Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Maputo and London

For one person, living is cheaper in Maputo: $1,109 a month against $4,086 in London, rent and utilities included – about $35,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Maputo
🇲🇿 Mozambique
$1,109
/mo nomad
London
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
$4,086
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Maputo and in London

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

A single person spends $1,109 per month in Maputo vs $4,086 in London, rent included.

  • Maputo $1,109
  • London $4,086

A couple spends around $1,720 per month in Maputo vs $5,816 in London, rent included.

  • Maputo $1,720
  • London $5,816

A family of three spends $2,331 per month in Maputo vs $7,546 in London, rent included.

  • Maputo $2,331
  • London $7,546

Maputo is about 73% cheaper than London, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Maputo sits 17% below the global median, while London is 205% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Maputo
London
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.37 MZN 656
$26.62 £20.11
-61.04%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$63.2 MZN 3,995
$108 £81.3
-41.30%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$6.95 MZN 440
$10.39 £7.85
-33.11%
Cappuccino
$2.28 MZN 144
$5.79 £4.38
-60.62%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.87 MZN 55.2
$3.01 £2.27
-71.10%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.73 MZN 46.29
$2.15 £1.63
-66.05%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.60 MZN 101
$9.35 £7.06
-82.89%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.32 MZN 147
$7.84 £5.93
-70.41%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Maputo
London
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.52 MZN 96.1
$1.79 £1.35
-15.08%
White Bread (500g)
$1.00 MZN 63.0
$2.06 £1.56
-51.46%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.67 MZN 106
$2.31 £1.74
-27.71%
Eggs
$2.52 MZN 159
$5.05 £3.82
-50.10%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$21.02 MZN 1,329
$12.57 £9.50
67.22%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$5.87 MZN 371
$10.66 £8.05
-44.93%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$5.59 MZN 353
$17.13 £12.94
-67.37%
Apples (1kg)
$1.99 MZN 126
$3.03 £2.29
-34.32%
Banana (1kg)
$0.79 MZN 50.2
$1.41 £1.07
-43.97%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.71 MZN 108
$3.05 £2.31
-43.93%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.09 MZN 68.7
$3.38 £2.56
-67.75%
Potato (1kg)
$1.03 MZN 65.4
$1.67 £1.26
-38.32%
Onion (1kg)
$0.75 MZN 47.25
$1.73 £1.31
-56.65%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.96 MZN 61.0
$1.41 £1.07
-31.91%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.91 MZN 57.4
$1.79 £1.35
-49.16%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.83 MZN 179
$23.22 £17.55
-87.81%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.11 MZN 639
$12.99 £9.82
-22.17%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$0.98 MZN 61.7
$3.18 £2.40
-69.18%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.32 MZN 83.6
$4.41 £3.33
-70.07%
🚌 Getting Around
Maputo
London
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.37 MZN 23.45
$3.87 £2.93
-90.44%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$23.65 MZN 1,496
$250 £189
-90.54%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.60 MZN 101
$5.71 £4.31
-71.98%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.19 MZN 75.2
$3.33 £2.51
-64.26%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$24.44 MZN 1,546
$57.9 £43.76
-57.80%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.36 MZN 85.8
$2.04 £1.54
-33.33%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$31.7K MZN 2.0M
$37.5K £28.4K
-15.46%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$22.5K MZN 1.4M
$40.9K £30.9K
-44.97%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Maputo
London
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$71.5 MZN 4,520
$376 £284
-81.00%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$7.75 MZN 490
$17.88 £13.51
-56.66%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$88.1 MZN 5,573
$40.01 £30.24
120.22%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Maputo
London
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$42.26 MZN 2,673
$61.2 £46.22
-30.90%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$26.54 MZN 1,679
$21.07 £15.93
25.96%
Cinema Ticket
$7.88 MZN 499
$17.95 £13.57
-56.10%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Maputo
London
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$129 MZN 8,158
$2,865 £2,165
-95.50%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,162 MZN 326.5K
$35.3K £26.7K
-85.39%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Maputo
London
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$49.15 MZN 3,109
$116 £87.7
-57.63%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$55.3 MZN 3,496
$54.1 £40.87
2.20%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$77.2 MZN 4,881
$127 £95.7
-39.05%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$78.1 MZN 4,940
$159 £120
-50.98%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Maputo
London
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$536 MZN 33.9K
$2,853 £2,156
-81.20%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$382 MZN 24.2K
$2,301 £1,739
-83.39%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,061 MZN 67.1K
$5,201 £3,931
-79.60%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$566 MZN 35.8K
$3,723 £2,813
-84.79%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,129 MZN 261.1K
$19.0K £14.4K
-78.28%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,051 MZN 129.7K
$7,881 £5,955
-73.97%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Maputo
London
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$325 MZN 20.6K
$4,818 £3,641
-93.25%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
25
4.65
437.63%

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

Last update for Maputo: October 5, 2026

Last update for London: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Maputo
$382
London
$2.3K 502% $1.9K
Groceries & Markets
Maputo
$225
London
$349 55.2% $124
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Maputo
$167
London
$434 159% $267
Eating Out
Maputo
$150
London
$397 164% $246
Clothing & Footwear
Maputo
$117
London
$205 75.6% $88
Sport & Entertainment
Maputo
$58
London
$97 67.3% $39
Getting Around
Maputo
$33
London
$288 781% $255

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $536 in Maputo versus $2,853 in London. 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 1383% higher in London, 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 $63.0 in Maputo versus $108 in London. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $225 vs $349 – making Maputo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇲🇿 Maputo
🇬🇧 London
🕒 Local time
04:22 4:22 AM
03:22 3:22 AM
1 h behind Maputo
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
1,244,227 Capital
8,908,083 Capital
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to MZN – Mozambican Metical Converter

Mozambican Metical exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 63.25 MZN (100 MZN = 1.58 USD). 1 EUR = 70.94 MZN (100 MZN = 1.41 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Maputo London 9,190 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Maputo
  • London

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
Maputo vs London: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
How do living costs in Maputo and in London compare overall?
Monthly costs with rent: $1,109 in Maputo, $4,086 in London – roughly 268% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in transport.
What salary covers living expenses in Maputo compared to London?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,663 per month in Maputo and $6,129 in London. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
How do rents compare between Maputo and London?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Maputo, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.
Which city has cheaper grocery shopping?
Groceries cost about 55% more in London, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.
Which city has cheaper restaurants?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $63.0 in Maputo and $108 in London. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
Which city is more doable on $2,000 per month?
A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Maputo, where all-in costs run around $1,109, than in London at $4,086. In Maputo it covers expenses comfortably, while in London it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
How does quality of life compare between Maputo and London?
It depends on your priorities. London has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,109 in Maputo to $4,086 in London. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.
How do I decide between Maputo and London?
If budget matters most, go with Maputo. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, London makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

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