Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Guinea and South Africa

Name: South Africa
Address: ZA

For one person, living is cheaper in South Africa: $1,203 a month against $1,391 in Guinea, rent and utilities included – about $2,300 less a year. The total is higher in Guinea despite lower rent and utilities.

67

Cost of Living Index in Guinea
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Guinea Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in South Africa
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South Africa Living Index

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🇬🇳 Guinea

$1,391

/mo nomad

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,203

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Guinea and in South Africa

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Guinea and in South Africa actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,391 in Guinea versus $1,203 in South Africa.

Guinea $1,391
South Africa $1,203

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,282 in Guinea versus $1,893 in South Africa.

Guinea $2,282
South Africa $1,893

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,174 in Guinea versus $2,583 in South Africa.

Guinea $3,174
South Africa $2,583

Guinea ($203–$1,362) and South Africa ($618–$1,556) have similar cost spreads. Where you settle within each country has roughly equal impact on the budget.

Living in Guinea is roughly 16% more expensive than in South Africa on average.

Guinea (2% above) and South Africa (12% below) straddle the global median.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.30 GNF 81.9K

$10.67 R 177

-12.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$41.88 GNF 368.8K

$41.66 R 693

0.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.24 GNF 81.4K

$5.80 R 96.5

59.31%

Cappuccino

$4.73 GNF 41.6K

$2.36 R 39.23

100.42%

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

$1.77 GNF 15.6K

$1.12 R 18.56

58.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.90 R 15.00

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 GNF 29.9K

$2.42 R 40.20

40.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.00 GNF 35.3K

$3.06 R 50.9

30.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.18 GNF 19.2K

$1.18 R 19.58

84.75%

White Bread (500g)

$1.37 GNF 12.0K

$1.13 R 18.83

21.24%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 GNF 17.1K

$1.74 R 28.90

11.49%

Eggs

$3.86 GNF 34.0K

$2.57 R 42.80

50.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$22.83 GNF 201.0K

$8.43 R 140

170.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.63 GNF 40.8K

$5.12 R 85.1

-9.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.90 GNF 69.6K

$7.59 R 126

4.08%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 GNF 24.2K

$1.77 R 29.52

55.37%

Banana (1kg)

$2.32 GNF 20.4K

$1.74 R 28.90

33.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.97 GNF 17.4K

$1.77 R 29.43

11.30%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 GNF 24.7K

$1.76 R 29.26

59.09%

Potato (1kg)

$1.69 GNF 14.8K

$1.49 R 24.81

13.42%

Onion (1kg)

$1.64 GNF 14.5K

$1.47 R 24.38

11.56%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 GNF 9,410

$1.23 R 20.52

-13.01%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.12 GNF 9,828

$1.10 R 18.25

1.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.19 GNF 10.5K

$3.24 R 54.0

-63.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.00 R 83.2

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.62 GNF 14.2K

$1.50 R 24.90

8.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.46 GNF 12.9K

$1.94 R 32.26

-24.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.46 GNF 12.9K

$1.48 R 24.58

-1.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.26 GNF 248.8K

$59.3 R 986

-52.33%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.57 GNF 13.8K

$1.09 R 18.21

44.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.86 GNF 7,614

$0.99 R 16.46

-13.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$38.22 GNF 336.5K

$7.46 R 124

412.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.41 GNF 12.4K

$1.43 R 23.76

-1.40%

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

$25.0K GNF 220.4M

$35.3K R 587.4K

-29.11%

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

$23.7K GNF 208.7M

$32.4K R 539.7K

-26.93%

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

$175 GNF 1.5M

$133 R 2,208

32.11%

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

$76.7 GNF 674.9K

$34.83 R 580

120.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$183 GNF 1.6M

$39.76 R 662

359.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$87.7 GNF 772.2K

$33.09 R 551

165.03%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.11 GNF 256.3K

$11.65 R 194

149.87%

Cinema Ticket

$3.96 GNF 34.9K

$7.18 R 119

-44.85%

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

$224 R 3,728

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,285 GNF 55.3M

$5,462 R 90.9K

15.07%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$20.40 GNF 179.6K

$54.2 R 902

-62.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.42 GNF 223.8K

$34.13 R 568

-25.52%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$29.94 GNF 263.6K

$102 R 1,699

-70.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$49.87 GNF 439.1K

$88.5 R 1,472

-43.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$503 GNF 4.4M

$492 R 8,189

2.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$312 GNF 2.7M

$398 R 6,617

-21.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,159 GNF 10.2M

$946 R 15.7K

22.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,024 GNF 9.0M

$827 R 13.8K

23.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$110 GNF 971.2K

$1,099 R 18.3K

-89.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$769 R 12.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,371 GNF 20.9M

$1,502 R 25.0K

57.87%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.25

11.23

-8.73%

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

Last update for Guinea: October 26, 2026

Last update for South Africa: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Guinea

$435 31.3%

South Africa

$207 17.2% 52.3% $227

Accommodation & Living

Guinea

$312 22.5%

South Africa

$398 33.1% 27.4% $86

Groceries & Markets

Guinea

$261 * 18.7%

South Africa

$196 16.3% 24.8% $65

Eating Out

Guinea

$191 * 13.7%

South Africa

$157 13.1% 17.6% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Guinea

$96 6.9%

South Africa

$47 4% 50.4% $48

Clothing & Footwear

Guinea

$57 4.1%

South Africa

$126 10.4% 122% $69

Getting Around

Guinea

$40 2.9%

South Africa

$71 5.9% 78% $31

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

National rent averages: $508 in Guinea, $422 in South Africa. Capital cities: $508 in Conakry vs $450 in Pretoria.

National salary averages: $1,821 in Guinea, $1,488 in South Africa. Higher pay doesn’t always mean more spending money – weigh income against local costs.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 20% higher in Guinea.

Public transport is 110% more expensive in South Africa.

Salaries are 22% higher in Guinea.

Good to know

🇬🇳 Guinea

🇿🇦 South Africa

🕒 Local time

08:58 8:58 AM

10:58 10:58 AM

2 h ahead of Guinea

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

12,717,176

62,027,503

💱 Currency

Guinean Franc GNF Fr

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 GNF = 1.14 USD

10,000 GNF = 1.02 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.01 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to GNF – Guinean Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇳 Guinean Franc (Fr)

Guinean Franc exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 8,805 GNF (10,000 GNF = 1.14 USD). 1 EUR = 9,800 GNF (10,000 GNF = 1.02 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 16.64 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.01 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to GNF in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Guinea South Africa 6,060 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Guinea
South Africa

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

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

Guinea vs South Africa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

At $1,391 per month in Guinea and $1,203 in South Africa, there’s a 16% gap. Keep in mind it varies by city – the difference can be bigger or smaller depending on where you settle within each country.

Rent for a central one-bedroom averages $508 in Guinea and $422 in South Africa. Rents vary a lot between cities, so the gap depends on where you settle.

It depends on what you’re after: South Africa wins on affordability; Guinea may offer higher salaries, better infrastructure, and different cultural perks. Both attract large expat communities for different reasons.