Cost of living comparison
Costa Rica is 2.6 times more expensive than Malawi.
If you lived in Costa Rica instead of Malawi, you would:
pay 2.3 times more for restaurants
|
Malawi
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$4.32
MWK7,498.84
|
$9.75
CRC4,963.74
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.04
MWK15,692.55
|
$9.08
CRC4,624.61
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.87
MWK1,512.88
|
$2.01
CRC1,023.87
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.43
MWK751.10
|
$1.49
CRC759.55
|
|
pay 54.1% more for groceries
|
Malawi
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.36
MWK2,368.11
|
$2.53
CRC1,289.48
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.82
MWK8,360.77
|
$3.76
CRC1,916.12
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.51
MWK7,831.71
|
$6.98
CRC3,552.39
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.31
MWK4,002.08
|
$3.21
CRC1,635.78
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$1.93
MWK3,341.34
|
$3.97
CRC2,022.13
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.03
MWK1,795.49
|
$1.79
CRC911.22
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.81
MWK1,404.89
|
$0.62
CRC314.14
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.12
MWK1,941.16
|
$1.22
CRC619.44
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.53
MWK914.64
|
$1.22
CRC622.11
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.72
MWK1,248.76
|
$1.09
CRC557.26
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.59
MWK1,017.29
|
$1.11
CRC567.15
|
|
pay 3.5 times more for transportation
|
Malawi
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.19
MWK10,737.11
|
$5.63
CRC2,865.49
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$4.32
MWK7,498.58
|
$49.00
CRC24,952.10
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$35,669.17
MWK61,886,003.48
|
$35,063.37
CRC17,855,577.21
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$20.40
MWK35,398.06
|
$15.62
CRC7,955.42
|
|
pay 2.8 times more for housing
|
Malawi
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$186.12
MWK322,926.56
|
$48.50
CRC24,698.23
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$202.19
MWK350,792.59
|
$778.04
CRC396,205.81
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$98.76
MWK171,353.62
|
$547.50
CRC278,809.11
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$41.29
MWK71,631.08
|
$68.26
CRC34,759.38
|
|
pay 4.5 times more for childcare
|
Malawi
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$354.75
MWK615,497.99
|
$519.07
CRC264,328.57
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$1,467.81
MWK2,546,650.33
|
$10,987.74
CRC5,595,368.81
|
|
pay 98.4% more for entertainment and sports
|
Malawi
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.12
MWK1,942.21
|
$2.73
CRC1,388.77
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.91
MWK5,053.92
|
$3.65
CRC1,860.88
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$1.59
MWK2,752.64
|
$4.58
CRC2,333.48
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$51.33
MWK89,062.98
|
$59.46
CRC30,279.55
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$3.95
MWK6,854.22
|
$8.63
CRC4,392.64
|
|
pay 49.0% more for clothing
|
Malawi
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$45.22
MWK78,463.65
|
$65.32
CRC33,265.24
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$34.94
MWK60,626.10
|
$44.54
CRC22,681.61
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$59.17
MWK102,662.55
|
$110.39
CRC56,212.43
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$70.71
MWK122,673.40
|
$97.22
CRC49,506.45
|
|
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