Cost of Living inBulawayo, Zimbabwe
Image credit: Memorialman
Purchasing Power vs. United States
Based on GDP per capita (PPP). Zimbabwe: $5,215/capita.
How Far Your Money Goes
Prices are 64% lower than the global benchmark (New York City = 100).
Using the country-level NYC comparison for now. We do not have a defensible city-level aggregate cost index for this city yet.
Income Category
Happiness
3.3 / 10
#136 globally
GDP per Capita
City Population
Child Education
Public-schooling rules and international-school pricing are not sourced for Zimbabwe yet. Quality, expat-access, instruction language, and tuition will appear here once verified.
Childcare & Domestic Help
Nanny, housekeeper, and driver pricing is not yet sourced for Bulawayo. We publish this section only when we can tie it to local job-board, agency, or country fallback evidence.
Getting Around
Neighborhood mobility profiles are rolling out city by city.Bulawayo is still missing a verified walkability, transit, airport, and rideshare profile.
Healthcare
System strength, outcome signals, facility coverage, and self-pay visibility in Zimbabwe.
Method: country metrics come from public system indicators, facility coverage reflects mapped providers we can inventory, direct pricing only reflects observed self-pay pages, and relative care cost can fall back to broad cost-of-living healthcare indices. Sparse pricing does not imply sparse healthcare availability.
Healthcare system
LimitedLow out-of-pocket burden help, but coverage looks thinner and doctor staffing is lighter.
Public care
LimitedRelatively low patient cost-sharing and a visible public hospital footprint help, but public coverage looks thinner and public funding looks lighter.
Private care
LimitedThe private footprint is not very visible yet and self-pay pricing transparency is still sparse weigh on this rating.
UHC coverage
59/100
2023
Physicians
0.14/1k
2023
Hospital beds
1.95/1k
2014
Out of pocket
11%
2023
Outcome signals
Life expectancy
63.1 yrs
2024
Maternal mortality
358/100k
2023
Neonatal mortality
33.7/1k
2024
International patient readiness
LimitedThe private footprint is still thin, price transparency is still sparse, and headline outcomes are less reassuring weigh on this rating.
Pricing transparency
LimitedPublished self-pay prices are scarce weigh on this rating.
Facility coverage
Self-pay pricing visibility
No verified self-pay prices are published for the tracked facilities in Zimbabwe yet.
This usually reflects low online price transparency rather than a lack of healthcare providers.
Notable facilities
System metrics: World Bank WDI · Updated 2026-06-01
Safety & Governance
Street Safety
Source: Numbeo where a city row is matched; otherwise World Bank WGI and country-level safety context.
Political Stability
World Bank WGI scale: -2.5 to +2.5.
Wages by Sector
| Sector | Median |
|---|---|
| Agriculture & Farming | — |
| Construction | — |
| Education | — |
| Healthcare & Social Work | — |
| Information & Technology | — |
| Manufacturing | — |
| Mining & Quarrying | — |
| Public Administration & Defence | — |
| Retail & Wholesale Trade | — |
| Transport & Logistics | — |
| Utilities | — |
2015 annual wages in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe · Source: ILO ILOSTAT (national)
Price Comparison vs. US
Visa Information (US passport)
Short-stay entry
US passport holders can obtain a visa on arrival.
Quick comparison FAQ
Structured from the deltas already shown on this page — no invented facts, no extra data sources.
How far does your money go in Bulawayo compared with the US?
Your money goes about 3.3x further in Bulawayo than in the US, based on the current PPP estimate. We are using the country-level cost index for Zimbabwe here because a defensible city-level aggregate index is not available yet.
Is Bulawayo cheaper or more expensive overall than New York City?
Bulawayo is cheaper overall than New York City — overall living costs are about 64% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City) for Bulawayo. We are using the country-level cost index for Zimbabwe here because a defensible city-level aggregate index is not available yet.
How does rent in Bulawayo compare with New York City?
Rent in Bulawayo is about 90% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City). We are using the country-level cost index for Zimbabwe here because a defensible city-level aggregate index is not available yet.
How expensive are groceries and restaurants in Bulawayo?
Groceries in Bulawayo are about 65% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City), and restaurant prices are about 66% cheaper than the same benchmark. We are using the country-level cost index for Zimbabwe here because a defensible city-level aggregate index is not available yet.
About Bulawayo
Bulawayo is Zimbabwe's second city, set on the high veld at roughly 1,350 meters elevation in the southwest of the country, and historically the industrial capital before sanctions and economic collapse hollowed out the factory base from the 2000s onward. The local economy combines what remains of the National Railways of Zimbabwe headquarters, gold mining services for the surrounding Matabeleland fields, and a contracting manufacturing sector. Relocators are limited to development workers, mining consultants, and a small Matabele-diaspora returnee community, with English as a working language alongside Ndebele. Trade-offs include chronic water shortages tied to the failing Mtshabezi pipeline, currency instability that pushes most business into US dollars, and the practical international gateway sitting at Johannesburg six hours south.
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