Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Maseru and Korce

For one person, living is cheaper in Maseru: $674 a month against $1,001 in Korce, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Maseru
🇱🇸 Lesotho
$674
/mo nomad
Korce
🇦🇱 Albania
$1,001
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Maseru and in Korce

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

A single person spends $674 per month in Maseru vs $1,001 in Korce, rent included.

  • Maseru $674
  • Korce $1,001

A couple spends around $1,133 per month in Maseru vs $1,483 in Korce, rent included.

  • Maseru $1,133
  • Korce $1,483

A family of three spends $1,592 per month in Maseru vs $1,965 in Korce, rent included.

  • Maseru $1,592
  • Korce $1,965

Maseru is about 33% cheaper than Korce, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Maseru and Korce are more affordable than the global median – Maseru 50% lower, Korce 26% lower.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Maseru
Korce
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$9.33 LSL 154
$6.07 ALL 489
53.71%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$24.53 LSL 405
$37.94 ALL 3,055
-35.35%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$8.67 LSL 143
$5.99 ALL 482
44.74%
Cappuccino
$2.05 LSL 33.89
$1.92 ALL 155
6.77%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.08 LSL 17.86
$1.84 ALL 148
-41.30%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.87 LSL 14.33
$0.68 ALL 55.0
27.94%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.82 LSL 30.05
$2.49 ALL 201
-26.91%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.35 LSL 38.85
$2.41 ALL 194
-2.49%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Maseru
Korce
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.18 LSL 19.39
$1.93 ALL 155
-38.86%
White Bread (500g)
$0.79 LSL 13.04
$1.00 ALL 80.2
-21.00%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.86 LSL 30.68
$2.08 ALL 168
-10.58%
Eggs
$1.56 LSL 25.79
$2.57 ALL 207
-39.30%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$6.84 LSL 113
$10.26 ALL 826
-33.33%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.24 LSL 103
$8.69 ALL 700
-28.19%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$6.07 LSL 100
$13.92 ALL 1,121
-56.39%
Apples (1kg)
$1.93 LSL 31.79
$1.22 ALL 98.2
58.20%
Banana (1kg)
$2.23 LSL 36.86
$2.31 ALL 186
-3.46%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.75 LSL 45.30
$1.28 ALL 103
114.84%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.40 LSL 39.63
$1.64 ALL 132
46.34%
Potato (1kg)
$1.54 LSL 25.43
$1.05 ALL 84.4
46.67%
Onion (1kg)
$1.63 LSL 26.93
$1.00 ALL 80.3
63.00%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.55 LSL 25.52
$1.05 ALL 84.2
47.62%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.84 LSL 13.86
$0.81 ALL 65.4
3.70%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$5.05 LSL 83.3
$4.38 ALL 353
15.30%
Wine (Bottle)
$7.24 LSL 119
$8.03 ALL 647
-9.84%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.04 LSL 17.24
$1.80 ALL 145
-42.22%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.49 LSL 24.61
$1.84 ALL 148
-19.02%
🚌 Getting Around
Maseru
Korce
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.78 LSL 12.80
$0.64 ALL 51.3
21.88%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$29.75 LSL 491
$18.41 ALL 1,483
61.60%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.71 LSL 11.76
$3.72 ALL 300
-80.91%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.69 LSL 11.43
$3.74 ALL 301
-81.55%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.69 LSL 60.9
$18.53 ALL 1,492
-80.09%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.34 LSL 22.05
$2.24 ALL 180
-40.18%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.5K LSL 354.1K
$33.5K ALL 2.7M
-35.90%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$16.4K LSL 270.8K
$24.2K ALL 1.9M
-32.12%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Maseru
Korce
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
-
$59.9 ALL 4,826
-
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$14.58 LSL 241
$18.16 ALL 1,462
-19.71%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$39.07 LSL 645
$15.08 ALL 1,214
159.08%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Maseru
Korce
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$23.58 LSL 389
$33.08 ALL 2,664
-28.72%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$18.66 ALL 1,503
-
Cinema Ticket
-
$9.92 ALL 799
-
🧸 Childcare & Education
Maseru
Korce
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$53.2 LSL 877
$224 ALL 18.0K
-76.22%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$1,191 LSL 19.7K
-
-
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Maseru
Korce
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$46.53 LSL 768
$44.80 ALL 3,608
3.86%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$55.0 LSL 908
$53.9 ALL 4,336
2.19%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$105 LSL 1,731
$104 ALL 8,376
0.89%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$154 LSL 2,539
$144 ALL 11.6K
7.08%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Maseru
Korce
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$94.2 LSL 1,555
$474 ALL 38.2K
-80.13%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$54.9 LSL 906
$294 ALL 23.7K
-81.31%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$432 LSL 7,125
$496 ALL 39.9K
-12.91%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$169 LSL 2,791
$305 ALL 24.6K
-44.57%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$378 LSL 6,234
$1,377 ALL 110.9K
-72.57%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$514 LSL 8,485
$1,120 ALL 90.2K
-54.07%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Maseru
Korce
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$623 LSL 10.3K
$670 ALL 53.9K
-6.96%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
8.5
5
70.00%

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

Last update for Maseru: October 10, 2026

Last update for Korce: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Groceries & Markets
Maseru
$196
Korce
$245 24.9% $49
Clothing & Footwear
Maseru
$162
Korce
$156 3.9% $6.3
Eating Out
Maseru
$147
Korce
$117 20.4% $30
Accommodation & Living
Maseru
$55
Korce
$294 435% $239
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Maseru
$54 *
Korce
$93 73.7% $40
Getting Around
Maseru
$37
Korce
$43 17.2% $6.4
Sport & Entertainment
Maseru
$24 *
Korce
$53 125% $29

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $94.2 in Maseru versus $474 in Korce. 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 7% higher in Korce, 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 $25.00 in Maseru versus $38.00 in Korce. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $196 vs $245 – making Maseru the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇱🇸 Maseru
🇦🇱 Korce
🕒 Local time
07:30 7:30 AM
07:30 7:30 AM
Same time as Maseru
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
227,880 Capital
51,152
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

ALL, USD, EUR to LSL – Lesotho Loti Converter

Lesotho Loti exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 16.5 LSL (100 LSL = 6.06 USD). 1 EUR = 18.55 LSL (100 LSL = 5.39 EUR).

Albanian Lek exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 80.53 ALL (100 ALL = 1.24 USD). 1 EUR = 90.53 ALL (100 ALL = 1.1 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Maseru Korce 7,810 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Maseru
  • Korce

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
Maseru vs Korce: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Korce cheaper than Maseru?
Yes – Korce is pricier by about 48%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,012 per month in Maseru and $1,502 in Korce. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has lower housing costs?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Maseru, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.
Which city has cheaper public transport?
Public transport costs about 62% less in Maseru. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.
Which city has cheaper kindergarten?
Kindergarten costs $53.2 per month in Maseru and $224 in Korce. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.
Is $2,000 a realistic budget for living in Maseru or in Korce?
A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Maseru, where all-in costs run around $674, than in Korce at $1,001. In Maseru it covers expenses comfortably, while in Korce it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is Maseru or Korce more family-friendly?
Families tend to lean toward Maseru – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.
Which city is the better choice to relocate to?
If budget matters most, go with Maseru. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Korce makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

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