Cost of living comparison

Lusaka, Zambia

compared to

Mogadishu, Somalia

Mogadishu vs. Lusaka Cost of Living Summary

Mogadishu is 15.5% cheaper than Lusaka.

Restaurants: pay 7.0% less in Mogadishu
Groceries: pay 10.9% less in Mogadishu
Transportation: pay 30.6% less in Mogadishu
Housing: pay 23.3% less in Mogadishu
Childcare: pay 72.4% less in Mogadishu
Entertainment and Sports: pay 52.1% more in Mogadishu
Clothing: pay 16.2% less in Mogadishu

Expenses including childcare, transportation, housing, clothing, groceries, and restaurants are lower in Mogadishu.

Mogadishu vs. Lusaka Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Mogadishu instead of Lusaka, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 7.0% less for restaurants

	Lusaka	Mogadishu
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$7.21 ZMW201.36	$3.00 SOS1,714	-58.4%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$3.82 ZMW106.71	$3.50 SOS2,000	-8.4%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.71 ZMW19.93	$0.62 SOS357	-12.4%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.33 ZMW9.24	$0.50 SOS286	+51.1%
Average			-7.0%

Lusaka vs. Mogadishu - Cost of restaurants

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pay 10.9% less for groceries

	Lusaka	Mogadishu
Bread 1 loaf	$0.74 ZMW20.65	$1.17 SOS667	+57.7%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$3.64 ZMW101.52	$1.88 SOS1,072	-48.4%
Milk (1 gallon)	$4.85 ZMW135.49	$5.30 SOS3,029	+9.2%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.92 ZMW53.74	$1.82 SOS1,042	-5.3%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$1.80 ZMW50.17	$1.89 SOS1,080	+5.2%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.20 ZMW33.53	$1.40 SOS800	+16.6%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.60 ZMW16.86	$0.38 SOS219	-36.6%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.27 ZMW35.33	$0.92 SOS527	-27.1%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.56 ZMW15.73	$0.46 SOS264	-17.9%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.96 ZMW26.69	$0.44 SOS251	-54.1%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.67 ZMW18.81	$0.54 SOS311	-19.2%
Average			-10.9%

Lusaka vs. Mogadishu - Cost of groceries

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pay 30.6% less for transportation

	Lusaka	Mogadishu
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.77 ZMW133.07	$3.91 SOS2,235	-17.9%
Monthly public transit pass	$37.04 ZMW1,034.17	$20.00 SOS11,430	-46.0%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$8,004.53 ZMW223,515.14	$7,500.00 SOS4,286,250	-6.3%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$12.13 ZMW338.70	$5.80 SOS3,315	-52.2%
Average			-30.6%

Lusaka vs. Mogadishu - Cost of transportation

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pay 23.3% less for housing

	Lusaka	Mogadishu
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$125.92 ZMW3,516.12	$33.75 SOS19,288	-73.2%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$214.42 ZMW5,987.45	$180.00 SOS102,870	-16.1%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$114.96 ZMW3,210.06	$81.67 SOS46,672	-29.0%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$83.50 ZMW2,331.67	$104.51 SOS59,727	+25.2%
Average			-23.3%

Lusaka vs. Mogadishu - Cost of housing

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pay 72.4% less for childcare

	Lusaka	Mogadishu
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$176.79 ZMW4,936.59	$73.75 SOS42,148	-58.3%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$6,570.42 ZMW183,469.81	$885.00 SOS505,778	-86.5%
Average			-72.4%

Lusaka vs. Mogadishu - Cost of childcare

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pay 52.1% more for entertainment and sports

	Lusaka	Mogadishu
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$0.97 ZMW27.00	$4.00 SOS2,286	+313.7%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.07 ZMW57.90	$1.38 SOS786	-33.7%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.49 ZMW69.50	$1.69 SOS966	-32.1%
Monthly membership at local gym	$41.21 ZMW1,150.79	$25.00 SOS14,288	-39.3%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$3.50 ZMW97.72	??
Average			+52.1%

Lusaka vs. Mogadishu - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 16.2% less for clothing

	Lusaka	Mogadishu
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$18.43 ZMW514.77	$18.33 SOS10,478	-0.6%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$18.78 ZMW524.52	$24.33 SOS13,906	+29.5%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$90.18 ZMW2,518.05	$22.67 SOS12,954	-74.9%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$82.76 ZMW2,310.99	$67.33 SOS38,481	-18.6%
Average			-16.2%

Lusaka vs. Mogadishu - 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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