Cost of living comparison
compared to
Ethiopia vs. United States Cost of Living Summary
Ethiopia is 26.9% cheaper than United States overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 66.9% less in Ethiopia
- Groceries
-
pay 32.7% less in Ethiopia
- Transportation
-
pay 12.6% less in Ethiopia
- Housing
-
pay 11.2% less in Ethiopia
- Childcare
-
pay 31.6% less in Ethiopia
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 52.8% less in Ethiopia
- Clothing
-
pay 19.5% more in Ethiopia
Expenses including restaurants, entertainment and sports, groceries, childcare, transportation, and housing are lower in Ethiopia.
Ethiopia vs. United States Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Ethiopia instead of United States, you would:
pay 66.9% less for restaurants
|
United States
|
Ethiopia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$19.45
|
$4.26
ETB655.54
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.12
|
$6.50
ETB1,000.24
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.56
|
$0.61
ETB93.51
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.00
|
$0.57
ETB87.20
|
|
United States vs. Ethiopia - Cost of restaurants
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 32.7% less for groceries
|
United States
|
Ethiopia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.56
|
$1.26
ETB193.73
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.50
|
$4.34
ETB667.36
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.97
|
$5.42
ETB834.53
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.27
|
$2.28
ETB351.02
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.41
|
$5.76
ETB886.79
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.37
|
$3.08
ETB473.48
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.78
|
$0.43
ETB66.40
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.04
|
$1.06
ETB162.78
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.21
|
$0.40
ETB62.30
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.34
|
$0.28
ETB42.45
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.38
|
$0.91
ETB139.43
|
|
United States vs. Ethiopia - Cost of groceries
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 12.6% less for transportation
|
United States
|
Ethiopia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.41
|
$4.81
ETB740.52
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$65.85
|
$12.00
ETB1,846.60
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$32,336.38
|
$55,000.00
ETB8,463,587.61
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$17.61
|
$3.62
ETB556.29
|
|
United States vs. Ethiopia - Cost of transportation
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 11.2% less for housing
|
United States
|
Ethiopia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$68.97
|
$130.20
ETB20,035.62
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,664.59
|
$815.99
ETB125,568.08
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,416.15
|
$512.43
ETB78,854.26
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$150.19
|
$121.97
ETB18,769.25
|
|
United States vs. Ethiopia - Cost of housing
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 31.6% less for childcare
|
United States
|
Ethiopia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,387.27
|
$94.05
ETB14,472.47
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$23,196.46
|
$30,187.50
ETB4,645,355.47
|
|
United States vs. Ethiopia - Cost of childcare
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 52.8% less for entertainment and sports
|
United States
|
Ethiopia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.84
|
$0.90
ETB138.50
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.15
|
$1.09
ETB167.35
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$9.90
|
$5.10
ETB784.81
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$51.45
|
$62.10
ETB9,556.74
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.64
|
$3.75
ETB577.06
|
|
United States vs. Ethiopia - Cost of entertainment and sports
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 19.5% more for clothing
|
United States
|
Ethiopia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$51.08
|
$45.03
ETB6,929.81
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$41.81
|
$75.17
ETB11,566.90
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$87.56
|
$94.08
ETB14,477.62
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$112.04
|
$115.09
ETB17,709.97
|
|
United States vs. Ethiopia - 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: December 2025
Change currency:
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
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Ethiopia or United States. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.