Cost of living comparison
Malawi is 42.3% more expensive than Malaysia.
If you lived in Malawi instead of Malaysia, you would:
pay 50.2% more for restaurants
|
Malaysia
|
Malawi
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$2.98
MYR13.31
|
$4.32
MWK7,517.07
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$4.23
MYR18.90
|
$9.04
MWK15,730.71
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.68
MYR3.03
|
$0.87
MWK1,516.56
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.38
MYR1.71
|
$0.43
MWK752.93
|
|
pay 8.5% more for groceries
|
Malaysia
|
Malawi
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$0.91
MYR4.08
|
$1.36
MWK2,373.87
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.65
MYR34.20
|
$4.82
MWK8,381.11
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.39
MYR28.56
|
$4.51
MWK7,850.76
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$1.97
MYR8.81
|
$2.31
MWK4,011.81
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$1.83
MYR8.18
|
$1.93
MWK3,349.47
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.17
MYR5.24
|
$1.03
MWK1,799.85
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.57
MYR2.55
|
$0.81
MWK1,408.31
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.21
MYR5.43
|
$1.12
MWK1,945.88
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.63
MYR2.83
|
$0.53
MWK916.86
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.43
MYR1.93
|
$0.72
MWK1,251.80
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.51
MYR2.28
|
$0.59
MWK1,019.77
|
|
pay 93.8% more for transportation
|
Malaysia
|
Malawi
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$1.77
MYR7.92
|
$6.19
MWK10,763.22
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$15.69
MYR70.13
|
$4.32
MWK7,516.81
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$34,330.57
MYR153,474.84
|
$35,669.17
MWK62,036,520.02
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$6.94
MYR31.01
|
$20.40
MWK35,484.15
|
|
pay 2.4 times more for housing
|
Malaysia
|
Malawi
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$26.31
MYR117.64
|
$186.12
MWK323,711.96
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$322.80
MYR1,443.09
|
$202.19
MWK351,645.78
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$212.35
MYR949.31
|
$98.76
MWK171,770.38
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$33.00
MYR147.52
|
$41.29
MWK71,805.30
|
|
pay 19.5% more for childcare
|
Malaysia
|
Malawi
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$163.68
MYR731.72
|
$354.75
MWK616,994.98
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$6,626.64
MYR29,624.39
|
$1,467.81
MWK2,552,844.18
|
|
pay 15.1% less for entertainment and sports
|
Malaysia
|
Malawi
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$3.66
MYR16.35
|
$1.12
MWK1,946.93
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.54
MYR11.35
|
$2.91
MWK5,066.22
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$4.07
MYR18.18
|
$1.59
MWK2,759.34
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$36.32
MYR162.38
|
$51.33
MWK89,279.59
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$4.00
MYR17.87
|
$3.95
MWK6,870.89
|
|
pay 3.5% more for clothing
|
Malaysia
|
Malawi
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$53.15
MYR237.60
|
$45.22
MWK78,654.49
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$30.13
MYR134.68
|
$34.94
MWK60,773.55
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$65.18
MYR291.37
|
$59.17
MWK102,912.24
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$57.93
MYR259.00
|
$70.71
MWK122,971.76
|
|
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