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

😐 Solo nomad: Johannesburg is 4.7% more expensive than Cape Town without rent, and 9.3% cheaper with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Johannesburg is 3.2% more expensive than Cape Town without rent, and 11.6% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.23 R 192

$11.02 R 188

1.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.06 R 752

$45.49 R 777

-3.14%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.83 R 82.4

$4.99 R 85.3

-3.21%

Cappuccino

$2.17 R 37.1

$2.08 R 35.61

4.33%

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

$0.99 R 16.9

$1.1 R 18.77

-10.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.8 R 13.67

$0.88 R 15.05

-9.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.71 R 46.34

$2.76 R 47.2

-1.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.46 R 42.01

$2.49 R 42.49

-1.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.14 R 19.53

$1.11 R 18.99

2.70%

White Bread (500g)

$1.1 R 18.74

$1.05 R 17.92

4.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.71 R 29.25

$1.85 R 31.67

-7.57%

Eggs

$2.54 R 43.33

$2.4 R 41.04

5.83%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.32 R 142

$8.4 R 143

-0.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.84 R 82.7

$5.33 R 91.1

-9.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.73 R 115

$7.63 R 130

-11.80%

Apples (1kg)

$1.6 R 27.41

$1.57 R 26.87

1.91%

Banana (1kg)

$1.51 R 25.84

$1.48 R 25.35

2.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.53 R 26.07

$1.46 R 24.95

4.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.58 R 27.03

$1.59 R 27.23

-0.63%

Potato (1kg)

$1.48 R 25.33

$1.09 R 18.58

35.78%

Onion (1kg)

$1.45 R 24.81

$1.23 R 21.06

17.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.04 R 17.73

$1.08 R 18.48

-3.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 16.1

$1 R 17.05

-6.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.13 R 53.5

$3.14 R 53.6

-0.32%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.74 R 98

$5.65 R 96.5

1.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 R 22.03

$1.35 R 23.04

-4.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 R 28.66

$1.67 R 28.57

0.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.7 R 29.09

$0.99 R 16.89

71.72%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$70.2 R 1,198

$47.86 R 817

46.62%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.09 R 18.6

$1.43 R 24.49

-23.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.94 R 16.09

$0.99 R 16.95

-5.05%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.05 R 69.2

$4.38 R 74.9

-7.53%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.23 R 21

$1.24 R 21.14

-0.81%

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

$22.7K R 387.2K

$21K R 358.9K

7.88%

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

$23.4K R 400K

$23.9K R 408.4K

-2.06%

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

$116 R 1,981

$97.8 R 1,671

18.56%

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

$40.51 R 692

$33.51 R 572

20.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.51 R 743

$41.97 R 717

3.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.39 R 587

$41.72 R 712

-17.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.69 R 234

$8.03 R 137

70.49%

Cinema Ticket

$7.15 R 122

$6.77 R 116

5.61%

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

$209 R 3,571

$214 R 3,654

-2.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,823 R 82.4K

$5,349 R 91.3K

-9.83%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.4 R 860

$55.7 R 950

-9.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.17 R 584

$33.21 R 567

2.89%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.3 R 1,525

$114 R 1,939

-21.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$77.2 R 1,318

$85.8 R 1,465

-10.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$425 R 7,266

$743 R 12.7K

-42.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$374 R 6,393

$524 R 8,953

-28.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$900 R 15.4K

$1,447 R 24.7K

-37.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$708 R 12.1K

$1,028 R 17.6K

-31.13%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$874 R 14.9K

$1,935 R 33K

-54.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$650 R 11.1K

$1,299 R 22.2K

-49.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,531 R 26.1K

$1,665 R 28.4K

-8.04%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.51

11.77

-2.21%

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

Last update for Johannesburg: November 23, 2025

Last update for Cape Town: November 24, 2025

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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