A cheap cost of living in Africa is more than just an economic benefit; it is a driver of change, progress, and success.
Africa‘s closeness to some of the world’s most valuable natural resources provides it with an advantage in terms of wealth, which is then distributed to make citizens’ lives more pleasant. While this has not always been the case, there are several countries on the continent that perfectly suit the bill.
One of the primary advantages of having a low cost of living is that it encourages overseas investment. When people, resources, and general living expenses are lowered, enterprises find it more cost-effective to start operations. This, in turn, encourages foreign direct investment (FDI), which promotes economic growth and job creation.
Furthermore, a low cost of living helps local businesses by lowering entry barriers to a variety of industries. This creates an ideal environment for small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) to grow. As the cost of doing business declines, people become more willing to take chances, start firms, and contribute to the diversification of the economy.
In practice, a low cost of living promotes a favorable business ecosystem, in addition to the significant benefit of living in an area where goods and services are well within the reach of the average citizen.
Numbeo collects data from user inputs as well as painstakingly obtained data from trustworthy sources. Manually obtained data from established sources is entered twice a year.
These are the ten African countries with the lowest cost of living. The data below is from Numbeo, a leading data and research platform.
| Rank | Country | Cost of living index | Global rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Nigeria | 19.0 | 145th |
| 2. | Libya | 21.7 | 144th |
| 3. | Kenya | 24.6 | 141st |
| 4. | Madagascar | 25.5 | 138th |
| 5. | Rwanda | 25.8 | 137th |
| 6. | Tanzania | 26.3 | 136th |
| 7. | Ghana | 26.6 | 135th |
| 8. | Egypt | 28.7 | 125th |
| 9. | Somalia | 28.7 | 124th |
| 10. | Tunisia | 28.9 | 122nd |


