Cost of living comparison
compared to
Sao Tome and Principe vs. United States Cost of Living Summary
Sao Tome and Principe is 53.9% cheaper than United States overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 43.7% less in Sao Tome and Principe
- Groceries
-
pay 8.9% less in Sao Tome and Principe
- Transportation
-
pay 12.9% more in Sao Tome and Principe
- Housing
-
pay 77.4% less in Sao Tome and Principe
- Childcare
-
pay 88.1% less in Sao Tome and Principe
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 44.2% less in Sao Tome and Principe
- Clothing
-
pay 46.3% less in Sao Tome and Principe
Sao Tome and Principe vs. United States Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Sao Tome and Principe instead of United States, you would:
pay 43.7% less for restaurants
|
United States
|
Sao Tome and Principe
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$19.86
|
$8.96
STD200K
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.42
|
$7.89
STD176K
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.67
|
$1.84
STD41,004
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.05
|
$1.25
STD27,770
|
|
United States vs. Sao Tome and Principe - Cost of restaurants
pay 8.9% less for groceries
|
United States
|
Sao Tome and Principe
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.63
|
$1.00
STD22,187
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.52
|
$9.80
STD218K
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.98
|
$5.87
STD131K
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.30
|
$4.85
STD108K
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.46
|
$8.89
STD198K
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.34
|
$1.70
STD37,881
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.80
|
$0.79
STD17,644
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.02
|
$1.63
STD36,419
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.19
|
$1.57
STD34,958
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.34
|
$1.31
STD29,299
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.39
|
$1.08
STD23,986
|
|
United States vs. Sao Tome and Principe - Cost of groceries
pay 12.9% more for transportation
|
United States
|
Sao Tome and Principe
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.01
|
$6.46
STD144K
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$66.70
|
?? | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$34,164.82
|
$24,634.18
STD549M
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$18.02
|
$22.43
STD500K
|
|
United States vs. Sao Tome and Principe - Cost of transportation
pay 77.4% less for housing
|
United States
|
Sao Tome and Principe
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$70.22
|
$66.91
STD1M
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,681.01
|
$284.91
STD6M
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,404.28
|
$195.02
STD4M
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$157.64
|
$174.83
STD4M
|
|
United States vs. Sao Tome and Principe - Cost of housing
pay 88.1% less for childcare
|
United States
|
Sao Tome and Principe
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,450.99
|
$228.62
STD5M
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$24,361.50
|
$2,194.77
STD49M
|
|
United States vs. Sao Tome and Principe - Cost of childcare
pay 44.2% less for entertainment and sports
|
United States
|
Sao Tome and Principe
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.00
|
$1.70
STD37,799
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.31
|
$2.26
STD50,442
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$10.42
|
$2.26
STD50,420
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$50.68
|
$33.92
STD756K
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.95
|
$20.16
STD449K
|
|
United States vs. Sao Tome and Principe - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 46.3% less for clothing
|
United States
|
Sao Tome and Principe
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$53.15
|
?? | |
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$41.88
|
$75.02
STD2M
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$89.76
|
?? | |
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$114.01
|
$18.36
STD409K
|
|
United States vs. Sao Tome and Principe - Cost of clothing
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
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