Cost of Living Comparison Between Johannesburg and East London Cost of Living Comparison Between Johannesburg and East London

😐 Solo nomad: Johannesburg is 4% more expensive than East London without rent, and 7.1% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Johannesburg is 16% more expensive than East London without rent, and 12.9% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.4 R 203

$6.56 R 117

73.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.89 R 798

$30.8 R 548

45.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.98 R 88.7

$4.5 R 80

10.67%

Cappuccino

$2.18 R 38.8

$2.09 R 37.23

4.31%

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

$1.04 R 18.45

$0.99 R 17.61

5.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.75 R 13.39

$0.87 R 15.48

-13.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.7 R 48.05

$2.47 R 43.85

9.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.55 R 45.29

$3.13 R 55.6

-18.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.2 R 21.39

$1.02 R 18.15

17.65%

White Bread (500g)

$1.1 R 19.5

$0.84 R 14.99

30.95%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 R 30.51

$1.97 R 34.98

-12.69%

Eggs

$2.47 R 43.92

$2.03 R 36.09

21.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.04 R 143

$9.3 R 165

-13.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.91 R 87.4

$4.25 R 75.5

15.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.75 R 120

$7.68 R 137

-12.11%

Apples (1kg)

$1.69 R 30.11

$1.58 R 28.14

6.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 R 27.16

$2.14 R 38.02

-28.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.47 R 26.22

$1.43 R 25.34

2.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.58 R 28.14

$1.42 R 25.19

11.27%

Potato (1kg)

$1.45 R 25.8

$1.57 R 27.95

-7.64%

Onion (1kg)

$1.39 R 24.78

$1.45 R 25.75

-4.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.05 R 18.64

$1.05 R 18.74

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.95 R 16.87

$0.85 R 15.18

11.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.04 R 54.1

$2.71 R 48.17

12.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.99 R 107

$4.76 R 84.7

25.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 R 23.23

$1.7 R 30.22

-22.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.67 R 29.74

$2.54 R 45.18

-34.25%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.7 R 30.26

$0.72 R 12.72

136.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$71.1 R 1,265

$21.64 R 385

228.70%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.1 R 19.48

$1.09 R 19.44

0.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.94 R 16.73

$0.89 R 15.81

5.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.1 R 72.9

$4.09 R 72.8

0.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.21 R 21.58

$1.28 R 22.77

-5.47%

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

$22.3K R 396.4K

$36K R 639.6K

-38.03%

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

$24.4K R 433.4K

$22.4K R 398.9K

8.65%

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

$116 R 2,069

$195 R 3,471

-40.41%

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

$40.29 R 717

$30.85 R 549

30.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.05 R 748

$45.24 R 805

-7.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.62 R 616

$33.17 R 590

4.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.93 R 248

$1.43 R 25.4

874.13%

Cinema Ticket

$7.23 R 129

$3.54 R 63.1

104.24%

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

$206 R 3,665

$117 R 2,087

75.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,981 R 88.6K

$4,277 R 76.1K

16.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.6 R 899

$52.6 R 935

-3.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.58 R 597

$28.65 R 509

17.21%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.2 R 1,621

$106 R 1,886

-14.04%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.5 R 1,397

$87.4 R 1,555

-10.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$423 R 7,519

$268 R 4,759

57.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$371 R 6,592

$290 R 5,156

27.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$901 R 16K

$494 R 8,789

82.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$692 R 12.3K

$557 R 9,903

24.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,111 R 19.8K

$802 R 14.3K

38.58%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$748 R 13.3K

$619 R 11K

20.82%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,585 R 28.2K

$1,597 R 28.4K

-0.71%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.51

4.64%

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

Last update for Johannesburg: October 27, 2025

Last update for East London: October 28, 2025

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