The real cost of living in Mauritius for expats and digital nomads (2024)

Housing rental cost in Mauritius

You have a few options to find your new home in Mauritius : apartments, villas in gated complexes and sometimes even resort-like complexes, or private landed houses. Prices have increased quite a lot since we arrived in 2022. Here are some actual costs for this year, after negotiation in Tamarin for your reference:

• A high-end spacious 3 bedroom villa in a gated complex with a large garden and private swimming pool for 100,000 Rs/month  (about 2000€)
• A high-end 3 bedroom villa with seaview and shared swimming pool in a gated complex for 75–80,000 Rs/month  (about 1600€)
• A less high end small 3-bedroom beach house without pool or a 3-bedroom landed house with private swimming pool for 50,000 Rs/month (about 1100€)

In Flic en Flac, just 20 min drive from Tamarin, prices are significantly cheaper. 

Grand Baie, some coastal areas and central areas popular with expats like Albion, Curepipe or Floréal are also in this price range.  

Check the current prices on the main real estate platforms in Mauritius. You can usually negotiate the price down.

The cost for utilities varies according to your lifestyle.  It can be 2000 to 3000 Rs/month (45-65€), for electricity for 2 people, without using aircon, or 5000 to 15000 Rs (100-300€) for a couple with kids and aircon. Water is very cheap. 

Transportation cost in Mauritius

Unfortunately, in Mauritius, it’s very difficult to avoid having a car.  Public bus is cheap but limited. Taxis are expensive and not so commonly available (1500-2000 Rs for Grand Baie to the airport).  

You’ll have to choose between renting or buying a car. There is a heavy tax on cars so new cars are quite expensive in Mauritius.  Buying a second-hand car which is 2-3 years old is a good way to go. You’ll get anywhere between 200,000 Rs to 2 millions Rs  (4500 to 45.000€), depending on the mileage, condition of the car, brand, etc. Usually, Japanese cars are cheaper to maintain and have a good resale value. There are plenty of sellers and the process to purchase is relatively easy.  Check the current options and prices on L’Express Cars,  MyCar and Motors Mega.  You can also choose to go for long term rental. Prices vary from 15,000 to 25,000 Rs/month. Read our article on the best rental companies for long term car rental in the West. 

If you don’t want to get a car, buying a scooter is also a good and more affordable option : 100,000 Rs (2250 €).

Grocery shopping cost in Mauritius

There is a good choice of stores. You’ll find supermarkets like Super U, London Way, Intermarché or Food Lovers,  which offer a variety of products with international brands, especially French, Indian and South African. Read our article about the best grocery stores to buy your fruits and vegetables in-store or online in Mauritius… it turned out that buying online was cheaper for us.  You’ll also find more local food stores and even roadside merchants selling seasonal fruits and vegetables, which are of course much cheaper. 

Here is a list of prices of some common items in March 2024 in Tamarin supermarkets and online stores:

DAIRY

• 1L full cream milk: 67 Rs (1.3€)
• 1kg yoghurt nature: 100 Rs (2€) 

Bread & breakfast

• 1 pack of Jordan Granola: 260 Rs (5.20€)
• 1 fresh baguette at the bakery: from 5 Rs at London Way for a local baguette to 40 Rs for French tradition baguette 

Fruits, Vegetables, Legumes in Pote Age Tamarin

• 1 avocado: 90 Rs (1.80€)
• 1 kg banana: 89 Rs (1.78€)
• 1 kg orange or apple: 109 Rs (2.18)
• 1 kg plum tomatoes: 409 Rs (8.18€)
• 1 kg mixed peppers / capsicum: 309 Rs  (6.18€)

Alcohol

• 1 bottle of average wine: 400 to 600 Rs (8€ to 12€)
• 1 pack of 6 local beers cans : 324 Rs (6.98€)