Last checked August 10, 2026
Merkato is the city’s general-purpose market, but if you know specifically what you’re after, two other kinds of shopping cover most of what visitors look for.
Shiro Meda
In the north of the city, Shiro Meda is where much of Addis Ababa actually buys traditional clothing and handicrafts: hand-woven cotton shemma cloth, habesha kemis dresses, the netela shawls worn on holidays, alongside crosses and basketry. It’s smaller and more specific than Merkato, and considerably easier to navigate if traditional dress or textiles are what you’re actually shopping for.
Modern malls
Several multi-story malls have opened around the city over the last decade, most of them in the Bole area near the airport — Century Mall, with a mix of international and local retail, a cinema, and a bowling alley, and Friendship City Center, with a supermarket and its own food court, are two of the larger, more established ones. Straightforward if you want fixed prices, air conditioning, and a food court rather than an open-air market.
Practical
Bargaining is normal and expected at Shiro Meda and Merkato — prices aren’t fixed, and quoting an opening price well above what you’ll actually pay is part of the norm. Malls run on fixed, posted prices instead.