Cost of living comparison

Kingston, Jamaica

compared to

Gaborone, Botswana

Gaborone vs. Kingston Cost of Living Summary

Gaborone is 19.2% cheaper than Kingston.

Restaurants: pay 29.0% less in Gaborone
Groceries: pay 53.2% less in Gaborone
Transportation: pay 27.5% less in Gaborone
Housing: pay 30.7% less in Gaborone
Childcare: pay 28.5% more in Gaborone
Entertainment and Sports: pay 46.6% less in Gaborone
Clothing: pay 24.2% more in Gaborone

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

Gaborone vs. Kingston Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Gaborone instead of Kingston, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 29.0% less for restaurants

	Kingston	Gaborone
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$7.52 JMD1,189.89	$7.50 BWP103.31	-0.3%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$8.62 JMD1,363.41	$6.00 BWP82.65	-30.4%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.41 JMD223.48	$0.83 BWP11.48	-41.0%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.88 JMD138.82	$0.49 BWP6.73	-44.4%
Average			-29.0%

Kingston vs. Gaborone - Cost of restaurants

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pay 53.2% less for groceries

	Kingston	Gaborone
Bread 1 loaf	$3.54 JMD560.47	$0.81 BWP11.20	-77.1%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$6.58 JMD1,040.52	$3.37 BWP46.42	-48.8%
Milk (1 gallon)	$15.26 JMD2,414.40	$5.06 BWP69.75	-66.8%
Eggs 1 dozen	$4.27 JMD675.92	$2.29 BWP31.57	-46.4%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.97 JMD469.71	$2.27 BWP31.34	-23.4%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.70 JMD427.54	$0.77 BWP10.67	-71.3%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.39 JMD219.31	$0.62 BWP8.53	-55.3%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.82 JMD288.53	$0.88 BWP12.18	-51.5%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.59 JMD252.11	$0.65 BWP8.90	-59.5%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.04 JMD164.91	$0.60 BWP8.23	-42.7%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.95 JMD150.10	$0.55 BWP7.55	-42.3%
Average			-53.2%

Kingston vs. Gaborone - Cost of groceries

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pay 27.5% less for transportation

	Kingston	Gaborone
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.83 JMD764.96	$4.27 BWP58.90	-11.6%
Monthly public transit pass	$37.59 JMD5,949.43	$28.18 BWP388.46	-25.0%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$42,920.30 JMD6,792,265.20	$22,486.26 BWP309,938.88	-47.6%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$26.32 JMD4,164.60	$19.49 BWP268.61	-25.9%
Average			-27.5%

Kingston vs. Gaborone - Cost of transportation

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pay 30.7% less for housing

	Kingston	Gaborone
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$52.89 JMD8,369.67	$90.60 BWP1,248.80	+71.3%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$874.50 JMD138,392.38	$254.84 BWP3,512.64	-70.9%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$425.21 JMD67,290.13	$149.91 BWP2,066.26	-64.7%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$118.83 JMD18,804.86	$49.21 BWP678.31	-58.6%
Average			-30.7%

Kingston vs. Gaborone - Cost of housing

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pay 28.5% more for childcare

	Kingston	Gaborone
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$227.66 JMD36,027.10	$180.24 BWP2,484.35	-20.8%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$2,105.29 JMD333,168.05	$3,740.68 BWP51,559.62	+77.7%
Average			+28.5%

Kingston vs. Gaborone - Cost of childcare

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pay 46.6% less for entertainment and sports

	Kingston	Gaborone
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.13 JMD495.79	$2.25 BWP30.99	-28.2%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$4.28 JMD677.79	$2.37 BWP32.66	-44.7%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$8.77 JMD1,388.20	$3.75 BWP51.66	-57.3%
Monthly membership at local gym	$69.97 JMD11,072.55	$32.19 BWP443.67	-54.0%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$13.16 JMD2,082.30	$6.75 BWP92.98	-48.7%
Average			-46.6%

Kingston vs. Gaborone - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 24.2% more for clothing

	Kingston	Gaborone
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$26.32 JMD4,164.60	$44.14 BWP608.40	+67.7%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$25.59 JMD4,048.92	$22.17 BWP305.51	-13.4%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$71.01 JMD11,237.81	$76.20 BWP1,050.35	+7.3%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$68.92 JMD10,907.29	$93.16 BWP1,284.03	+35.2%
Average			+24.2%

Kingston vs. Gaborone - 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: April 2025

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

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