Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Pietermaritzburg Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Pietermaritzburg

😐 Solo nomad: Cape Town is 21.5% more expensive than Pietermaritzburg without rent, and 23.7% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Cape Town is 14.2% more expensive than Pietermaritzburg without rent, and 25.8% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.83 R 178

$7.89 R 129

37.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.28 R 743

$42.20 R 692

7.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.09 R 83.5

$5.49 R 90.0

-7.29%

Cappuccino

$2.01 R 33.02

$2.21 R 36.25

-9.05%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.11 R 18.18

$0.88 R 14.44

26.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.81 R 13.26

$0.70 R 11.52

15.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.78 R 45.63

$1.72 R 28.15

61.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.45 R 40.14

$2.44 R 40.02

0.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.10 R 18.08

$1.08 R 17.79

1.85%

White Bread (500g)

$1.10 R 17.96

$0.86 R 14.17

27.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.86 R 30.57

$1.46 R 23.99

27.40%

Eggs

$2.49 R 40.87

$2.27 R 37.17

9.69%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.39 R 138

$6.96 R 114

20.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.28 R 86.6

$4.90 R 80.3

7.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.33 R 120

$6.87 R 113

6.70%

Apples (1kg)

$1.58 R 25.83

$1.66 R 27.25

-4.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.46 R 23.99

$1.69 R 27.71

-13.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.46 R 24.02

$1.94 R 31.81

-24.74%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.53 R 25.10

$1.73 R 28.45

-11.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.07 R 17.56

$1.54 R 25.30

-30.52%

Onion (1kg)

$1.22 R 20.07

$1.84 R 30.19

-33.70%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.09 R 17.87

$1.23 R 20.25

-11.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.92 R 15.15

$0.96 R 15.80

-4.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.14 R 51.5

$2.93 R 48.11

7.17%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.57 R 108

$3.60 R 59.1

82.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.40 R 22.96

$1.39 R 22.77

0.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.76 R 28.92

$1.70 R 27.87

3.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.96 R 15.80

$2.67 R 43.76

-64.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$48.51 R 796

$18.09 R 297

168.16%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.43 R 23.40

$1.66 R 27.26

-13.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.93 R 15.27

$0.52 R 8.51

78.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.47 R 73.3

$4.14 R 67.9

7.97%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.23 R 20.23

$1.24 R 20.34

-0.81%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$21.0K R 345.0K

$23.7K R 387.9K

-11.06%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$24.3K R 398.8K

$23.1K R 378.7K

5.31%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$101 R 1,659

$231 R 3,787

-56.20%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$32.32 R 530

$30.59 R 502

5.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.08 R 690

$58.9 R 965

-28.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.35 R 678

$38.71 R 635

6.82%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.36 R 137

Cinema Ticket

$6.63 R 109

$5.19 R 85.1

27.75%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$214 R 3,513

$146 R 2,401

46.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,334 R 87.5K

$4,893 R 80.2K

9.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.0 R 902

$61.0 R 1,000

-9.76%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.11 R 543

$38.87 R 638

-14.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 R 1,846

$182 R 2,985

-38.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.2 R 1,381

$74.1 R 1,215

13.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$771 R 12.6K

$206 R 3,375

274.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$516 R 8,457

$189 R 3,094

173.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,439 R 23.6K

$513 R 8,412

180.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,013 R 16.6K

$386 R 6,325

162.60%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,093 R 34.3K

$1,203 R 19.7K

74.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,420 R 23.3K

$433 R 7,109

227.63%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,685 R 27.6K

$896 R 14.7K

87.99%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.77

11.5

2.35%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Cape Town: January 13, 2026

Last update for Pietermaritzburg: January 13, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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