Cost of living comparison

compared to

Iraq vs. Zambia Cost of Living Summary

Iraq is 1.4% more expensive than Zambia overall.

Restaurants: pay 3.7% more in Iraq
Groceries: pay 29.9% less in Iraq
Transportation: pay 18.3% more in Iraq
Housing: pay 22.0% more in Iraq
Childcare: pay 51.9% less in Iraq
Entertainment and Sports: pay 45.4% more in Iraq
Clothing: pay 2.0% more in Iraq

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

Iraq vs. Zambia Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 3.7% more for restaurants

	Zambia	Iraq
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$7.35 ZMW141.40	$4.66 IQD6,077	-36.6%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$3.72 ZMW71.49	$6.78 IQD8,835	+82.4%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.49 ZMW9.43	$0.40 IQD519	-18.7%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.26 ZMW4.99	$0.23 IQD296	-12.4%
Average			+3.7%

Zambia vs. Iraq - Cost of restaurants

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pay 29.9% less for groceries

	Zambia	Iraq
Bread 1 loaf	$0.77 ZMW14.76	$0.76 IQD986	-1.4%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$3.76 ZMW72.35	$2.55 IQD3,326	-32.1%
Milk (1 gallon)	$4.89 ZMW94.06	$4.46 IQD5,811	-8.8%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.53 ZMW29.49	$1.69 IQD2,199	+10.1%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$1.78 ZMW34.31	$1.98 IQD2,579	+10.9%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.90 ZMW17.24	$0.47 IQD617	-47.2%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.73 ZMW14.01	$0.51 IQD658	-30.7%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.22 ZMW23.52	$0.43 IQD559	-64.9%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.50 ZMW9.61	$0.31 IQD398	-38.9%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.89 ZMW17.04	$0.29 IQD373	-67.7%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.67 ZMW12.87	$0.28 IQD367	-57.9%
Average			-29.9%

Zambia vs. Iraq - Cost of groceries

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pay 18.3% more for transportation

	Zambia	Iraq
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.58 ZMW88.01	$2.08 IQD2,712	-54.5%
Monthly public transit pass	$38.52 ZMW740.77	$37.40 IQD48,735	-2.9%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$8,004.53 ZMW154K	$15,792.71 IQD21M	+97.3%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$11.53 ZMW221.80	$15.36 IQD20,014	+33.2%
Average			+18.3%

Zambia vs. Iraq - Cost of transportation

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pay 22.0% more for housing

	Zambia	Iraq
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$118.37 ZMW2,276.46	$36.30 IQD47,293	-69.3%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$176.52 ZMW3,394.83	$287.91 IQD375K	+63.1%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$115.74 ZMW2,225.80	$193.91 IQD253K	+67.5%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$52.70 ZMW1,013.59	$66.74 IQD86,959	+26.6%
Average			+22.0%

Zambia vs. Iraq - Cost of housing

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pay 51.9% less for childcare

	Zambia	Iraq
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$176.79 ZMW3,399.98	$138.70 IQD181K	-21.5%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$11,677.88 ZMW225K	$2,066.25 IQD3M	-82.3%
Average			-51.9%

Zambia vs. Iraq - Cost of childcare

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pay 45.4% more for entertainment and sports

	Zambia	Iraq
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$0.98 ZMW18.78	$2.78 IQD3,619	+184.5%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.05 ZMW39.37	$2.47 IQD3,217	+20.6%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$3.67 ZMW70.67	$2.00 IQD2,600	-45.7%
Monthly membership at local gym	$50.47 ZMW970.60	$34.51 IQD44,968	-31.6%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$4.18 ZMW80.48	$8.34 IQD10,862	+99.2%
Average			+45.4%

Zambia vs. Iraq - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 2.0% more for clothing

	Zambia	Iraq
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$18.93 ZMW364.01	$25.03 IQD32,619	+32.3%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$16.99 ZMW326.75	$27.73 IQD36,136	+63.2%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$84.33 ZMW1,621.79	$50.80 IQD66,195	-39.8%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$73.12 ZMW1,406.30	$38.19 IQD49,762	-47.8%
Average			+2.0%

Zambia vs. Iraq - 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: March 2026

Compare further: Zambia vs. Iraq

Quality of Life Comparison · 14 statistics

Make 3.4 times more money in Iraq

Size Comparison · See true size

Zambia is about 1.7 times bigger than Iraq.

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