Liberia

Profiled in Monrovia · West Africa

4fit /10

Founded by freed American settlers, with a US-influenced legal system, a dollarised economy and Atlantic surf beaches, still rebuilding after fourteen years of civil war.

CapitalMonrovia
LanguageEnglish
CurrencyLiberian dollar (LRD)
Population5.4M

Cost of living

What a month costs

$900Comfortable single
$2,000Family of four
$5001-bed, central
$7Casual meal

The US dollar circulates alongside the Liberian dollar. Monrovia is expensive for the region, with generators, private water and imported food dominating budgets.

The scores

How it rates for a moving family

Safety4
Infrastructure3
English8
Kids’ schools4
Integration6
Healthcare3
Residency path4
Tax5
Climate7

See and do

Top 10 in Monrovia

  1. Providence IslandLanding site of the first freed-slave settlers in 1822.
  2. National Museum of LiberiaCollections in the former Supreme Court building.
  3. Waterside MarketSprawling market along the Mesurado river.
  4. Ducor HotelRuined modernist hotel on the highest point of Monrovia.
  5. Centennial PavilionPresidential inauguration site in central Monrovia.
  6. Sapo National ParkPygmy hippo and forest elephant habitat.
  7. Firestone PlantationOne of the world's largest contiguous rubber plantations.
  8. Blo DegboCoastal rock formations near Marshall.

Where to go

Weekend escapes

  1. RobertsportSurf town on Lake Piso with Atlantic point breaks.
  2. Sapo National ParkThe country's largest rainforest reserve, in the south-east.
  3. MarshallEstuary beaches and islands south of the capital.
  4. Kpatawee FallsWaterfall and swimming pools in Bong County.
  5. HarperRemote south-eastern port with decaying Americo-Liberian mansions.

Residency

Residence follows work or business permits. Liberian citizenship is constitutionally restricted to persons of Black African descent, an unusual limitation, though a 2022 amendment restored dual citizenship.

Tax

Personal and corporate rates are both 25%, with a 10% goods and services tax. Liberia's maritime registry, one of the world's largest, sits outside the general corporate regime. There is no wealth or inheritance tax.

Curious what you would actually pay? See the Liberia tax profile: income, corporate, VAT and exit rules →

Nearby

More of West Africa