Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sao Tome and Principe and Egypt

Name: Egypt
Address: EG

For one person, living is cheaper in Egypt: $449 a month against $1,206 in Sao Tome and Principe, rent and utilities included – about $9,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Sao Tome and Principe
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Sao Tome and Principe Living Index
22

Cost of Living Index in Egypt
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Egypt Living Index

Jump to prices

🇸🇹 Sao Tome and Principe

$1,206

/mo nomad

🇪🇬 Egypt

$449

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sao Tome and Principe and in Egypt

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,206 in Sao Tome and Principe versus $449 in Egypt.

Sao Tome and Principe $1,206
Egypt $449

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,890 in Sao Tome and Principe versus $733 in Egypt.

Sao Tome and Principe $1,890
Egypt $733

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,575 in Sao Tome and Principe versus $1,017 in Egypt.

Sao Tome and Principe $2,575
Egypt $1,017

Internal cost variation is higher in Sao Tome and Principe: monthly costs span $199 to $1,211, compared to $295–$677 in Egypt. City choice carries more weight in Sao Tome and Principe.

Living in Sao Tome and Principe is roughly 169% more expensive than in Egypt on average.

Both countries sit below the global median: Sao Tome and Principe 11% lower, Egypt 67% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.86 STN 195

$3.46 E£194

156.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.95 STN 967

$17.81 E£997

146.77%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.60 STN 189

$4.51 E£252

90.69%

Cappuccino

$2.40 STN 52.7

$1.38 E£77.5

73.91%

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

$1.81 STN 39.89

$0.34 E£18.77

432.35%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.13 STN 24.76

$0.14 E£7.66

707.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.74 STN 38.32

$1.37 E£76.5

27.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.88 STN 41.45

$2.70 E£151

-30.37%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 STN 33.69

$0.79 E£44.14

93.67%

White Bread (500g)

$1.52 STN 33.44

$0.68 E£38.09

123.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.87 STN 41.10

$0.60 E£33.35

211.67%

Eggs

$4.40 STN 96.7

$1.18 E£65.8

272.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.33 STN 425

$3.18 E£178

507.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$19.32 STN 425

$3.91 E£219

394.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.09 STN 464

$7.74 E£433

172.48%

Apples (1kg)

$3.80 STN 83.6

$1.45 E£81.2

162.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.76 STN 38.65

$0.67 E£37.24

162.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.58 STN 78.8

$0.49 E£27.26

630.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.54 STN 78.0

$0.35 E£19.85

911.43%

Potato (1kg)

$2.87 STN 63.2

$0.36 E£20.23

697.22%

Onion (1kg)

$2.38 STN 52.4

$0.35 E£19.74

580.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.53 STN 11.68

$0.28 E£15.74

89.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.06 STN 45.40

$0.19 E£10.40

984.21%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.19 STN 48.09

$1.83 E£102

19.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.98 STN 176

$6.19 E£347

28.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.47 STN 32.25

$1.30 E£72.5

13.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 STN 36.91

$1.87 E£105

-10.16%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.34 STN 29.52

$0.28 E£15.69

378.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.24 E£405

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.64 STN 36.10

$0.37 E£20.85

343.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.66 STN 58.6

$0.26 E£14.52

923.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.81 STN 304

$1.82 E£102

658.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.74 STN 38.37

$0.40 E£22.29

335.00%

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

$24.4K STN 535.9K

$29.9K E£1.7M

-18.47%

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

$31.6K STN 694.4K

$24.0K E£1.3M

31.41%

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

$224 STN 4,934

$20.40 E£1,142

999.26%

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

$30.91 STN 680

$6.78 E£379

355.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$65.8 STN 1,447

$12.41 E£694

429.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.11 STN 750

$17.00 E£952

100.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.43 STN 560

$6.36 E£356

299.84%

Cinema Ticket

$20.50 STN 451

$2.93 E£164

599.66%

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

$228 STN 5,021

$94.2 E£5,271

142.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,158 STN 47.5K

$2,362 E£132.2K

-8.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$25.33 E£1,418

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$75.2 STN 1,653

$41.23 E£2,308

82.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 E£5,875

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$18.67 STN 411

$47.95 E£2,684

-61.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$288 STN 6,339

$140 E£7,826

106.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$195 STN 4,300

$88.9 E£4,974

119.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$920 STN 20.2K

$282 E£15.8K

226.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$437 STN 9,606

$179 E£10.0K

143.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,861 STN 40.9K

$683 E£38.2K

172.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,125 STN 24.8K

$432 E£24.2K

160.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$441 STN 9,709

$141 E£7,900

212.66%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.38

17.11

-56.87%

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

Last update for Sao Tome and Principe: October 26, 2026

Last update for Egypt: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Sao Tome and Principe

$402 33.3%

Egypt

$117 26% 70.9% $285

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sao Tome and Principe

$321 26.6%

Egypt

$40 8.8% 87.7% $281

Accommodation & Living

Sao Tome and Principe

$195 16.2%

Egypt

$89 19.8% 54.5% $107

Eating Out

Sao Tome and Principe

$150 12.4%

Egypt

$72 16% 51.9% $78

Sport & Entertainment

Sao Tome and Principe

$75 6.2%

Egypt

$23 5.1% 69.5% $52

Clothing & Footwear

Sao Tome and Principe

$42 * 3.5%

Egypt

$99 22% 134% $57

Getting Around

Sao Tome and Principe

$20 * 1.7%

Egypt

$10 2.2% 50.6% $10

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

Cost Breakdown

National rent averages: $288 in Sao Tome and Principe, $136 in Egypt. Capital cities: $288 in Sao Tome vs $203 in Cairo.

National salary averages: $259 in Sao Tome and Principe, $129 in Egypt. Higher pay doesn’t always mean more spending money – weigh income against local costs.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 112% higher in Sao Tome and Principe.

Dining out costs 163% more in Sao Tome and Principe.

Salaries are about 2 times higher in Sao Tome and Principe.

Good to know

🇸🇹 Sao Tome and Principe

🇪🇬 Egypt

🕒 Local time

09:29 9:29 AM

12:29 12:29 PM

3 h ahead of Sao Tome and Principe

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

204,327

114,535,772

💱 Currency

Sao Tome and Principe Dobra STN Db

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 STN = 4.55 USD

100 STN = 4.08 EUR

100 EGP = 1.79 USD

100 EGP = 1.61 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, USD, EUR to STN – Sao Tome and Principe Dobra Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇹 Sao Tome and Principe Dobra (Db)

Sao Tome and Principe Dobra exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 22 STN (100 STN = 4.55 USD). 1 EUR = 24.49 STN (100 STN = 4.08 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 55.97 EGP (100 EGP = 1.79 USD). 1 EUR = 62.29 EGP (100 EGP = 1.61 EUR).

USD to STN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Sao Tome and Principe Egypt 4,200 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Sao Tome and Principe
Egypt

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

Sao Tome and Principe vs Egypt: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

At $449 per month in Egypt and $1,206 in Sao Tome and Principe, there’s a 169% gap. Keep in mind it varies by city – the difference can be bigger or smaller depending on where you settle within each country.

Rent for a central one-bedroom averages $288 in Sao Tome and Principe and $136 in Egypt. Rents vary a lot between cities, so the gap depends on where you settle.

In Egypt, $1,000 covers most cities easily; in Sao Tome and Principe it stretches only to regional areas and falls short in the capital – you’ll need to make trade-offs on housing or lifestyle.

It depends on what you’re after: Egypt wins on affordability; Sao Tome and Principe may offer higher salaries, better infrastructure, and different cultural perks. Both attract large expat communities for different reasons.