Cost of living in Zambia
Summary of cost of living in Zambia
- Family of four estimated monthly costs: 35,634 Kwacha
- Single person estimated monthly costs: 16,566 Kwacha WARNING! These estimates are currently based on just a small amount of data. They provide a decent starting assumption, but they are not yet completely reliable.
Change the currency:
| Food | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic lunchtime menu (including a drink) in the business district | 139 Kwacha | ||
| Combo meal in fast food restaurant (big mac meal or similar) | 74 Kwacha | ||
| 500 gr (1 lb.) of boneless chicken breast | 42 Kwacha | ||
| 1 liter (1 qt.) of whole fat milk | 17 Kwacha | ||
| 12 eggs, large | 21 Kwacha | ||
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of tomatoes | 48 Kwacha | ||
| 500 gr (16 oz.) of local cheese | 135 Kwacha | ||
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of apples | 47 Kwacha | ||
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of potatoes | 18 Kwacha | ||
| 0.5 l (16 oz) domestic beer in the supermarket | 33 Kwacha | ||
| 1 bottle of red table wine, good quality | 164 Kwacha | ||
| 2 liters of coca-cola | 23 Kwacha | ||
| Bread for 2 people for 1 day | 13 Kwacha | ||
| Housing | |||
| Monthly rent for 85 m2 (900 sqft) furnished accommodation in expensive area | 11,861 Kwacha | ||
| Monthly rent for 85 m2 (900 sqft) furnished accommodation in normal area | 7,814 Kwacha | ||
| Utilities 1 month (heating, electricity, gas ...) for 2 people in 85m2 flat | 668 Kwacha | ||
| Monthly rent for a 45 m2 (480 sqft) furnished studio in expensive area | 15,000 Kwacha | ||
| Monthly rent for a 45 m2 (480 sqft) furnished studio in normal area | 6,731 Kwacha | ||
| Utilities 1 month (heating, electricity, gas ...) for 1 person in 45 m2 (480 sqft) studio | 350 Kwacha | ||
| Internet 8 mbps (1 month) | 829 Kwacha | ||
| 40” flat screen tv | 2,500 Kwacha | ||
| Microwave 800/900 watt (bosch, panasonic, lg, sharp, or equivalent brands) | 1,981 Kwacha | ||
| Laundry detergent (3 l. ~ 100 oz.) | 131 Kwacha | ||
| Hourly rate for cleaning help | 50 Kwacha | ||
| Clothes | |||
| 1 pair of jeans (levis 501 or similar) | 794 Kwacha | ||
| 1 summer dress in a high street store (zara, h&m or similar retailers) | 670 Kwacha | ||
| 1 pair of sport shoes (nike, adidas, or equivalent brands) | 833 Kwacha | ||
| 1 pair of men’s leather business shoes | 1,256 Kwacha | ||
| Transportation | |||
| Volkswagen golf 1.4 tsi 150 cv (or equivalent), with no extras, new | - | ||
| 1 liter (1/4 gallon) of gas | 17 Kwacha | ||
| Monthly ticket public transport | 448 Kwacha | ||
| Personal Care | |||
| Cold medicine for 6 days (tylenol, frenadol, coldrex, or equivalent brands) | 37 Kwacha | ||
| 1 box of antibiotics (12 doses) | 50 Kwacha | ||
| Short visit to private doctor (15 minutes) | 374 Kwacha | ||
| 1 box of 32 tampons (tampax, ob, ...) | 140 Kwacha | ||
| Deodorant, roll-on (50ml ~ 1.5 oz.) | 39 Kwacha | ||
| Hair shampoo 2-in-1 (400 ml ~ 12 oz.) | 106 Kwacha | ||
| 4 rolls of toilet paper | 28 Kwacha | ||
| Tube of toothpaste | 27 Kwacha | ||
| Standard men's haircut in expat area of the city | 165 Kwacha | ||
| Entertainment | |||
| Basic dinner out for two in neighborhood pub | 263 Kwacha | ||
| 2 tickets to the movies | 221 Kwacha | ||
| 2 tickets to the theater (best available seats) | 200 Kwacha | ||
| Dinner for two at an italian restaurant in the expat area including appetisers, main course, wine and dessert | 434 Kwacha | ||
| 1 cocktail drink in downtown club | 45 Kwacha | ||
| Cappuccino in expat area of the city | 30 Kwacha | ||
| 1 beer in neighbourhood pub (500ml or 1pt.) | 15 Kwacha | ||
| Ipad wi-fi 128gb | 3,893 Kwacha | ||
| 1 min. of prepaid mobile tariff (no discounts or plans) | - | ||
| 1 month of gym membership in business district | 919 Kwacha | ||
| 1 package of marlboro cigarettes | 35 Kwacha | ||
Map of Cost of Living in Zambia
This map shows only the top cities in Zambia. We also have on this page a list of all the cities available in Expatistan:
List of all the cities available in Expatistan
The color of each marker corresponds with the cost of living in the city red markers show more expensive cities green ones show cheaper cities
Moving the mouse on top of a city will show its name and the Cost of Living Index of that city.
What is the Cost of Living Index? To calculate each city's Price Index value, we start by assigning a value of 100 to a
central reference city (that happens to be Prague).
Once the reference point has been established, the Price Index value of every other city in the
database is calculated by comparing their cost of living to the cost of living in Prague.
Therefore, if a city has a Price Index of 134, that means that living there is 34% more expensive than living in Prague.
Recent Comparisons
- Cost of living in Lusaka is 28% cheaper than in Lilongwe
- Cost of living in Lusaka is 39% cheaper than in Pretoria
- Cost of living in Lusaka is 63% cheaper than in Kingston upon Hull
- Cost of living in Livingstone is 10% cheaper than in Le Havre
- Cost of living in Lusaka is 9% cheaper than in Ndola
- Cost of living in Lusaka is 23% cheaper than in Kigali
- Cost of living in Livingstone is 15% cheaper than in Lisbon
- Cost of living in Livingstone is 7% more expensive than in Culiacán
- Cost of living in Lusaka is 38% cheaper than in Nairobi
- Cost of living in Lusaka is 43% more expensive than in Dushanbe
- Cost of living in Lusaka is 66% cheaper than in Vancouver
- Cost of living in Lusaka is 47% cheaper than in Kinshasa
- Cost of living in Lusaka is 28% cheaper than in Lima
- Cost of living in Lusaka is 59% cheaper than in Port Vila, Vanuatu
- Cost of living in Lusaka is 56% cheaper than in Lisbon
- Cost of living in Lusaka is 65% cheaper than in Orlando, Florida
- Cost of living in Livingstone is about the same as in Livingstone
- Cost of living in Lusaka is 10% cheaper than in Delhi
- Cost of living in Kasama is about the same as in Lusaka
- Cost of living in Lusaka is 76% cheaper than in New York City