Cost of living comparison

Kingston, Jamaica

compared to

Kigali, Rwanda

Kigali vs. Kingston Cost of Living Summary

Kigali is 19.4% cheaper than Kingston.

Restaurants: pay 42.0% less in Kigali
Groceries: pay 62.3% less in Kigali
Transportation: pay 36.7% less in Kigali
Housing: pay 51.3% less in Kigali
Childcare: pay 2.6 times more in Kigali
Entertainment and Sports: pay 62.7% less in Kigali
Clothing: pay 42.1% less in Kigali

Expenses including entertainment and sports, groceries, housing, clothing, restaurants, and transportation are lower in Kigali. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Kigali.

Kigali vs. Kingston Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 42.0% less for restaurants

	Kingston	Kigali
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$7.52 JMD1,204.80	$3.26 RWF4,650	-56.6%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$8.62 JMD1,380.50	$6.16 RWF8,784	-28.5%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.41 JMD226.29	$0.89 RWF1,275	-36.7%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.88 JMD140.56	$0.47 RWF672	-46.3%
Average			-42.0%

Kingston vs. Kigali - Cost of restaurants

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pay 62.3% less for groceries

	Kingston	Kigali
Bread 1 loaf	$3.54 JMD567.49	$1.01 RWF1,437	-71.5%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$6.58 JMD1,053.56	$2.26 RWF3,218	-65.7%
Milk (1 gallon)	$15.26 JMD2,444.65	$2.66 RWF3,785	-82.6%
Eggs 1 dozen	$4.27 JMD684.39	$1.67 RWF2,377	-60.9%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.97 JMD475.60	$2.19 RWF3,125	-26.1%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.70 JMD432.89	$1.38 RWF1,963	-49.0%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.39 JMD222.06	$0.52 RWF743	-62.4%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.82 JMD292.14	$0.86 RWF1,224	-52.9%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.59 JMD255.27	$0.48 RWF689	-69.7%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.04 JMD166.98	$0.22 RWF320	-78.4%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.95 JMD151.98	$0.33 RWF463	-65.7%
Average			-62.3%

Kingston vs. Kigali - Cost of groceries

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pay 36.7% less for transportation

	Kingston	Kigali
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.83 JMD774.55	$4.48 RWF6,383	-7.3%
Monthly public transit pass	$37.59 JMD6,023.98	$24.66 RWF35,136	-34.4%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$42,920.30 JMD6,877,375.42	$20,668.41 RWF29,452,490	-51.8%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$26.32 JMD4,216.78	$12.33 RWF17,568	-53.2%
Average			-36.7%

Kingston vs. Kigali - Cost of transportation

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pay 51.3% less for housing

	Kingston	Kigali
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$52.89 JMD8,474.54	$26.20 RWF37,332	-50.5%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$874.50 JMD140,126.50	$489.52 RWF697,559	-44.0%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$425.21 JMD68,133.30	$271.95 RWF387,533	-36.0%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$118.83 JMD19,040.50	$30.04 RWF42,806	-74.7%
Average			-51.3%

Kingston vs. Kigali - Cost of housing

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pay 2.6 times more for childcare

	Kingston	Kigali
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$227.66 JMD36,478.54	$149.39 RWF212,885	-34.4%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$2,105.29 JMD337,342.79	$9,609.00 RWF13,692,824	+356.4%
Average			+161.0%

Kingston vs. Kigali - Cost of childcare

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pay 62.7% less for entertainment and sports

	Kingston	Kigali
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.13 JMD502.00	$1.09 RWF1,550	-65.3%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$4.28 JMD686.28	$2.22 RWF3,158	-48.3%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$8.77 JMD1,405.59	$2.36 RWF3,359	-73.1%
Monthly membership at local gym	$69.97 JMD11,211.29	$31.83 RWF45,356	-54.5%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$13.16 JMD2,108.39	$3.63 RWF5,167	-72.4%
Average			-62.7%

Kingston vs. Kigali - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 42.1% less for clothing

	Kingston	Kigali
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$26.32 JMD4,216.78	$16.68 RWF23,769	-36.6%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$25.59 JMD4,099.65	$21.76 RWF31,003	-15.0%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$71.01 JMD11,378.63	$26.59 RWF37,892	-62.6%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$68.92 JMD11,043.96	$31.43 RWF44,782	-54.4%
Average			-42.1%

Kingston vs. Kigali - 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: June 2025

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