Cost of Living Comparison Between United States and Malawi

Or please fill:

* Free use is limited to personal, academic and journalistic purposes only.
For commercial purposes, please obtain a Commercial License, Insights or API access

For major cities in those countries you get more relevant data by specifying cities.

City in United States:
City in Malawi:

Indices Difference
Cost of Living in Malawi is 48.3% lower than in United States (excluding rent)
Cost of Living Including Rent in Malawi is 61.2% lower than in United States
Rent Prices in Malawi are 87.3% lower than in United States
Restaurant Prices in Malawi are 62.0% lower than in United States
Groceries Prices in Malawi are 57.4% lower than in United States
Local Purchasing Power in Malawi is 81.5% lower than in United States

Currency: Sticky Currency Switch to metric measurement units

Restaurants	United States Edit	Malawi Edit	Difference
Meal, Inexpensive Restaurant	20.00 $	4.95 $	-75.3 %
Meal for 2 People, Mid-range Restaurant, Three-course	75.00 $	21.62 $	-71.2 %
McMeal at McDonalds (or Equivalent Combo Meal)	11.00 $	8.56 $	-22.2 %
Domestic Beer (1 pint draught)	6.00 $	1.35 $	-77.6 %
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle)	7.00 $	2.94 $	-58.0 %
Cappuccino (regular)	5.22 $	2.85 $	-45.4 %
Coke/Pepsi (12 oz small bottle)	2.56 $	0.85 $	-66.7 %
Water (12 oz small bottle)	2.08 $	0.45 $	-78.3 %
Markets	United States Edit	Malawi Edit
Milk (regular), (1 gallon)	4.00 $	3.90 $	-2.4 %
Loaf of Fresh White Bread (1 lb)	3.29 $	1.17 $	-64.3 %
Rice (white), (1 lb)	2.09 $	0.72 $	-65.7 %
Eggs (regular) (12)	4.17 $	2.31 $	-44.6 %
Local Cheese (1 lb)	5.87 $	3.37 $	-42.5 %
Chicken Fillets (1 lb)	5.52 $	1.54 $	-72.1 %
Beef Round (1 lb) (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat)	7.37 $	2.34 $	-68.3 %
Apples (1 lb)	2.40 $	1.10 $	-54.0 %
Banana (1 lb)	0.76 $	0.78 $	+2.4 %
Oranges (1 lb)	2.04 $	1.01 $	-50.5 %
Tomato (1 lb)	2.23 $	0.55 $	-75.2 %
Potato (1 lb)	1.33 $	0.62 $	-53.4 %
Onion (1 lb)	1.40 $	0.61 $	-56.0 %
Lettuce (1 head)	2.20 $	0.32 $	-85.6 %
Water (1.5 liter bottle)	2.23 $	1.14 $	-48.6 %
Bottle of Wine (Mid-Range)	15.00 $	12.64 $	-15.7 %
Domestic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)	1.94 $	0.95 $	-50.8 %
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle)	3.59 $	1.98 $	-44.9 %
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro)	10.00 $	2.37 $	-76.3 %
Transportation	United States Edit	Malawi Edit
One-way Ticket (Local Transport)	2.50 $	0.98 $	-60.9 %
Monthly Pass (Regular Price)	65.00 $	2.16 $	-96.7 %
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)	3.75 $	0.59 $	-84.2 %
Taxi 1 mile (Normal Tariff)	2.80 $	3.94 $	+40.6 %
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)	30.00 $	6.11 $	-79.6 %
Gasoline (1 gallon)	3.51 $	6.04 $	+72.1 %
Volkswagen Golf 1.4 90 KW Trendline (Or Equivalent New Car)	30,000.00 $	35,205.31 $	+17.4 %
Toyota Corolla Sedan 1.6l 97kW Comfort (Or Equivalent New Car)	25,961.72 $	39,117.01 $	+50.7 %
Utilities (Monthly)	United States Edit	Malawi Edit
Basic (Electricity, Heating, Cooling, Water, Garbage) for 915 sq ft Apartment	208.47 $	48.55 $	-76.7 %
Mobile Phone Monthly Plan with Calls and 10GB+ Data	57.20 $	10.26 $	-82.1 %
Internet (60 Mbps or More, Unlimited Data, Cable/ADSL)	71.50 $	71.78 $	+0.4 %
Sports And Leisure	United States Edit	Malawi Edit
Fitness Club, Monthly Fee for 1 Adult	46.46 $	44.76 $	-3.7 %
Tennis Court Rent (1 Hour on Weekend)	21.84 $	14.84 $	-32.0 %
Cinema, International Release, 1 Seat	14.22 $	3.95 $	-72.2 %
Childcare	United States Edit	Malawi Edit
Preschool (or Kindergarten), Full Day, Private, Monthly for 1 Child	1,374.91 $	377.21 $	-72.6 %
International Primary School, Yearly for 1 Child	22,637.79 $	1,471.60 $	-93.5 %
Clothing And Shoes	United States Edit	Malawi Edit
1 Pair of Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)	52.06 $	41.70 $	-19.9 %
1 Summer Dress in a Chain Store (Zara, H&M, ...)	42.54 $	34.73 $	-18.4 %
1 Pair of Nike Running Shoes (Mid-Range)	89.54 $	58.69 $	-34.5 %
1 Pair of Men Leather Business Shoes	113.24 $	70.38 $	-37.8 %
Rent Per Month	United States Edit	Malawi Edit
Apartment (1 bedroom) in City Centre	1,738.53 $	201.16 $	-88.4 %
Apartment (1 bedroom) Outside of Centre	1,435.23 $	82.89 $	-94.2 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) in City Centre	2,896.62 $	443.96 $	-84.7 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) Outside of Centre	2,398.02 $	351.11 $	-85.4 %
Buy Apartment Price	United States Edit	Malawi Edit
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment in City Centre	301.09 $	979.36 $	+225.3 %
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment Outside of Centre	251.78 $	45.95 $	-81.8 %
Salaries And Financing	United States Edit	Malawi Edit
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)	4,333.53 $	310.50 $	-92.8 %
Mortgage Interest Rate in Percentages (%), Yearly, for 20 Years Fixed-Rate	6.58	?
Last update:	April 2025	February 2025
Contributors in the past 12 months:	10375	16