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

😐 Solo nomad: Cape Town is 1.6% more expensive than Pietermaritzburg without rent, and 23.9% more expensive with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Cape Town is 4.6% cheaper than Pietermaritzburg without rent, and 28% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.06 R 180

$7.96 R 130

38.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.39 R 740

$43.18 R 704

5.12%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.09 R 82.9

$5.51 R 89.8

-7.62%

Cappuccino

$2.08 R 33.88

$2.12 R 34.57

-1.89%

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

$1.16 R 18.97

$0.87 R 14.16

33.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.89 R 14.55

$0.69 R 11.29

28.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.84 R 46.27

$1.63 R 26.61

74.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.45 R 39.90

$2.42 R 39.49

1.24%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.10 R 17.88

$1.07 R 17.46

2.80%

White Bread (500g)

$1.10 R 17.86

$0.80 R 13.07

37.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 R 29.85

$1.50 R 24.48

22.00%

Eggs

$2.50 R 40.77

$2.25 R 36.69

11.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.65 R 141

$7.04 R 115

22.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.06 R 82.5

$4.69 R 76.4

7.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.58 R 124

$7.02 R 114

7.98%

Apples (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.61

$1.66 R 27.14

-5.42%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 R 23.04

$1.76 R 28.75

-19.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.50 R 24.51

$2.00 R 32.67

-25.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.53 R 24.94

$1.67 R 27.16

-8.38%

Potato (1kg)

$1.09 R 17.69

$1.48 R 24.06

-26.35%

Onion (1kg)

$1.18 R 19.27

$1.78 R 28.98

-33.71%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.06 R 17.27

$1.28 R 20.92

-17.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 R 16.09

$0.96 R 15.69

3.13%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.11 R 50.6

$2.90 R 47.29

7.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.36 R 104

$3.61 R 58.9

76.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 R 22.31

$1.45 R 23.62

-5.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 R 28.60

$1.78 R 28.94

-1.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.92 R 14.94

$2.70 R 44.03

-65.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$48.28 R 787

$18.09 R 295

166.89%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.38 R 22.45

$1.64 R 26.71

-15.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.93 R 15.16

$0.53 R 8.59

75.47%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.37 R 71.2

$3.97 R 64.7

10.08%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.20 R 19.56

$1.24 R 20.29

-3.23%

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

$21.6K R 351.9K

$24.0K R 391.2K

-10.05%

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

$24.0K R 391.3K

$22.6K R 368.0K

6.33%

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

$101 R 1,654

$237 R 3,857

-57.12%

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

$32.97 R 537

$30.12 R 491

9.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.85 R 666

$58.2 R 948

-29.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.59 R 694

$38.31 R 624

11.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.89 R 129

Cinema Ticket

$6.62 R 108

$5.08 R 82.8

30.31%

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

$213 R 3,469

$149 R 2,427

42.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,331 R 86.9K

$4,742 R 77.3K

12.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.6 R 890

$61.1 R 996

-10.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.27 R 542

$38.43 R 626

-13.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$114 R 1,866

$181 R 2,947

-36.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.0 R 1,369

$73.5 R 1,197

14.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$767 R 12.5K

$208 R 3,398

267.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$525 R 8,551

$185 R 3,018

183.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,440 R 23.5K

$518 R 8,449

177.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 R 16.4K

$381 R 6,212

164.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,240 R 36.5K

$756 R 12.3K

196.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,451 R 23.6K

$445 R 7,247

226.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,707 R 27.8K

$884 R 14.4K

93.05%

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: April 14, 2026

Last update for Pietermaritzburg: April 12, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

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

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Cape Town vs other spots: cost of living compared

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