Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cairo and Chilanga

For one person, living is cheaper in Chilanga: $592 a month against $647 in Cairo, rent and utilities included – about $660 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cairo outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

32

Cost of Living Index in Cairo
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Cairo Living Index
29

Cost of Living Index in Chilanga
Learn more

Chilanga Living Index

Jump to prices

Cairo

🇪🇬 Egypt

$647

/mo nomad

Chilanga

🇿🇲 Zambia

$592

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cairo and in Chilanga

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Cairo and in Chilanga actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $647 per month in Cairo vs $592 in Chilanga, rent included.

Cairo $647
Chilanga $592

A couple spends around $1,035 per month in Cairo vs $941 in Chilanga, rent included.

Cairo $1,035
Chilanga $941

A family of three spends $1,423 per month in Cairo vs $1,290 in Chilanga, rent included.

Cairo $1,423
Chilanga $1,290

Cairo costs about 9% more than Chilanga, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Cairo and Chilanga are more affordable than the global median – Cairo 52% lower, Chilanga 56% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.64 E£248

$5.68 ZMW 113

-18.31%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$28.12 E£1,501

$30.64 ZMW 610

-8.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.03 E£322

$5.00 ZMW 99.5

20.60%

Cappuccino

$1.72 E£92.1

$2.86 ZMW 56.9

-39.86%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.36 E£19.38

$0.80 ZMW 15.85

-55.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.12 E£6.41

$0.46 ZMW 9.21

-73.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.51 E£80.4

$1.24 ZMW 24.63

21.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.32 E£124

$2.22 ZMW 44.19

4.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.92 E£48.92

$1.72 ZMW 34.30

-46.51%

White Bread (500g)

$0.73 E£38.92

$1.23 ZMW 24.46

-40.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.74 E£39.64

$2.14 ZMW 42.58

-65.42%

Eggs

$1.19 E£63.7

$2.01 ZMW 39.92

-40.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.33 E£231

$10.58 ZMW 211

-59.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.03 E£269

$6.27 ZMW 125

-19.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.28 E£496

$6.61 ZMW 132

40.39%

Apples (1kg)

$1.77 E£94.4

$3.43 ZMW 68.3

-48.40%

Banana (1kg)

$0.73 E£39.03

$2.38 ZMW 47.42

-69.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.55 E£29.51

$3.72 ZMW 74.0

-85.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.50 E£26.91

$1.54 ZMW 30.59

-67.53%

Potato (1kg)

$0.42 E£22.42

$2.64 ZMW 52.5

-84.09%

Onion (1kg)

$0.41 E£21.81

$1.80 ZMW 35.83

-77.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.33 E£17.51

$1.11 ZMW 22.01

-70.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.21 E£11.20

$0.76 ZMW 15.11

-72.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.98 E£106

$3.09 ZMW 61.4

-35.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.81 E£417

$10.33 ZMW 205

-24.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 E£84.7

$1.43 ZMW 28.40

11.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 E£112

$2.37 ZMW 47.15

-11.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.35 E£18.83

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.69 E£464

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.39 E£21.02

$2.60 ZMW 51.8

-85.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.22 E£11.57

$1.53 ZMW 30.51

-85.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.51 E£80.5

$5.22 ZMW 104

-71.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.43 E£22.88

$1.50 ZMW 29.91

-71.33%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$32.7K E£1.7M

$7,599 ZMW 151.1K

330.33%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$27.2K E£1.5M

$27.6K ZMW 549.7K

-1.48%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$27.27 E£1,456

$82.5 ZMW 1,640

-66.93%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$8.58 E£458

$10.31 ZMW 205

-16.78%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.99 E£747

$54.4 ZMW 1,082

-74.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.69 E£1,585

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.25 E£387

Cinema Ticket

$4.86 E£260

$6.23 ZMW 124

-21.99%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$121 E£6,438

$140 ZMW 2,786

-13.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,560 E£190.1K

$16.6K ZMW 330.0K

-78.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$40.28 E£2,151

$23.42 ZMW 466

71.99%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.53 E£2,645

$15.73 ZMW 313

214.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$115 E£6,137

$44.76 ZMW 890

156.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.0 E£3,206

$72.9 ZMW 1,450

-17.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$222 E£11.9K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$195 E£10.4K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$550 E£29.3K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$346 E£18.5K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$800 E£42.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$525 E£28.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$200 E£10.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

16.21

-44.10%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Cairo: October 11, 2026

Last update for Chilanga: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Cairo

$195 30.2%

Chilanga

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Cairo

$142 21.9%

Chilanga

$241 40.7% 69.8% $99

Clothing & Footwear

Cairo

$119 18.4%

Chilanga

$71 11.9% 40.8% $49

Eating Out

Cairo

$90 13.9%

Chilanga

$110 18.7% 22.7% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cairo

$50 7.7%

Chilanga

$147 24.9% 195% $97

Sport & Entertainment

Cairo

$39 6.1%

Chilanga

$12 * 2.1% 68.4% $27

Getting Around

Cairo

$12 1.8%

Chilanga

$10 * 1.7% 11.3% $1.3

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $28.00 in Cairo versus $31.00 in Chilanga. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $142 vs $241 – making Cairo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇪🇬 Cairo

🇿🇲 Chilanga

🕒 Local time

06:21 6:21 AM

05:21 5:21 AM

1 h behind Cairo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,120,350 Capital

107,051

💱 Currency

Egyptian Pound EGP £

Zambian Kwacha ZMW ZK

📈 Exchange rate

100 EGP = 1.87 USD

100 EGP = 1.67 EUR

100 ZMW = 5.03 USD

100 ZMW = 4.47 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZMW, USD, EUR to EGP – Egyptian Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇬 Egyptian Pound (£)

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 53.4 EGP (100 EGP = 1.87 USD). 1 EUR = 60.03 EGP (100 EGP = 1.67 EUR).

Zambian Kwacha exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 19.89 ZMW (100 ZMW = 5.03 USD). 1 EUR = 22.36 ZMW (100 ZMW = 4.47 EUR).

USD to EGP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cairo Chilanga 5,080 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Cairo
Chilanga

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Cairo vs Chilanga: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Cairo is pricier by about 9%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $970 per month in Cairo and $887 in Chilanga. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $647 in Cairo and $592 in Chilanga. That's a gap of about 9%.

Kindergarten costs $121 per month in Cairo and $140 in Chilanga. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,200 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $647 in Cairo and $592 in Chilanga, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Chilanga – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Chilanga. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Cairo makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.