Cost of living comparison

 Mogadishu, Somalia
compared to
 Vientiane, Laos
Vientiane vs. Mogadishu Cost of Living Summary

Vientiane is 2.8 times more expensive than Mogadishu.

Restaurants
pay 19.9% less in Vientiane
Groceries
pay 68.5% more in Vientiane
Transportation
pay 2.4 times more in Vientiane
Housing
pay 3.8 times more in Vientiane
Childcare
pay 7.5 times more in Vientiane
Entertainment and Sports
pay 6.4% more in Vientiane
Clothing
pay 2.6 times more in Vientiane

The cost of childcare, housing, clothing, transportation, groceries, and entertainment and sports in Vientiane are more expensive than in Mogadishu. Notably, childcare, housing, and clothing are significantly more expensive in Vientiane.

Vientiane vs. Mogadishu Cost Breakdown

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

pay 19.9% less for restaurants

 
Mogadishu
Vientiane
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $3.00
SOS1,714
$1.98
LAK42,710
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$3.50
SOS2,000
$2.97
LAK64,065
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $0.62
SOS357
$0.53
LAK11,390

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pay 68.5% more for groceries

 
Mogadishu
Vientiane
Bread
1 loaf
$1.17
SOS667
$0.91
LAK19,647
Local cheese (8 oz) $1.88
SOS1,071
$13.72
LAK295,512
Milk (1 gallon) $5.30
SOS3,028
$6.42
LAK138,296

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pay 2.4 times more for transportation

 
Mogadishu
Vientiane
Gasoline (1 gallon) $3.91
SOS2,235
$5.00
LAK107,796
Monthly public transit pass $20.00
SOS11,426
$49.23
LAK1,060,588
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $7,500.00
SOS4,284,790
$28,330.27
LAK610,289,074

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pay 3.8 times more for housing

 
Mogadishu
Vientiane
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$33.75
SOS19,282
$11.17
LAK240,683
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $180.00
SOS102,835
$859.15
LAK18,507,806
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $81.67
SOS46,657
$775.98
LAK16,716,059

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pay 7.5 times more for childcare

 
Mogadishu
Vientiane
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $73.75
SOS42,134
$332.66
LAK7,166,137
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $885.00
SOS505,605
$9,252.41
LAK199,314,832

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pay 6.4% more for entertainment and sports

 
Mogadishu
Vientiane
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $4.00
SOS2,285
$0.95
LAK20,435
Cappuccino in mid-range area $1.38
SOS786
$1.50
LAK32,217
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$1.69
SOS966
$1.59
LAK34,168

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pay 2.6 times more for clothing

 
Mogadishu
Vientiane
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$18.33
SOS10,474
$85.86
LAK1,849,527
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$24.33
SOS13,902
$62.88
LAK1,354,527
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$22.67
SOS12,950
$57.29
LAK1,234,086

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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: July 2025
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