Costs in Mozambique

The most reliable national starting point is the 2022 household budget survey conducted by Mozambique's statistics institute, INE. It recorded average monthly household spending of MZN 8,661 and MZN 1,893 per person. Food and non-alcoholic drinks accounted for MZN 3,358 per household, or 38.8% of the recorded budget. Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels accounted for MZN 1,489, or 17.2%; transport for MZN 980, or 11.3%; communication for MZN 548, or 6.3%; leisure for MZN 173, or 2.0%; education for MZN 142, or 1.6%; and health for MZN 40, or 0.5%. These figures are a historical structure rather than a current quotation. Cumulative inflation in 2024 was 4.2% overall, 10.2% for food, and 1.0% for housing, water, electricity, gas and fuels, so a current estimate should update the 2022 figures instead of copying them unchanged. Location changes the result substantially. Maputo and Matola, provincial capitals and other urban centres generally have higher housing and service costs than many districts and rural areas, while rural households may rely more on home production, community exchange, standpipes, wells, shared transport or informal providers. The national survey recorded both paid rent and an estimated rental value for owner-occupied homes. Housing arrangements include arrendamento, meaning private rental; casa própria, meaning an owner-occupied home; cedida accommodation provided by another household or institution; self-built housing; and informal subletting. Housing costs can include rent, a deposit, repairs, security, electricity, water, cooking fuel and the cost of travelling from the home to work, school or services. No national official rent price list was identified, so rent comparisons must use the specific property, locality, access to services and contract conditions. Electricity has a formal tariff structure, but access to the electricity network is uneven. ARENE and EDM tariff information valid from 7 May 2026 lists a Tarifa Social rate of MZN 1.07 per kWh for 0–125 kWh, domestic rates of MZN 6.63 per kWh for 0–300 kWh, MZN 9.39 for 301–500 kWh and MZN 9.85 above 500 kWh, and a prepaid rate of MZN 8.44 per kWh. The tariff page also lists a fixed charge of MZN 257.97. The applicable category and payment method should be checked against the connection and the current tariff notice. Where electricity network access is unavailable or unreliable, households may use solar equipment, generators, charcoal or kerosene, which add purchase, fuel, charging, maintenance or transport costs. The 2026 reference prices listed for LPG and lighting kerosene were MZN 87.82 per kilogram and MZN 97.56 per litre. Water costs depend on the city, provider, meter reading and customer category. PIGI billing can combine a consumption charge based on cubic metres with value-added tax and sanitation charges. In peri-urban and rural areas, households may instead use a standpipe, a private vendor, a borehole or a well. The amount paid may therefore include both the water itself and transport, containers, waiting time or delivery. There is no single nationwide consumer water charge that applies to every household. Food normally requires the largest flexible budget share. Prices can differ by district, market, harvest period, transport conditions, weather and local security conditions. Weekly price monitoring by SIMA and ICM is more useful for current comparisons than a single national average. For example, price observations in Zambézia from 31 August to 4 September 2026 listed maize at MZN 12–17 per kilogram, rice at MZN 23–25, cowpea at MZN 25–37 and butter beans at MZN 60–85. Observations in Tete from 24–28 August listed maize at MZN 10–18, rice at MZN 55–60, cowpea at MZN 35–45 and butter beans at MZN 55–80. These ranges are not directly comparable because the districts, markets and dates differ. A household estimate should record the foods actually bought, the market used and the season, while allowing for harvest, transport, weather and conflict shocks. Households with access to farming, home production or community exchange may have a different cash budget from households buying all food at retail prices. Mobility costs depend heavily on commuting distance and the available service. Common options include chapas, machimbombo services, taxis, boats, private cars, CFM rail services and the Famba multimodal system in the Maputo area. Transport providers and municipal arrangements can differ by place. ARENE's fuel prices from 7 May 2026 listed petrol at MZN 93.69 per litre, diesel at MZN 116.25, lighting kerosene at MZN 97.56 per litre, LPG at MZN 87.82 per kilogram and compressed natural gas at MZN 52.73 per litre equivalent. CFM-Sul's published third-class fare zones list MZN 13, 20, 35 and 50, but the tariff page is based on 2021 and should be checked before use. A 2024 Maputo bulletin listed MZN 19 for journeys up to 10 kilometres and MZN 22 above 10 kilometres, with a MZN 7 subsidy; those figures should not be treated as a current national tariff. Famba's current single-fare amount was not established in the available evidence. Public healthcare is described as generally free in an INSS report, but a household can still pay for medicines, diagnostic tests, private treatment, transport, food during treatment and care for a person who cannot work. Rare or severe illness can create a much larger expense than the MZN 40 per household recorded for health in the 2022 survey. Contributory sickness support through INSS requires at least six months of contributions within the previous twelve months and twenty contribution days during the two most recent months. That support is not the same as a universal payment and does not remove all treatment or household costs. Education costs depend on the level and provider. Public primary education does not charge tuition, but families can still pay for uniforms, materials, transport, meals and, where relevant, boarding. Secondary education, technical education, boarding schools, private schools and higher education can involve fees. A full scholarship at the University Eduardo Mondlane can cover accommodation, food, medical and medicine assistance, current expenses and tuition under its applicable conditions. The 2022 education share therefore understates the burden for households with several children, boarding needs or private or higher education expenses. Family-related costs are not recorded as a separate national category in the household survey. Care for children, older people or people with disabilities is largely provided within households or communities, and no broadly applicable national childcare or eldercare price structure was established. The National Institute for Social Action, INAS, runs targeted programmes including PSSB, PASP, PASD and PAUS. The stated 2025 programme targets were 786,916 PSSB beneficiaries, 90,224 PASD beneficiaries and 180,225 PASP beneficiaries. A child grant in targeted districts was described as approximately MZN 540 per month, paid quarterly. Access depends on poverty or vulnerability targeting rather than universal eligibility. INSS also covers contributory benefits such as sickness, maternity, paternity, death and funeral support, survivor pensions and old-age or disability pensions. A 2024 reform provides 90 days of maternity leave. These programmes can reduce particular household burdens, but they should not be counted as guaranteed income without confirming eligibility and current payment conditions. Communication spending usually includes prepaid airtime or data, a SIM card, a device, charging and sometimes shared access or mobile money. Prepaid services are dominant. A 2022 survey recorded Movitel use among 72% of rural respondents and Vodacom use among 59% of urban respondents. The communications regulator requires SIM registration. Package prices depend on the company, service, promotion and date, so a fixed national communication allowance would quickly become inaccurate. Leisure spending has no national official price list either. Urban areas generally offer more paid sports, culture, hospitality and tourism, while rural areas may rely more on free public, community or family activities. The 2022 survey recorded MZN 173 per household per month for leisure, but actual spending is discretionary and location-specific. A practical household model should separate fixed costs, variable costs and shock reserves. Fixed or recurring items commonly include rent, utilities, telecommunications, school payments and regular transport. Variable items include food, fuel, medicines, private care, education materials and leisure. The model should record household size, dependants, province or city, tenure, food source, electricity and water access, school arrangements and commuting distance. It should also reserve money for cyclones, floods, conflict-related disruption, illness, repairs and sudden transport needs. Minimum wages are a comparison point for income, not a measure of living costs. From 1 April 2026, the listed monthly minimum wages were MZN 7,072.00 for agriculture, MZN 7,063.22 for fishing, MZN 10,845.00 for non-financial services and MZN 20,361.43 for finance and insurance. A budget should be reviewed with monthly consumer-price data, current ARENE electricity and fuel tariffs, and weekly SIMA or ICM food prices. Evidence remains limited or fragmented for rents, private healthcare, childcare, leisure and informal vendor prices, so those items need local quotations or observed household spending rather than a national average.