Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mbeya and Bagamoyo

For one person, living is cheaper in Bagamoyo: $383 a month against $427 in Mbeya, rent and utilities included – about $530 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

20

Cost of Living Index in Mbeya
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Mbeya Living Index
18

Cost of Living Index in Bagamoyo
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Bagamoyo Living Index

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Mbeya

🇹🇿 Tanzania

$427

/mo nomad

Bagamoyo

🇹🇿 Tanzania

$383

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mbeya and in Bagamoyo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $427 in Mbeya versus $383 in Bagamoyo.

Mbeya $427
Bagamoyo $383

Estimated couple costs with rent: $658 in Mbeya versus $643 in Bagamoyo.

Mbeya $658
Bagamoyo $643

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $888 in Mbeya versus $904 in Bagamoyo.

Mbeya $888
Bagamoyo $904

Living in Mbeya is roughly 12% more expensive than in Bagamoyo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities sit below the global median: Mbeya 69% lower, Bagamoyo 72% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.84 TZS 4,831

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.53 TZS 59.0K

$11.34 TZS 29.7K

98.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.71 TZS 20.2K

$7.69 TZS 20.1K

0.26%

Cappuccino

$1.55 TZS 4,053

$1.90 TZS 4,985

-18.42%

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

$0.39 TZS 1,025

$0.33 TZS 856

18.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.37 TZS 961

$0.19 TZS 486

94.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.77 TZS 2,021

$0.95 TZS 2,487

-18.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.91 TZS 5,011

Milk (1 liter)

$0.59 TZS 1,535

$0.76 TZS 1,993

-22.37%

White Bread (500g)

$0.96 TZS 2,507

$0.57 TZS 1,490

68.42%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.91 TZS 2,395

$0.36 TZS 956

152.78%

Eggs

$2.32 TZS 6,085

$2.02 TZS 5,301

14.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.84 TZS 10.1K

$9.14 TZS 23.9K

-57.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.69 TZS 9,662

$4.85 TZS 12.7K

-23.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$3.32 TZS 8,699

$3.96 TZS 10.4K

-16.16%

Apples (1kg)

$1.16 TZS 3,039

$2.53 TZS 6,613

-54.15%

Banana (1kg)

$0.74 TZS 1,938

$0.92 TZS 2,411

-19.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.96 TZS 2,511

$1.03 TZS 2,686

-6.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.76 TZS 1,991

$0.59 TZS 1,544

28.81%

Potato (1kg)

$0.91 TZS 2,381

$0.31 TZS 816

193.55%

Onion (1kg)

$0.71 TZS 1,868

$0.29 TZS 754

144.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.54 TZS 1,423

$0.85 TZS 2,230

-36.47%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.78 TZS 2,048

$0.37 TZS 969

110.81%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.10 TZS 2,871

$2.14 TZS 5,596

-48.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.84 TZS 10.1K

$7.00 TZS 18.3K

-45.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 TZS 1,875

$0.94 TZS 2,468

-23.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.10 TZS 2,887

$1.57 TZS 4,111

-29.94%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.37 TZS 966

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 TZS 3,033

$1.64 TZS 4,295

-29.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.85 TZS 4,857

$1.48 TZS 3,885

25.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.61 TZS 6,829

$13.09 TZS 34.3K

-80.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.19 TZS 3,124

$1.37 TZS 3,596

-13.14%

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

$16.4K TZS 43.0M

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

$26.2K TZS 68.5M

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

$24.44 TZS 64.0K

$56.4 TZS 147.7K

-56.67%

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

$18.75 TZS 49.1K

$4.77 TZS 12.5K

293.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$45.65 TZS 119.6K

$22.90 TZS 60.0K

99.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.28 TZS 97.6K

Cinema Ticket

$9.19 TZS 24.1K

$4.96 TZS 13.0K

85.28%

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

$191 TZS 501.2K

$560 TZS 1.5M

-65.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,138 TZS 3.0M

$13.2K TZS 34.5M

-91.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$11.46 TZS 30.0K

$15.73 TZS 41.2K

-27.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$9.28 TZS 24.3K

$25.76 TZS 67.5K

-63.98%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$19.13 TZS 50.1K

$44.02 TZS 115.3K

-56.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$26.85 TZS 70.3K

$60.0 TZS 157.0K

-55.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$112 TZS 293.1K

$57.3 TZS 150.1K

95.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$76.4 TZS 200.1K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$188 TZS 493.0K

$231 TZS 604.3K

-18.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$113 TZS 296.6K

$111 TZS 290.7K

2.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$190 TZS 497.2K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

18.25

-28.77%

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

Last update for Mbeya: October 26, 2026

Last update for Bagamoyo: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Mbeya

$115 27%

Bagamoyo

$143 37.3% 23.8% $27

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mbeya

$89 20.8%

Bagamoyo

$84 22% 5.3% $4.8

Accommodation & Living

Mbeya

$76 17.9%

Bagamoyo

- * 0% 100%

Sport & Entertainment

Mbeya

$56 13%

Bagamoyo

$9.9 * 2.6% 82.2% $46

Eating Out

Mbeya

$49 * 11.4%

Bagamoyo

$71 18.6% 46.7% $23

Clothing & Footwear

Mbeya

$30 7%

Bagamoyo

$65 17.1% 118% $35

Getting Around

Mbeya

$12 * 2.8%

Bagamoyo

$9.1 * 2.4% 23.9% $2.8

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $112 in Mbeya and $57 in Bagamoyo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $23 in Mbeya vs $11 in Bagamoyo. Groceries flip the comparison at $115 vs $143, with Mbeya cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇿 Mbeya

🇹🇿 Bagamoyo

🕒 Local time

06:45 6:45 AM

Same time as Mbeya

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

541,603

55,000

💱 Currency

Tanzanian Shilling TZS Sh

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 TZS = 3.82 USD

10,000 TZS = 3.42 EUR

10,000 TZS = 3.82 USD

10,000 TZS = 3.42 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Mbeya Bagamoyo 660 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Mbeya
Bagamoyo

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

Mbeya vs Bagamoyo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bagamoyo wins on cost – living expenses run 10% lower than in Mbeya. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Bagamoyo the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $640 in Mbeya and $574 in Bagamoyo to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $112 in Mbeya versus $57 in Bagamoyo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $191 in Mbeya versus $560 in Bagamoyo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Bagamoyo – a meal for two runs $11 versus $23 in Mbeya. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $800 a month, though Bagamoyo gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Mbeya and Bagamoyo are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.