Cost of living comparison

Maldives

compared to

Eritrea

Asmara vs. Male Cost of Living Summary

Asmara is 13.9% more expensive than Male.

Restaurants: pay 72.9% more in Asmara
Groceries: pay 38.3% more in Asmara
Transportation: pay 57.4% more in Asmara
Housing: pay 5.7% less in Asmara
Childcare: pay 69.1% less in Asmara
Entertainment and Sports: pay 78.4% less in Asmara
Clothing: pay 82.2% more in Asmara

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

Asmara vs. Male Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Asmara instead of Male, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 72.9% more for restaurants

	Male	Asmara
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$5.56 MVR85.89	$12.00 ERN180.00	+116.0%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$9.80 MVR151.57	$5.99 ERN89.85	-38.9%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.45 MVR22.37	$1.25 ERN18.75	-13.6%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.31 MVR4.72	$1.00 ERN15.00	+227.9%
Average			+72.9%

Male vs. Asmara - Cost of restaurants

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pay 38.3% more for groceries

	Male	Asmara
Bread 1 loaf	$1.59 MVR24.59	??
Local cheese (8 oz)	$4.58 MVR70.73	$1.50 ERN22.50	-67.2%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.95 MVR107.42	$5.30 ERN79.49	-23.7%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.76 MVR27.28	$4.38 ERN65.70	+148.2%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.82 MVR43.54	$12.17 ERN182.57	+332.2%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.84 MVR28.42	$5.54 ERN83.16	+201.6%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.73 MVR26.74	$0.58 ERN8.69	-66.5%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.96 MVR30.36	$0.91 ERN13.61	-53.8%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.48 MVR22.92	$0.50 ERN7.56	-66.0%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.70 MVR10.82	$0.70 ERN10.43	-0.6%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.55 MVR8.48	$0.43 ERN6.50	-21.0%
Average			+38.3%

Male vs. Asmara - Cost of groceries

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pay 57.4% more for transportation

	Male	Asmara
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$3.54 MVR54.74	$8.52 ERN127.76	+140.5%
Monthly public transit pass	$28.91 MVR447.02	$8.00 ERN120.00	-72.3%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$32,679.74 MVR505K	$66,666.00 ERN1000K	+104.0%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$17.65 MVR272.82	??
Average			+57.4%

Male vs. Asmara - Cost of transportation

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pay 5.7% less for housing

	Male	Asmara
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$81.15 MVR1,254.65	$200.00 ERN3,000.00	+146.4%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$965.87 MVR14,932.32	$475.00 ERN7,125.00	-50.8%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$678.10 MVR10,483.50	$400.00 ERN6,000.00	-41.0%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$93.30 MVR1,442.38	$21.03 ERN315.44	-77.5%
Average			-5.7%

Male vs. Asmara - Cost of housing

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pay 69.1% less for childcare

	Male	Asmara
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$165.36 MVR2,556.46	$25.00 ERN375.00	-84.9%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$3,587.42 MVR55,461.49	$1,675.00 ERN25,125.00	-53.3%
Average			-69.1%

Male vs. Asmara - Cost of childcare

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pay 78.4% less for entertainment and sports

	Male	Asmara
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$4.74 MVR73.26	$0.80 ERN12.00	-83.1%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.31 MVR51.15	$0.82 ERN12.38	-75.1%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$13.07 MVR202.09	??
Monthly membership at local gym	$80.61 MVR1,246.23	$27.00 ERN405.00	-66.5%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$9.80 MVR151.57	$1.10 ERN16.50	-88.8%
Average			-78.4%

Male vs. Asmara - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 82.2% more for clothing

	Male	Asmara
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$43.03 MVR665.22	$82.50 ERN1,237.50	+91.7%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$56.86 MVR879.10	$75.00 ERN1,125.00	+31.9%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$90.20 MVR1,394.43	$200.00 ERN3,000.00	+121.7%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$51.74 MVR799.95	$95.00 ERN1,425.00	+83.6%
Average			+82.2%

Male vs. Asmara - 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: June 2026

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