Cost of living comparison

compared to

Mogadishu vs. Lusaka Cost of Living Summary

Mogadishu is 16.1% cheaper than Lusaka.

Restaurants: pay 14.6% less in Mogadishu
Groceries: pay 4.0% more in Mogadishu
Transportation: pay 30.2% less in Mogadishu
Housing: pay 20.8% less in Mogadishu
Childcare: pay 83.4% less in Mogadishu
Entertainment and Sports: pay 44.6% more in Mogadishu
Clothing: pay 12.5% less in Mogadishu

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

Mogadishu vs. Lusaka Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 14.6% less for restaurants

	Lusaka	Mogadishu
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$7.48 ZMW143.81	$3.50 SOS1,986	-53.2%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$3.82 ZMW73.49	$4.50 SOS2,553	+17.8%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.62 ZMW11.91	$0.50 SOS284	-19.2%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.34 ZMW6.50	$0.32 SOS184	-3.9%
Average			-14.6%

Lusaka vs. Mogadishu - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 4.0% more for groceries

	Lusaka	Mogadishu
Bread 1 loaf	$0.77 ZMW14.76	$1.62 SOS922	+111.7%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$3.76 ZMW72.35	$2.50 SOS1,419	-33.5%
Milk (1 gallon)	$4.99 ZMW95.94	$5.36 SOS3,043	+7.5%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.77 ZMW33.99	$1.95 SOS1,104	+10.1%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$1.78 ZMW34.31	$1.64 SOS933	-7.8%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.22 ZMW23.48	$1.36 SOS772	+11.4%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.73 ZMW14.01	$0.45 SOS257	-37.7%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.22 ZMW23.52	$1.25 SOS708	+2.0%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.50 ZMW9.61	$0.58 SOS329	+16.2%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.89 ZMW17.04	$0.55 SOS313	-37.7%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.67 ZMW12.87	$0.68 SOS386	+1.7%
Average			+4.0%

Lusaka vs. Mogadishu - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 30.2% less for transportation

	Lusaka	Mogadishu
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.58 ZMW88.01	$3.91 SOS2,220	-14.5%
Monthly public transit pass	$38.52 ZMW740.77	$20.00 SOS11,348	-48.1%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$8,004.53 ZMW154K	$7,500.00 SOS4M	-6.3%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$12.00 ZMW230.79	$5.80 SOS3,291	-51.7%
Average			-30.2%

Lusaka vs. Mogadishu - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 20.8% less for housing

	Lusaka	Mogadishu
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$118.37 ZMW2,276.46	$66.67 SOS37,828	-43.7%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$226.58 ZMW4,357.52	$157.50 SOS89,369	-30.5%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$123.07 ZMW2,366.92	$87.50 SOS49,649	-28.9%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$52.70 ZMW1,013.59	$63.28 SOS35,906	+20.1%
Average			-20.8%

Lusaka vs. Mogadishu - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 83.4% less for childcare

	Lusaka	Mogadishu
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$176.79 ZMW3,399.98	$50.00 SOS28,371	-71.7%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$11,677.88 ZMW225K	$570.00 SOS323K	-95.1%
Average			-83.4%

Lusaka vs. Mogadishu - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 44.6% more for entertainment and sports

	Lusaka	Mogadishu
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$0.98 ZMW18.78	$4.00 SOS2,270	+309.6%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.05 ZMW39.37	$1.50 SOS851	-26.7%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$3.67 ZMW70.67	$1.20 SOS681	-67.3%
Monthly membership at local gym	$50.47 ZMW970.60	$31.67 SOS17,968	-37.3%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$4.18 ZMW80.48	??
Average			+44.6%

Lusaka vs. Mogadishu - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 12.5% less for clothing

	Lusaka	Mogadishu
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$18.93 ZMW364.01	$17.50 SOS9,930	-7.5%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$16.99 ZMW326.75	$24.33 SOS13,807	+43.2%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$84.33 ZMW1,621.79	$26.67 SOS15,131	-68.4%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$73.12 ZMW1,406.30	$60.50 SOS34,329	-17.3%
Average			-12.5%

Lusaka vs. Mogadishu - Cost of clothing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

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: March 2026

More cost comparisons

Lusaka vs.

Hong Kong

Lusaka vs.

Wellington

Lusaka vs.

Ankara

Lusaka vs.

Phnom Penh

Lusaka vs.

Ottawa

Lusaka vs.

Singapore

Lusaka vs.

Rome

Lusaka vs.

Delhi

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

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

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 Mogadishu

Ask the Elsewhere Community

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