Cost of living comparison

Sao Tome and Principe

compared to

Cuba

Havana vs. Sao Tome Cost of Living Summary

Havana is 40.5% more expensive than Sao Tome.

Restaurants: pay 31.8% less in Havana
Groceries: pay 10.1% less in Havana
Transportation: pay 25.4% less in Havana
Housing: pay 4.5% more in Havana
Entertainment and Sports: pay 12.0% less in Havana
Clothing: pay 4.2 times more in Havana

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

Havana vs. Sao Tome Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Havana instead of Sao Tome, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 31.8% less for restaurants

	Sao Tome	Havana
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$29.20 STD651K	$4.40 CUC4.40	-84.9%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$11.68 STD260K	$5.00 CUC5.00	-57.2%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.92 STD42,768	$2.08 CUC2.08	+8.1%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.17 STD26,025	$1.25 CUC1.25	+7.0%
Average			-31.8%

Sao Tome vs. Havana - Cost of restaurants

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pay 10.1% less for groceries

	Sao Tome	Havana
Bread 1 loaf	$1.08 STD24,088	$1.22 CUC1.22	+12.5%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$10.22 STD228K	$2.89 CUC2.89	-71.8%
Milk (1 gallon)	$5.97 STD133K	$10.68 CUC10.68	+78.9%
Eggs 1 dozen	$5.09 STD114K	$4.15 CUC4.15	-18.6%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$9.27 STD207K	$2.49 CUC2.49	-73.1%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.12 STD47,219	$2.27 CUC2.27	+7.0%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.53 STD11,805	$0.59 CUC0.59	+11.3%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.85 STD41,316	$1.36 CUC1.36	-26.6%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.59 STD35,414	$1.00 CUC1.00	-37.2%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.19 STD26,561	$0.95 CUC0.95	-19.9%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.93 STD20,658	$1.17 CUC1.17	+26.2%
Average			-10.1%

Sao Tome vs. Havana - Cost of groceries

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pay 25.4% less for transportation

	Sao Tome	Havana
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$6.40 STD143K	$4.77 CUC4.77	-25.4%
Monthly public transit pass	??	$25.00 CUC25.00
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	??	$60,000.00 CUC60,000.00
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	??	$6.60 CUC6.60
Average			-25.4%

Sao Tome vs. Havana - Cost of transportation

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pay 4.5% more for housing

	Sao Tome	Havana
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$72.42 STD2M	$75.00 CUC75.00	+3.6%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$350.40 STD8M	$251.37 CUC251.37	-28.3%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$233.60 STD5M	$322.73 CUC322.73	+38.2%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	??	$27.15 CUC27.15
Average			+4.5%

Sao Tome vs. Havana - Cost of housing

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pay (unknown) more for childcare

	Sao Tome	Havana
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	??	$112.00 CUC112.00
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	??	$8,500.00 CUC8,500.00

Sao Tome vs. Havana - Cost of childcare

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pay 12.0% less for entertainment and sports

	Sao Tome	Havana
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.67 STD37,216	$2.00 CUC2.00	+19.7%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.34 STD52,050	$1.01 CUC1.01	-56.8%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.34 STD52,050	$4.00 CUC4.00	+71.2%
Monthly membership at local gym	$37.38 STD833K	$37.75 CUC37.75	+1.0%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$21.02 STD468K	$1.00 CUC1.00	-95.2%
Average			-12.0%

Sao Tome vs. Havana - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 4.2 times more for clothing

	Sao Tome	Havana
Regular jeans Levi's brand	??	$34.75 CUC34.75
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	??	$37.75 CUC37.75
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	??	$75.00 CUC75.00
Men's business shoes (leather)	$19.16 STD427K	$80.00 CUC80.00	+317.6%
Average			+317.6%

Sao Tome vs. Havana - 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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