53 ZMW110.20	$10.00 NIO368.55	+80.8%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.03 ZMW100.18	$7.61 NIO280.46	+51.4%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.75 ZMW15.03	$0.88 NIO32.54	+17.1%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.47 ZMW9.39	$0.71 NIO26.22	+50.9%
Average			+59.8%

Lusaka vs. Managua - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 1.5% less for groceries

	Lusaka	Managua
Bread 1 loaf	$1.20 ZMW23.92	$2.37 NIO87.46	+97.7%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.15 ZMW102.63	$5.80 NIO213.64	+12.6%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.52 ZMW129.88	$4.68 NIO172.61	-28.1%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.94 ZMW38.66	$2.37 NIO87.18	+21.9%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.87 ZMW57.22	$2.87 NIO105.79
Apples (1 lb)	$1.53 ZMW30.42	$1.82 NIO67.08	+19.2%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.10 ZMW21.94	$0.27 NIO10.03	-75.3%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.65 ZMW32.94	$0.82 NIO30.09	-50.6%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.70 ZMW13.88	$1.11 NIO41.05	+59.8%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.16 ZMW23.20	$1.79 NIO65.90	+53.6%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.83 ZMW16.51	$1.01 NIO37.13	+21.6%
Average			-1.5%

Lusaka vs. Managua - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 21.5% less for transportation

	Lusaka	Managua
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.77 ZMW115.01	$5.06 NIO186.38	-12.4%
Monthly public transit pass	$50.15 ZMW999.41	$6.01 NIO221.41	-88.0%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$7,541.11 ZMW150K	$22,973.64 NIO847K	+204.6%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$14.58 ZMW290.52	$14.69 NIO541.39	+0.8%
Average			-21.5%

Lusaka vs. Managua - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 8.6% less for housing

	Lusaka	Managua
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$54.99 ZMW1,095.72	$32.47 NIO1,196.57	-41.0%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$384.95 ZMW7,670.79	$256.40 NIO9,449.50	-33.4%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$179.40 ZMW3,574.79	$181.00 NIO6,670.67	+0.9%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$61.51 ZMW1,225.74	$115.83 NIO4,268.74	+88.3%
Average			-8.6%

Lusaka vs. Managua - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 21.2% less for childcare

	Lusaka	Managua
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$138.25 ZMW2,754.96	$235.82 NIO8,690.94	+70.6%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$16,638.36 ZMW332K	$6,060.00 NIO223K	-63.6%
Average			-21.2%

Lusaka vs. Managua - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 0.4% less for entertainment and sports

	Lusaka	Managua
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.26 ZMW25.05	$1.50 NIO55.28	+19.3%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.82 ZMW56.21	$2.60 NIO95.82	-7.8%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$3.02 ZMW60.11	$2.73 NIO100.51	-9.6%
Monthly membership at local gym	$54.67 ZMW1,089.46	$34.79 NIO1,282.16	-36.4%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$6.03 ZMW120.22	$9.00 NIO331.69	+49.2%
Average			-0.4%

Lusaka vs. Managua - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 2.8 times more for clothing

	Lusaka	Managua
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$23.28 ZMW463.85	$59.88 NIO2,206.90	+157.2%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$15.45 ZMW307.88	$65.00 NIO2,395.54	+320.7%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$45.19 ZMW900.42	$122.64 NIO4,519.99	+171.4%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$72.53 ZMW1,445.30	$144.83 NIO5,337.49	+99.7%
Average			+176.7%

Lusaka vs. Managua - 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. Managua

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in Managua?

More cost comparisons

Lusaka vs.

Lima

Lusaka vs.

Dublin

Lusaka vs.

Rome

Lusaka vs.

Cairo

Lusaka vs.

Warsaw

Lusaka vs.

Hanoi

Lusaka vs.

Vienna

Lusaka vs.

Quito

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

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

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 Managua

Ask the Elsewhere Community

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