Myanmar: cost of living

What is the price of petrol and diesel in Myanmar?

Petrol (92 octane) cost 20,678 kyats a gallon and diesel 22,500 kyats a gallon in Yangon on 14 October 2026, according to the CSO's average market prices page. In Pyinmana, Lewe and Tatkone, petrol was 21,150 kyats and diesel 25,583 kyats a gallon.

The CSO updates the table on working days and shows the last five days. It notes that the Yangon diesel price is for ordinary diesel, while the price shown for Pyinmana, Lewe and Tatkone is for premium diesel, so the city figures are not directly comparable.

Official sources: CSO: average market prices, fuel table

How much does rice cost in Myanmar?

Emata medium rice (Sinthwe, old crop) cost 4,800 kyats a pyi and Shwebo Pawsan medium rice 8,500 kyats a pyi at Yangon retail markets on 14 October 2026, according to the CSO's average market prices page. The Emata price was 4,600 kyats on 8 October.

The CSO publishes daily average retail prices in Yangon for rice, edible oil, pulses, spices, meat, fish and prawns. Prices are quoted in kyats per pyi, a traditional Myanmar volume measure. The same page links to graphs of price movements over time.

Official sources: CSO: average market prices

What is the electricity tariff in Myanmar?

Household electricity costs 50 kyats a unit for the first 50 units a month, 100 kyats for 51 to 100 units, 150 kyats for 101 to 200 units and 300 kyats above 200 units, according to the Ministry of Electricity and Energy's tariff page. The ministry says these household rates are unchanged under notification 89/2026 of 27 February 2026.

The same notification set a fixed rate of 900 kyats a unit for firms in industrial and special economic zones that take a dedicated 24-hour supply from power plants running on liquefied natural gas. Bills are charged in blocks, so each rate applies only to the units within its band.

Official sources: Ministry of Electricity and Energy: electricity tariffs

What is the gold price in Myanmar today?

Gold (24 carat) cost 7,100,000 kyats a tical at Shwe Bon Thar Street in Yangon on 14 October 2026, up from 7,050,000 kyats on 8 October, according to the CSO's average market prices page.

The CSO reports the price from the Shwe Bon Thar Street gold market, not a central bank or exchange price. Prices are quoted per tical (kyattha), a traditional Myanmar unit of weight. Because gold is priced in kyats, its price moves with the market dollar rate as well as with world gold prices; the CSO's exchange rate table on the same page shows those rates.

Official sources: CSO: average market prices, gold table

What is the poverty rate in Myanmar?

24.8% of people lived below Myanmar's national poverty line in 2017, according to the World Bank's poverty data, which draws on the 2017 Myanmar Living Conditions Survey. The CSO home page lists that survey in its survey highlights.

No newer national poverty estimate was found on the CSO website on 15 October 2026. The 2017 figure predates the COVID-19 pandemic and the events of 2021, so it should be read as a baseline, not a current measure.

Official sources: World Bank: poverty headcount at national poverty lines, Myanmar · CSO home page

How fast are prices rising in Myanmar?

According to the IMF, consumer price inflation in Myanmar was 8.8% in 2019. Since 2005 it has ranged from 1.5% (2012) to 35.0% (2007). It is 1st highest of 26 in East Asia & Pacific, where the median is 1.6%. Worldwide: 20th of 178.

How many people in Myanmar live on under $3 a day?

The World Bank puts the share of people living on less than $3.00 a day in Myanmar at 10.3% in 2017. East Asia & Pacific median: 1.1%; Myanmar is 2nd highest of 6. World rank, highest first: 8th of 77.

How many people in Myanmar are poor?

24.8%: that is the share of people below the national poverty line in Myanmar for 2017, according to the World Bank. That compares with 48.2% in 2005. East Asia & Pacific median: 7.9%; Myanmar is 1st highest of 5. Worldwide: 11th of 53.

What is income inequality in Myanmar?

In 2017, the Gini index in Myanmar was 30.7, according to the World Bank. East Asia & Pacific median: 35.6; Myanmar is 6th highest of 6. Worldwide: 56th of 77.

How many people in Myanmar go hungry?

The latest figure from the FAO, for 2024, is 31.3%. The peak was 32.7% in 2023 and the low 22.2% in 2019. East Asia & Pacific median: 15.4%; Myanmar is 5th highest of 17. Of 135 countries with 2024 data, 51st highest.