A young Cuban shared a video on TikTok showing what she could buy with 28,000 Cuban pesos (CUP) amidst the deep economic crisis affecting the Island. The video has sparked comments and debate among users comparing the purchasing power of money in Cuba today.
"I have 28,000 pesos, my loves, so join me to see what I can buy," she says at the beginning of the video, where she explains that she decided to make a list to avoid unnecessary spending, in a context where—she claims—“the situation is critical” and prices are constantly rising.
The young woman explains that she tries to eat as healthily as possible "as long as the economy allows it" and acknowledges that to get by in Cuba, one has to "become a magician" when shopping, especially if trying to maintain a business at the same time.
During the tour, it shows the purchase of canned fruits in syrup, tomato paste, chickpeas, onion, pepper, tomato, papaya, guava, pineapple, cabbage, garlic, and bath soap. Subsequently, he visited a home where, as he explains, they sell meat products at more affordable prices and with greater confidence in weighing.
There, she bought eggs, ground meat, pork loin, sausages, and rice. “It was quite a complete shopping trip,” she assures at the end, before inviting her followers to comment on whether they spend more or less than she does on a similar purchase.
The video reflects the daily reality of thousands of Cuban families who must meticulously plan every expense due to the sustained rise in prices, driven by the devaluation of the Cuban peso against the U.S. dollar in the informal market and the scarcity of products in state-run stores.
In a context where the average monthly salary hovers around figures similar to or even lower than the amount shown in the video, many citizens rely on remittances, private businesses, or multiple sources of income to meet their basic needs for food and hygiene.
The testimony adds to others published on social media that document the direct impact of inflation and the structural crisis of the Cuban economic model on the daily lives of the population.
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