Port Au Prince - Post Report Question and Answers
How would you describe the availability and cost of groceries and household supplies relative to your home country?
You can get most things here, but it will be more expensive than the US. We get Amazon deliveries in about a week which is very convenient and there is a consumables shipment. Cheese and meats are expensive, as are any specialty things like gluten-free items or lactose free. - Aug 2019
At least as of 2017, a good variety of groceries was available at upscale grocery shops in Petionville and Tabarre. Items might be expensive but were at least available. At the embassy, services like amazon or netgrocer could help supplement your supplies of dry goods. Haitian coffee is quite good and a wide variety of tropical fruit jams and jellies are available locally. - Jun 2019
Groceries are expensive, but most things are available. Be prepared, you will pay 3x the market price for them. - Aug 2018
Pretty much everything is available, but it's expensive. Especially dairy. Wine and the local beer are reasonably priced. - Apr 2017
For imported items the cost is 1.5 - 2 times the cost in the US. Locally grown produce is not expensive. The mangoes, bananas, chayote, etc are all delicious. There are many grocery stores that cater to expats. - Dec 2016
A family of 3 I know spends US$1200/ month on groceries. This is a consumables post so that's a great way to save. You can get virtually the same offerings from the States here, surprisingly, but it will cost you at least double. Amazon usually ships here within a week. - Sep 2014
You can get anything here - at a price. Caribbean market. After not being able to find chicken, butter or cheese in East Africa, it has been a pleasant surprise to find everything is available here. Gluten free, vegetarian, almond milk, probiotic yogurt, hormone free and organic items of everything. Everything. I had been out of the U.S. for years and shopping in Haiti educated me about how much is now available for specific/niche markets these days. - Sep 2013
You will find almost anything you want from tahini sauce & falafel mix, to pad thai and sushi wrappers in the grocery stores here. Extensive selections of French cheese, American apples and lettuce, high end chocolate and everything you could imagine. It's just expensive. A box of Minute Maid orange juice - $10. A pint of raspberries (American) - $15. A medium size bottle of liquid Tide - $26. A jar of French raspberry jam (Bonne Manman) - surprisingly slightly LESS expensive than what I used to pay in NYC.(Too bad I shipped this jam in my consumables . . . ) Ship in your cleaning supplies, a $2 bottle of whatever at Target is a lot more palatable, than a $8 bottle of the same thing available here. - Sep 2011
There is very good availability of household supplies. Most of the big U.S. brands are available at the larger supermarkets. Groceries are a little more unpredictable, and the quality/availability changes from day to day. It pays to go to the grocery store frequently and, when you see something you want, buy it! - Jan 2011
There are places to shop but mostly the rich shop there. There is only two types of people in Haiti. Rich and Extreme Poverty. There is no middle and there should be. - Jan 2010
Everything is largely available, if very expensive. Using your sconsumable allowance is a good idea, but even decent meat is now finding its ways into the stores. - May 2009
Expensive! Prices are high enough that the COLA should be around 30%, don't know what happened there. Use your consumables allowance plus you can bring back food, meat, etc. in suitcases from Miami. - Feb 2009
Imported goods are very expensive, but local produce is pretty cheap and delicious. - Dec 2008
Everthing is here but very expensive. - Feb 2008
