Cost of living comparison

Malawi

compared to

Somalia vs. Malawi Cost of Living Summary

Somalia is 5.6% more expensive than Malawi overall.

Restaurants: pay 19.1% less in Somalia
Groceries: pay 4.6% more in Somalia
Transportation: pay 74.4% more in Somalia
Housing: pay 4.6% more in Somalia
Childcare: pay 66.9% less in Somalia
Entertainment and Sports: pay 87.5% more in Somalia
Clothing: pay 46.0% less in Somalia

The cost of entertainment and sports, transportation, groceries, and housing in Somalia are more expensive than in Malawi. Expenses including childcare, clothing, and restaurants are lower in Somalia. Notably, entertainment and sports is significantly more expensive in Somalia.

Somalia vs. Malawi Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Somalia instead of Malawi, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 19.1% less for restaurants

	Malawi	Somalia
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$4.32 MWK7,494.49	$2.65 SOS1,514	-38.7%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$9.04 MWK15,683.46	$4.67 SOS2,667	-48.4%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.87 MWK1,512.00	$0.81 SOS462	-7.3%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.43 MWK750.66	$0.51 SOS292	+18.1%
Average			-19.1%

Malawi vs. Somalia - Cost of restaurants

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pay 4.6% more for groceries

	Malawi	Somalia
Bread 1 loaf	$1.36 MWK2,366.74	$0.97 SOS556	-28.8%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$4.82 MWK8,355.93	$1.96 SOS1,119	-59.4%
Milk (1 gallon)	$4.51 MWK7,827.17	$5.93 SOS3,389	+31.4%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.31 MWK3,999.76	$2.21 SOS1,262	-4.3%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$1.93 MWK3,339.41	$2.67 SOS1,526	+38.7%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.03 MWK1,794.45	$1.73 SOS987	+66.9%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.81 MWK1,404.08	$0.88 SOS505	+9.1%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.12 MWK1,940.04	$1.32 SOS752	+17.6%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.53 MWK914.11	$0.54 SOS311	+3.3%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.72 MWK1,248.04	$0.60 SOS343	-16.7%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.59 MWK1,016.70	$0.54 SOS310	-7.6%
Average			+4.6%

Malawi vs. Somalia - Cost of groceries

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pay 74.4% more for transportation

	Malawi	Somalia
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$6.19 MWK10,730.89	$4.12 SOS2,355	-33.4%
Monthly public transit pass	$4.32 MWK7,494.23	$25.00 SOS14,285	+478.4%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$35,669.17 MWK61,850,147.98	$5,750.00 SOS3,285,536	-83.9%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$20.40 MWK35,377.55	$7.43 SOS4,247	-63.6%
Average			+74.4%

Malawi vs. Somalia - Cost of transportation

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pay 4.6% more for housing

	Malawi	Somalia
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$186.12 MWK322,739.46	$30.62 SOS17,499	-83.5%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$202.19 MWK350,589.35	$160.00 SOS91,424	-20.9%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$98.76 MWK171,254.34	$93.33 SOS53,330	-5.5%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$41.29 MWK71,589.58	$94.31 SOS53,891	+128.4%
Average			+4.6%

Malawi vs. Somalia - Cost of housing

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pay 66.9% less for childcare

	Malawi	Somalia
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$354.75 MWK615,141.38	$55.21 SOS31,546	-84.4%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$1,467.81 MWK2,545,174.85	$742.50 SOS424,263	-49.4%
Average			-66.9%

Malawi vs. Somalia - Cost of childcare

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pay 87.5% more for entertainment and sports

	Malawi	Somalia
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.12 MWK1,941.09	$7.00 SOS4,000	+525.3%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.91 MWK5,051.00	$1.24 SOS706	-57.6%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$1.59 MWK2,751.05	$1.34 SOS769	-15.2%
Monthly membership at local gym	$51.33 MWK89,011.38	$30.00 SOS17,142	-41.6%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$3.95 MWK6,850.25	$5.00 SOS2,857	+26.6%
Average			+87.5%

Malawi vs. Somalia - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 46.0% less for clothing

	Malawi	Somalia
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$45.22 MWK78,418.19	$18.61 SOS10,634	-58.8%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$34.94 MWK60,590.97	$23.11 SOS13,206	-33.9%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$59.17 MWK102,603.07	$25.89 SOS14,793	-56.2%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$70.71 MWK122,602.32	$45.78 SOS26,157	-35.3%
Average			-46.0%

Malawi vs. Somalia - 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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