Cost of living comparison
Beirut is 3.1 times more expensive than Lilongwe.
If you lived in Beirut instead of Lilongwe, you would:
pay 2.6 times more for restaurants
|
Lilongwe
|
Beirut
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$3.46
MWK6,017.13
|
$10.00
LBP898,133
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
?? |
$7.64
LBP686,084
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.91
MWK1,591.36
|
$1.59
LBP142,739
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.34
MWK591.24
|
$1.13
LBP101,489
|
|
pay 0.3% more for groceries
|
Lilongwe
|
Beirut
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.41
MWK2,457.88
|
$0.91
LBP82,135
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.88
MWK13,703.97
|
$5.48
LBP491,728
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.24
MWK9,105.64
|
$6.19
LBP555,737
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.06
MWK5,313.47
|
$2.72
LBP243,996
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$1.30
MWK2,252.29
|
$3.84
LBP344,513
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.07
MWK1,852.53
|
$0.69
LBP62,125
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.59
MWK1,030.36
|
$0.56
LBP49,895
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) | ?? |
$0.41
LBP36,878
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.56
MWK980.50
|
$0.47
LBP41,893
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.84
MWK1,454.96
|
$0.39
LBP35,171
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.56
MWK980.36
|
$0.44
LBP39,391
|
|
pay 8.9 times more for transportation
|
Lilongwe
|
Beirut
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.43
MWK11,178.19
|
$3.49
LBP313,510
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$4.32
MWK7,516.81
|
$75.00
LBP6,735,996
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) | ?? |
$30,000.00
LBP2,694,398,584
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) | ?? |
$12.75
LBP1,145,119
|
|
pay 2.9 times more for housing
|
Lilongwe
|
Beirut
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$62.37
MWK108,471.03
|
$31.88
LBP2,862,798
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area | ?? |
$738.24
LBP66,303,338
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$67.61
MWK117,591.22
|
$359.38
LBP32,276,650
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$53.53
MWK93,099.41
|
$161.18
LBP14,476,375
|
|
pay 28.0% more for childcare
|
Lilongwe
|
Beirut
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$350.00
MWK608,726.93
|
$283.33
LBP25,447,098
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$2,349.49
MWK4,086,272.64
|
$4,111.11
LBP369,232,398
|
|
pay 60.6% more for entertainment and sports
|
Lilongwe
|
Beirut
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.08
MWK1,878.67
|
$3.00
LBP269,440
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.21
MWK5,581.23
|
$2.80
LBP251,477
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$1.59
MWK2,759.34
|
$2.00
LBP179,627
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$44.05
MWK76,617.61
|
$59.33
LBP5,328,922
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$3.95
MWK6,870.89
|
$7.00
LBP628,693
|
|
pay (unknown) more for clothing
|
Lilongwe
|
Beirut
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
?? |
$78.12
LBP7,016,663
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
?? |
$57.86
LBP5,196,340
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
?? |
$103.12
LBP9,261,995
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) | ?? |
$110.71
LBP9,943,614
|
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