Cost of living comparison

Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei

compared to

Manama, Bahrain

Manama vs. Bandar Seri Begawan Cost of Living Summary

Manama is 49.6% more expensive than Bandar Seri Begawan.

Restaurants: pay 27.2% more in Manama
Groceries: pay 8.9% less in Manama
Transportation: pay 46.8% more in Manama
Housing: pay 31.9% more in Manama
Childcare: pay 79.4% more in Manama
Entertainment and Sports: pay 2.1 times more in Manama
Clothing: pay 63.6% more in Manama

The cost of entertainment and sports, childcare, clothing, transportation, housing, and restaurants in Manama are more expensive than in Bandar Seri Begawan. Notably, entertainment and sports and childcare are significantly more expensive in Manama.

Manama vs. Bandar Seri Begawan Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Manama instead of Bandar Seri Begawan, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 27.2% more for restaurants

	Bandar Seri Begawan	Manama
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$3.22 BND4.14	$6.86 BHD2.580	+112.8%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.27 BND6.77	$7.12 BHD2.680	+35.2%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.83 BND1.07	$0.85 BHD0.320	+2.6%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.60 BND0.78	$0.35 BHD0.130	-41.7%
Average			+27.2%

Bandar Seri Begawan vs. Manama - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 8.9% less for groceries

	Bandar Seri Begawan	Manama
Bread 1 loaf	$1.92 BND2.46	$1.42 BHD0.530	-26.0%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$1.50 BND1.93	$3.72 BHD1.400	+147.1%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.51 BND8.37	$6.73 BHD2.540	+3.4%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.32 BND2.98	$2.62 BHD0.990	+12.9%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.63 BND3.39	$3.01 BHD1.130	+14.2%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.49 BND1.92	$1.06 BHD0.400	-28.9%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.02 BND1.32	$0.94 BHD0.350	-8.5%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.71 BND2.19	$0.78 BHD0.290	-54.2%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.67 BND2.15	$0.53 BHD0.200	-68.2%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.71 BND0.91	$0.37 BHD0.140	-48.0%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.77 BND0.99	$0.45 BHD0.170	-41.9%
Average			-8.9%

Bandar Seri Begawan vs. Manama - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 46.8% more for transportation

	Bandar Seri Begawan	Manama
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$1.51 BND1.95	$2.07 BHD0.780	+37.1%
Monthly public transit pass	$22.57 BND29.02	$34.28 BHD12.920	+51.9%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$25,582.11 BND32,884.29	$36,920.22 BHD13,919.180	+44.3%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$25.65 BND32.97	$39.43 BHD14.860	+53.7%
Average			+46.8%

Bandar Seri Begawan vs. Manama - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 31.9% more for housing

	Bandar Seri Begawan	Manama
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$51.92 BND66.74	$40.00 BHD15.080	-23.0%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$605.59 BND778.45	$765.66 BHD288.660	+26.4%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$529.98 BND681.26	$540.84 BHD203.900	+2.0%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$42.96 BND55.22	$95.46 BHD35.990	+122.2%
Average			+31.9%

Bandar Seri Begawan vs. Manama - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 79.4% more for childcare

	Bandar Seri Begawan	Manama
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$127.91 BND164.42	$364.26 BHD137.330	+184.8%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$13,586.95 BND17,465.22	$10,054.17 BHD3,790.490	-26.0%
Average			+79.4%

Bandar Seri Begawan vs. Manama - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 2.1 times more for entertainment and sports

	Bandar Seri Begawan	Manama
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.88 BND2.42	$8.00 BHD3.020	+325.3%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.12 BND4.01	$5.38 BHD2.030	+72.6%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$15.05 BND19.34	$6.46 BHD2.440	-57.1%
Monthly membership at local gym	$41.49 BND53.34	$67.98 BHD25.630	+63.8%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$4.55 BND5.85	$10.55 BHD3.980	+132.0%
Average			+107.3%

Bandar Seri Begawan vs. Manama - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 63.6% more for clothing

	Bandar Seri Begawan	Manama
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$22.90 BND29.44	$49.67 BHD18.720	+116.9%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$30.54 BND39.25	$72.52 BHD27.340	+137.5%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$88.33 BND113.54	$85.71 BHD32.310	-3.0%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$88.15 BND113.31	$90.98 BHD34.300	+3.2%
Average			+63.6%

Bandar Seri Begawan vs. Manama - 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: June 2025

More cost comparisons

Bandar Seri Begawan vs.

Paris

Bandar Seri Begawan vs.

Wellington

Bandar Seri Begawan vs.

Nairobi

Bandar Seri Begawan vs.

Lima

Bandar Seri Begawan vs.

Washington

Bandar Seri Begawan vs.

Beijing

Bandar Seri Begawan vs.

Quito

Bandar Seri Begawan vs.

Manila

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

See the cost of living in Brunei vs. Bahrain. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Brunei and Bahrain.

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

Add prices for Bandar Seri Begawan

Add prices for Manama

ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Manama or Bandar Seri Begawan. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.