Cost of living comparison

Tonga

compared to

Ethiopia

Addis Ababa vs. Nuku'alofa Cost of Living Summary

Addis Ababa is 0.3% cheaper than Nuku'alofa.

Restaurants: pay 54.1% less in Addis Ababa
Groceries: pay 44.6% less in Addis Ababa
Transportation: pay 20.0% more in Addis Ababa
Housing: pay 16.4% more in Addis Ababa
Childcare: pay 10.2 times more in Addis Ababa
Entertainment and Sports: pay 65.1% less in Addis Ababa
Clothing: pay 3.2 times more in Addis Ababa

The cost of childcare, clothing, transportation, and housing in Addis Ababa are more expensive than in Nuku'alofa. Expenses including entertainment and sports, restaurants, and groceries are lower in Addis Ababa. Notably, childcare and clothing are significantly more expensive in Addis Ababa.

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

Addis Ababa vs. Nuku'alofa Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Addis Ababa instead of Nuku'alofa, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 54.1% less for restaurants

	Nuku'alofa	Addis Ababa
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$8.31 TOP20.00	$4.00 ETB654.34	-51.8%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$10.38 TOP25.00	$6.50 ETB1,063.31	-37.4%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$2.84 TOP6.83	$0.61 ETB99.06	-78.7%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$2.46 TOP5.92	$0.66 ETB107.50	-73.3%
Average			-54.1%

Nuku'alofa vs. Addis Ababa - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 44.6% less for groceries

	Nuku'alofa	Addis Ababa
Bread 1 loaf	$1.04 TOP2.50	$1.19 ETB194.58	+14.6%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$4.50 TOP10.83	$3.70 ETB604.57	-17.9%
Milk (1 gallon)	$5.92 TOP14.26	$4.09 ETB669.40	-30.9%
Eggs 1 dozen	$5.09 TOP12.27	$1.77 ETB289.63	-65.2%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.67 TOP6.43	$4.59 ETB750.34	+71.9%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.26 TOP3.02	$2.44 ETB399.44	+94.4%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.26 TOP3.02	$0.30 ETB48.73	-76.3%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.32 TOP3.18	$0.99 ETB161.65	-25.1%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.70 TOP4.08	$0.31 ETB50.42	-81.8%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.44 TOP3.48	$0.22 ETB35.99	-84.8%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.19 TOP2.87	$0.49 ETB79.77	-59.1%
Average			-44.6%

Nuku'alofa vs. Addis Ababa - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 20.0% more for transportation

	Nuku'alofa	Addis Ababa
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.50 TOP13.25	$3.53 ETB577.22	-35.9%
Monthly public transit pass	$41.53 TOP100.00	$21.11 ETB3,453.30	-49.2%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$5,814.53 TOP14,000.00	$55,000.00 ETB9M	+845.9%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$18.69 TOP45.00	$3.53 ETB576.64	-81.1%
Average			+20.0%

Nuku'alofa vs. Addis Ababa - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 16.4% more for housing

	Nuku'alofa	Addis Ababa
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$124.60 TOP300.00	$212.33 ETB34,734.76	+70.4%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$622.99 TOP1,500.00	$706.95 ETB116K	+13.5%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	??	$394.55 ETB64,542.82
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$142.92 TOP344.12	$156.76 ETB25,644.51	+9.7%
Average			+16.4%

Nuku'alofa vs. Addis Ababa - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 10.2 times more for childcare

	Nuku'alofa	Addis Ababa
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$157.82 TOP380.00	$136.41 ETB22,314.75	-13.6%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$249.19 TOP600.00	$30,187.50 ETB5M	+12014.0%
Average			+923.3%

Nuku'alofa vs. Addis Ababa - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 65.1% less for entertainment and sports

	Nuku'alofa	Addis Ababa
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.32 TOP8.00	$0.80 ETB130.87	-75.9%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.91 TOP7.00	$0.92 ETB150.32	-68.4%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$10.18 TOP24.50	$8.00 ETB1,308.69	-21.4%
Monthly membership at local gym	$31.15 TOP75.00	$44.15 ETB7,221.55	+41.7%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$41.53 TOP100.00	$3.75 ETB613.45	-91.0%
Average			-65.1%

Nuku'alofa vs. Addis Ababa - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 3.2 times more for clothing

	Nuku'alofa	Addis Ababa
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$14.54 TOP35.00	$33.14 ETB5,421.12	+128.0%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$17.65 TOP42.50	$70.86 ETB11,591.24	+301.4%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$20.77 TOP50.00	$78.65 ETB12,865.68	+278.7%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$29.07 TOP70.00	$82.70 ETB13,529.26	+184.5%
Average			+215.1%

Nuku'alofa vs. Addis Ababa - 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: Nuku'alofa vs. Addis Ababa

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in Addis Ababa?

More cost comparisons

Nuku'alofa vs.

Dublin

Nuku'alofa vs.

Rome

Nuku'alofa vs.

Athens

Nuku'alofa vs.

Madrid

Nuku'alofa vs.

Ottawa

Nuku'alofa vs.

Cairo

Nuku'alofa vs.

Lima

Nuku'alofa vs.

Reykjavik

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

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

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 Nuku'alofa

Add prices for Addis Ababa

Ask the Elsewhere Community

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