Cost of living comparison

Zambia

compared to

Cuba

Cuba vs. Zambia Cost of Living Summary

Cuba is 1.7% more expensive than Zambia overall.

Restaurants: pay 2.0% more in Cuba
Groceries: pay 24.1% more in Cuba
Transportation: pay 34.0% more in Cuba
Housing: pay 1.0% more in Cuba
Childcare: pay 41.6% less in Cuba
Entertainment and Sports: pay 60.7% less in Cuba
Clothing: pay 45.4% more in Cuba

The cost of clothing, transportation, groceries, restaurants, and housing in Cuba are more expensive than in Zambia. Expenses including entertainment and sports and childcare are lower in Cuba.

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Cuba vs. Zambia Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Cuba instead of Zambia, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 2.0% more for restaurants

	Zambia	Cuba
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$5.53 ZMW110.20	$3.71 CUC3.71	-33.0%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.03 ZMW100.18	$5.00 CUC5.00	-0.5%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.63 ZMW12.52	$1.70 CUC1.70	+170.5%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.36 ZMW7.20	$1.00 CUC1.00	+176.7%
Average			+2.0%

Zambia vs. Cuba - Cost of restaurants

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pay 24.1% more for groceries

	Zambia	Cuba
Bread 1 loaf	$1.18 ZMW23.48	$1.49 CUC1.49	+26.5%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.15 ZMW102.63	$2.22 CUC2.22	-56.9%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.37 ZMW126.88	$14.20 CUC14.20	+122.9%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.77 ZMW35.36	$3.71 CUC3.71	+109.3%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.87 ZMW57.22	$2.07 CUC2.07	-27.9%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.11 ZMW22.03	$2.75 CUC2.75	+148.4%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.10 ZMW21.94	$0.48 CUC0.48	-56.1%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.65 ZMW32.94	$1.79 CUC1.79	+8.1%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.70 ZMW13.88	$1.04 CUC1.04	+49.9%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.16 ZMW23.20	$1.73 CUC1.73	+48.2%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.83 ZMW16.51	$1.85 CUC1.85	+123.2%
Average			+24.1%

Zambia vs. Cuba - Cost of groceries

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pay 34.0% more for transportation

	Zambia	Cuba
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.47 ZMW108.98	$4.83 CUC4.83	-11.7%
Monthly public transit pass	$50.15 ZMW999.41	$22.50 CUC22.50	-55.1%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$7,541.11 ZMW150K	$60,000.00 CUC60,000.00	+695.6%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$14.58 ZMW290.52	$6.20 CUC6.20	-57.5%
Average			+34.0%

Zambia vs. Cuba - Cost of transportation

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pay 1.0% more for housing

	Zambia	Cuba
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$54.99 ZMW1,095.72	$90.21 CUC90.21	+64.1%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$280.45 ZMW5,588.55	$254.03 CUC254.03	-9.4%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$165.11 ZMW3,290.10	$214.40 CUC214.40	+29.9%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$61.51 ZMW1,225.74	$36.20 CUC36.20	-41.2%
Average			+1.0%

Zambia vs. Cuba - Cost of housing

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pay 41.6% less for childcare

	Zambia	Cuba
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$138.25 ZMW2,754.96	$112.00 CUC112.00	-19.0%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$16,638.36 ZMW332K	$7,000.00 CUC7,000.00	-57.9%
Average			-41.6%

Zambia vs. Cuba - Cost of childcare

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pay 60.7% less for entertainment and sports

	Zambia	Cuba
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.26 ZMW25.05	$1.60 CUC1.60	+27.5%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.82 ZMW56.21	$1.11 CUC1.11	-60.7%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$3.02 ZMW60.11	$2.00 CUC2.00	-33.7%
Monthly membership at local gym	$54.67 ZMW1,089.46	$19.00 CUC19.00	-65.2%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$6.03 ZMW120.22	$0.85 CUC0.85	-85.9%
Average			-60.7%

Zambia vs. Cuba - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 45.4% more for clothing

	Zambia	Cuba
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$23.28 ZMW463.85	$37.00 CUC37.00	+59.0%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$15.45 ZMW307.88	$37.00 CUC37.00	+139.5%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$45.19 ZMW900.42	$68.67 CUC68.67	+52.0%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$72.53 ZMW1,445.30	$56.00 CUC56.00	-22.8%
Average			+45.4%

Zambia vs. Cuba - Cost of clothing

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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: Zambia vs. Cuba

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in Cuba?

Quality of Life Comparison · 23 statistics

Be 4.1 times more likely to have internet access in Cuba

Size Comparison · See true size

Zambia is about 7 times bigger than Cuba.

Moving from Zambia to Cuba · Cost, visas & climate

Compare cost of living, salary and climate.

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