Cost of living comparison

 Thimphu, Bhutan
compared to
 Bamako, Mali
Bamako vs. Thimphu Cost of Living Summary

Bamako is 60.0% more expensive than Thimphu.

Restaurants
pay 2.2 times more in Bamako
Groceries
pay 2.1 times more in Bamako
Transportation
pay 39.7% more in Bamako
Housing
pay 32.1% more in Bamako
Entertainment and Sports
pay 3.5% less in Bamako

The cost of restaurants, groceries, transportation, and housing in Bamako are more expensive than in Thimphu. Notably, restaurants and groceries are significantly more expensive in Bamako.

Bamako vs. Thimphu Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Bamako instead of Thimphu, you would:

pay 2.2 times more for restaurants

 
Thimphu
Bamako
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $2.95
BTN251.27
$6.70
F CFA3,868
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$2.95
BTN251.27
$6.42
F CFA3,706
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $0.55
BTN47.24
$0.77
F CFA446

Improve prices ·

pay 2.1 times more for groceries

 
Thimphu
Bamako
Bread
1 loaf
$0.94
BTN80.41
$1.10
F CFA636
Local cheese (8 oz) $1.68
BTN143.22
??
Milk (1 gallon) $3.17
BTN270.13
$9.46
F CFA5,460

Improve prices ·

pay 39.7% more for transportation

 
Thimphu
Bamako
Gasoline (1 gallon) $3.93
BTN334.77
$5.48
F CFA3,164
Monthly public transit pass $3.97
BTN338.24
??
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $21,215.98
BTN1,809,146.99
??

Improve prices ·

pay 32.1% more for housing

 
Thimphu
Bamako
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$31.25
BTN2,664.40
$41.27
F CFA23,808
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $124.45
BTN10,612.31
??
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $79.38
BTN6,769.15
??

Improve prices ·

pay (unknown) more for childcare

 
Thimphu
Bamako
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $246.05
BTN20,981.08
??
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $677.73
BTN57,792.20
??

Improve prices ·

pay 3.5% less for entertainment and sports

 
Thimphu
Bamako
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $6.43
BTN548.43
$2.39
F CFA1,377
Cappuccino in mid-range area $1.53
BTN130.66
$1.89
F CFA1,090
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$3.83
BTN326.65
$0.93
F CFA538

Improve prices ·

pay (unknown) more for clothing

 
Thimphu
Bamako
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$9.43
BTN804.07
??
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$11.79
BTN1,005.08
??
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$32.41
BTN2,763.97
??

Improve prices ·
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: May 2025
Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

See the cost of living in Bhutan vs. Mali. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Bhutan and Mali.

Help us improve these prices

MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate. Learn more

ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Bamako or Thimphu. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.