Cost of living comparison
Damascus is 26.1% more expensive than Lilongwe.
If you lived in Damascus instead of Lilongwe, you would:
pay 30.8% more for restaurants
|
Lilongwe
|
Damascus
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$3.46
MWK5,991.59
|
$3.75
SYP9,422
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
?? |
$4.50
SYP11,306
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.91
MWK1,584.61
|
$0.95
SYP2,387
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.34
MWK588.73
|
$0.61
SYP1,539
|
|
pay 28.4% less for groceries
|
Lilongwe
|
Damascus
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.41
MWK2,447.45
|
$1.00
SYP2,513
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.88
MWK13,645.79
|
$1.84
SYP4,630
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.24
MWK9,066.99
|
$4.00
SYP10,038
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.06
MWK5,290.91
|
$1.68
SYP4,216
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$1.30
MWK2,242.73
|
$2.63
SYP6,604
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.07
MWK1,844.66
|
$0.45
SYP1,127
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.59
MWK1,025.99
|
$0.73
SYP1,831
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) | ?? |
$0.33
SYP826
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.56
MWK976.33
|
$0.32
SYP811
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.84
MWK1,448.78
|
$0.25
SYP638
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.56
MWK976.20
|
$0.20
SYP499
|
|
pay 2.9 times more for transportation
|
Lilongwe
|
Damascus
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.43
MWK11,130.74
|
$11.70
SYP29,396
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$4.32
MWK7,484.90
|
$17.00
SYP42,713
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) | ?? |
$18,000.00
SYP45,225,540
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) | ?? |
$13.00
SYP32,663
|
|
pay 26.8% more for housing
|
Lilongwe
|
Damascus
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$62.37
MWK108,010.55
|
$55.67
SYP139,864
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area | ?? |
$270.43
SYP679,452
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$67.61
MWK117,092.02
|
$135.00
SYP339,192
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$53.53
MWK92,704.19
|
$48.94
SYP122,966
|
|
pay 53.2% less for childcare
|
Lilongwe
|
Damascus
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly | ?? |
$51.88
SYP130,337
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$2,349.49
MWK4,068,925.57
|
$1,100.00
SYP2,763,783
|
|
pay 6.9% less for entertainment and sports
|
Lilongwe
|
Damascus
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.08
MWK1,870.70
|
$1.50
SYP3,769
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.21
MWK5,557.53
|
$1.30
SYP3,266
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$1.59
MWK2,747.62
|
$3.00
SYP7,538
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$44.05
MWK76,292.35
|
$12.14
SYP30,509
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$3.95
MWK6,841.72
|
$2.75
SYP6,909
|
|
pay (unknown) more for clothing
|
Lilongwe
|
Damascus
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
?? |
$29.00
SYP72,863
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
?? |
$29.80
SYP74,873
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
?? |
$40.75
SYP102,386
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) | ?? |
$46.67
SYP117,251
|
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