Cost of Living Comparison Between South Africa and Malawi Cost of Living Comparison Between South Africa and Malawi

Name: Malawi
Address: MW

😐 Solo nomad: South Africa is 2.8% more expensive than Malawi without rent, and 58.1% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: South Africa is 23.5% more expensive than Malawi without rent, and 41.4% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.70 R 145

$5.00 MWK 8,725

74.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$38.91 R 646

$21.53 MWK 37.5K

80.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.17 R 85.9

$8.49 MWK 14.8K

-39.10%

Cappuccino

$2.05 R 34.08

$2.88 MWK 5,029

-28.82%

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

$1.02 R 17.00

$0.89 MWK 1,546

14.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.76 R 12.60

$0.47 MWK 821

61.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.26 R 37.49

$1.33 MWK 2,311

69.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.53 R 42.10

$2.90 MWK 5,064

-12.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.10 R 18.35

$1.01 MWK 1,765

8.91%

White Bread (500g)

$0.94 R 15.63

$1.26 MWK 2,203

-25.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.62 R 26.97

$1.62 MWK 2,826

Eggs

$2.22 R 36.90

$2.25 MWK 3,928

-1.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.52 R 125

$7.51 MWK 13.1K

0.13%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.48 R 74.4

$3.31 MWK 5,772

35.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.61 R 110

$5.34 MWK 9,306

23.78%

Apples (1kg)

$1.50 R 24.94

$2.45 MWK 4,281

-38.78%

Banana (1kg)

$1.42 R 23.60

$1.76 MWK 3,071

-19.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.46 R 24.27

$2.19 MWK 3,812

-33.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.51 R 25.10

$1.20 MWK 2,091

25.83%

Potato (1kg)

$1.26 R 20.86

$1.35 MWK 2,354

-6.67%

Onion (1kg)

$1.29 R 21.51

$1.37 MWK 2,397

-5.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.03 R 17.08

$0.30 MWK 531

243.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 R 16.05

$1.11 MWK 1,936

-12.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.87 R 47.67

$2.32 MWK 4,049

23.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.90 R 81.4

$12.40 MWK 21.6K

-60.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 R 21.82

$0.98 MWK 1,715

33.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 R 28.82

$2.01 MWK 3,509

-13.93%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.65 R 27.38

$1.00 MWK 1,741

65.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.20 R 734

$2.10 MWK 3,667

2004.76%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.14 R 18.93

$0.57 MWK 997

100.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 R 18.12

$2.46 MWK 4,298

-55.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.70 R 78.2

$6.00 MWK 10.5K

-21.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.52

$1.62 MWK 2,816

-19.75%

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

$20.8K R 345.4K

$35.6K MWK 62.1M

-41.60%

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

$23.5K R 390.5K

$38.4K MWK 67.0M

-38.81%

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

$111 R 1,849

$48.58 MWK 84.7K

129.19%

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

$32.36 R 537

$10.35 MWK 18.0K

212.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.49 R 673

$70.7 MWK 123.3K

-42.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.96 R 531

$44.28 MWK 77.2K

-27.82%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.72 R 161

$15.10 MWK 26.3K

-35.63%

Cinema Ticket

$6.80 R 113

$3.89 MWK 6,787

74.81%

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

$189 R 3,131

$378 MWK 659.1K

-50.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,400 R 73.1K

$1,501 MWK 2.6M

193.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.2 R 833

$42.48 MWK 74.1K

18.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.53 R 507

$34.30 MWK 59.8K

-10.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.5 R 1,570

$58.5 MWK 102.0K

61.65%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$81.3 R 1,350

$71.0 MWK 123.8K

14.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$453 R 7,520

$204 MWK 355.0K

122.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$372 R 6,181

$81.7 MWK 142.5K

355.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$906 R 15.0K

$438 MWK 764.2K

106.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$703 R 11.7K

$345 MWK 601.3K

103.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,150 R 19.1K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$836 R 13.9K

$390 MWK 680.4K

114.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,471 R 24.4K

$306 MWK 533.2K

381.17%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.55

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

Last update for South Africa: March 2, 2026

Last update for Malawi: March 1, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated January 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Cost of Living Comparison Between South Africa and Malawi Cost of Living Comparison Between South Africa and Malawi

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated January 2026)

South Africa

Malawi

South Africa

Malawi

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