Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cairo and Kabwe

For one person, living is cheaper in Kabwe: $573 a month against $647 in Cairo, rent and utilities included – about $890 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
28

Cost of Living Index in Kabwe
Learn more

Kabwe Living Index

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Cairo

🇪🇬 Egypt

$647

/mo nomad

Kabwe

🇿🇲 Zambia

$573

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cairo and in Kabwe

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 Kabwe actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $647 per month in Cairo vs $573 in Kabwe, rent included.

Cairo $647
Kabwe $573

A couple spends around $1,035 per month in Cairo vs $907 in Kabwe, rent included.

Cairo $1,035
Kabwe $907

A family of three spends $1,423 per month in Cairo vs $1,242 in Kabwe, rent included.

Cairo $1,423
Kabwe $1,242

Cairo costs about 13% more than Kabwe, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Cairo and Kabwe are more affordable than the global median – Cairo 52% lower, Kabwe 58% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.64 E£248

$5.47 ZMW 109

-15.17%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$28.12 E£1,501

$30.30 ZMW 603

-7.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.03 E£322

$5.06 ZMW 101

19.17%

Cappuccino

$1.72 E£92.1

$2.88 ZMW 57.2

-40.28%

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

$0.36 E£19.38

$0.73 ZMW 14.60

-50.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.12 E£6.41

$0.45 ZMW 9.03

-73.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.51 E£80.4

$1.28 ZMW 25.49

17.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.32 E£124

$2.31 ZMW 46.03

0.43%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.92 E£48.92

$1.67 ZMW 33.24

-44.91%

White Bread (500g)

$0.73 E£38.92

$1.23 ZMW 24.42

-40.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.74 E£39.64

$2.03 ZMW 40.41

-63.55%

Eggs

$1.19 E£63.7

$1.17 ZMW 23.21

1.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.33 E£231

$10.30 ZMW 205

-57.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.03 E£269

$6.35 ZMW 126

-20.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.28 E£496

$6.46 ZMW 128

43.65%

Apples (1kg)

$1.77 E£94.4

$3.42 ZMW 68.1

-48.25%

Banana (1kg)

$0.73 E£39.03

$1.04 ZMW 20.66

-29.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.55 E£29.51

$3.63 ZMW 72.2

-84.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.50 E£26.91

$1.52 ZMW 30.18

-67.11%

Potato (1kg)

$0.42 E£22.42

$2.51 ZMW 49.92

-83.27%

Onion (1kg)

$0.41 E£21.81

$1.78 ZMW 35.43

-76.97%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.33 E£17.51

$1.15 ZMW 22.95

-71.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.21 E£11.20

$0.76 ZMW 15.09

-72.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.98 E£106

$3.03 ZMW 60.3

-34.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.81 E£417

$10.01 ZMW 199

-21.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 E£84.7

$1.48 ZMW 29.47

7.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 E£112

$2.36 ZMW 47.02

-11.44%

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

$2.59 ZMW 51.5

-84.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.22 E£11.57

$1.54 ZMW 30.53

-85.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.51 E£80.5

$4.89 ZMW 97.3

-69.12%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.43 E£22.88

$1.35 ZMW 26.81

-68.15%

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

$32.7K E£1.7M

$7,588 ZMW 150.9K

330.94%

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

$27.2K E£1.5M

$27.1K ZMW 539.4K

0.41%

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

$27.27 E£1,456

$79.2 ZMW 1,576

-65.59%

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

$8.58 E£458

$10.24 ZMW 204

-16.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.99 E£747

$56.0 ZMW 1,115

-75.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.69 E£1,585

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.25 E£387

Cinema Ticket

$4.86 E£260

$5.86 ZMW 117

-17.06%

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

$121 E£6,438

$137 ZMW 2,719

-11.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,560 E£190.1K

$16.9K ZMW 335.9K

-78.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$40.28 E£2,151

$22.99 ZMW 457

75.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.53 E£2,645

$15.34 ZMW 305

222.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$115 E£6,137

$44.92 ZMW 893

155.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.0 E£3,206

$72.2 ZMW 1,437

-16.88%

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 Kabwe: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cairo

$195 30.2%

Kabwe

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Cairo

$142 21.9%

Kabwe

$226 39.5% 59.6% $84

Clothing & Footwear

Cairo

$119 18.4%

Kabwe

$70 12.2% 41.3% $49

Eating Out

Cairo

$90 13.9%

Kabwe

$109 19.1% 21.3% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cairo

$50 7.7%

Kabwe

$146 25.4% 192% $96

Sport & Entertainment

Cairo

$39 6.1%

Kabwe

$12 * 2.1% 70.2% $28

Getting Around

Cairo

$12 1.8%

Kabwe

$10 * 1.8% 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 $30.00 in Kabwe. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $142 vs $226 – making Cairo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇪🇬 Cairo

🇿🇲 Kabwe

🕒 Local time

20:36 8:36 PM

19:36 7:36 PM

1 h behind Cairo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,120,350 Capital

117,517

💱 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 Kabwe 4,960 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Cairo
Kabwe

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 Kabwe: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Cairo is pricier by about 13%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $970 per month in Cairo and $859 in Kabwe. 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 $573 in Kabwe. That's a gap of about 13%.

Kindergarten costs $121 per month in Cairo and $137 in Kabwe. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$800 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $647 in Cairo and $573 in Kabwe, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Kabwe – 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 Kabwe. 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.