Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cairo and Mutare

For one person, living is cheaper in Cairo: $647 a month against $789 in Mutare, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

32

Cost of Living Index in Cairo
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Cairo Living Index
38

Cost of Living Index in Mutare
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Mutare Living Index

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Cairo

🇪🇬 Egypt

$647

/mo nomad

Mutare

🇿🇼 Zimbabwe

$789

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cairo and in Mutare

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

A single person spends $647 per month in Cairo vs $789 in Mutare, rent included.

Cairo $647
Mutare $789

A couple spends around $1,035 per month in Cairo vs $1,220 in Mutare, rent included.

Cairo $1,035
Mutare $1,220

A family of three spends $1,423 per month in Cairo vs $1,651 in Mutare, rent included.

Cairo $1,423
Mutare $1,651

Cairo is about 18% cheaper than Mutare, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Cairo and Mutare are more affordable than the global median – Cairo 52% lower, Mutare 42% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.64 E£248

$10.15 ZWL 270

-54.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$28.12 E£1,501

$45.07 ZWL 1,199

-37.61%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.03 E£322

$4.42 ZWL 118

36.43%

Cappuccino

$1.72 E£92.1

$1.28 ZWL 34.07

34.37%

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

$0.36 E£19.38

$0.73 ZWL 19.54

-50.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.12 E£6.41

$0.46 ZWL 12.11

-73.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.51 E£80.4

$1.22 ZWL 32.33

23.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.32 E£124

$1.78 ZWL 47.47

30.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.92 E£48.92

$1.22 ZWL 32.42

-24.59%

White Bread (500g)

$0.73 E£38.92

$0.98 ZWL 26.14

-25.51%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.74 E£39.64

$1.33 ZWL 35.28

-44.36%

Eggs

$1.19 E£63.7

$1.87 ZWL 49.72

-36.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.33 E£231

$2.92 ZWL 77.8

48.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.03 E£269

$4.04 ZWL 107

24.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.28 E£496

$5.01 ZWL 133

85.23%

Apples (1kg)

$1.77 E£94.4

$2.04 ZWL 54.3

-13.24%

Banana (1kg)

$0.73 E£39.03

$1.70 ZWL 45.15

-57.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.55 E£29.51

$2.05 ZWL 54.6

-73.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.50 E£26.91

$0.98 ZWL 26.18

-48.98%

Potato (1kg)

$0.42 E£22.42

$1.75 ZWL 46.52

-76.00%

Onion (1kg)

$0.41 E£21.81

$0.99 ZWL 26.33

-58.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.33 E£17.51

$0.48 ZWL 12.83

-31.25%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.21 E£11.20

$0.99 ZWL 26.41

-78.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.98 E£106

$1.18 ZWL 31.32

67.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.81 E£417

$6.09 ZWL 162

28.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 E£84.7

$1.18 ZWL 31.32

34.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 E£112

$1.73 ZWL 45.96

20.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.35 E£18.83

$0.77 ZWL 20.48

-54.55%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.69 E£464

$26.46 ZWL 704

-67.16%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.39 E£21.02

$3.02 ZWL 80.3

-87.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.22 E£11.57

$1.98 ZWL 52.6

-88.89%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.51 E£80.5

$4.94 ZWL 131

-69.43%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.43 E£22.88

$1.86 ZWL 49.42

-76.88%

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

$32.7K E£1.7M

$21.6K ZWL 575.1K

51.30%

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

$27.2K E£1.5M

$23.6K ZWL 629.3K

15.15%

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

$27.27 E£1,456

$50.7 ZWL 1,349

-46.22%

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

$8.58 E£458

$14.72 ZWL 392

-41.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.99 E£747

$59.4 ZWL 1,580

-76.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.69 E£1,585

$39.95 ZWL 1,063

-25.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.25 E£387

$5.05 ZWL 134

43.56%

Cinema Ticket

$4.86 E£260

$9.89 ZWL 263

-50.86%

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

$121 E£6,438

$150 ZWL 4,002

-19.83%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,560 E£190.1K

$8,553 ZWL 227.6K

-58.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$40.28 E£2,151

$10.06 ZWL 268

300.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.53 E£2,645

$9.48 ZWL 252

422.47%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$115 E£6,137

$24.80 ZWL 660

363.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.0 E£3,206

$20.27 ZWL 539

196.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$222 E£11.9K

$356 ZWL 9,462

-37.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$195 E£10.4K

$253 ZWL 6,742

-23.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$550 E£29.3K

$750 ZWL 19.9K

-26.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$346 E£18.5K

$395 ZWL 10.5K

-12.46%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$800 E£42.7K

$246 ZWL 6,539

225.44%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$525 E£28.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$200 E£10.7K

$247 ZWL 6,566

-19.05%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

16.21

13.69

18.41%

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

Last update for Cairo: October 11, 2026

Last update for Mutare: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cairo

$195 30.2%

Mutare

$253 32.1% 29.9% $58

Groceries & Markets

Cairo

$142 21.9%

Mutare

$155 19.6% 9.2% $13

Clothing & Footwear

Cairo

$119 18.4%

Mutare

$29 3.7% 75.6% $90

Eating Out

Cairo

$90 13.9%

Mutare

$124 15.8% 38% $34

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cairo

$50 7.7%

Mutare

$125 15.8% 150% $75

Sport & Entertainment

Cairo

$39 6.1%

Mutare

$60 7.6% 51.6% $20

Getting Around

Cairo

$12 1.8%

Mutare

$42 5.4% 267% $31

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $222 in Cairo versus $356 in Mutare. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 24% higher in Mutare, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $28.00 in Cairo versus $45.00 in Mutare. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $142 vs $155 – making Cairo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇪🇬 Cairo

🇿🇼 Mutare

🕒 Local time

02:37 2:37 AM

01:37 1:37 AM

1 h behind Cairo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,120,350 Capital

188,243

💱 Currency

Egyptian Pound EGP £

Zimbabwean Dollar ZWL $

📈 Exchange rate

100 EGP = 1.87 USD

100 EGP = 1.67 EUR

100 ZWL = 3.76 USD

100 ZWL = 3.34 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZWL, USD, EUR to EGP – Egyptian Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇬 Egyptian Pound (£)

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 53.4 EGP (100 EGP = 1.87 USD). 1 EUR = 60.03 EGP (100 EGP = 1.67 EUR).

Zimbabwean Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 26.61 ZWL (100 ZWL = 3.76 USD). 1 EUR = 29.92 ZWL (100 ZWL = 3.34 EUR).

USD to EGP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cairo Mutare 5,450 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Cairo
Mutare

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 Mutare: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Mutare is pricier by about 22%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $970 per month in Cairo and $1,183 in Mutare. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cairo, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Groceries cost about 9% more in Mutare, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $28.00 in Cairo and $45.00 in Mutare. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

$1,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $647 in Cairo and $789 in Mutare, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Cairo – 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 Cairo. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Mutare makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.