Cost of Living Comparison Between Johannesburg and Pietermaritzburg Cost of Living Comparison Between Johannesburg and Pietermaritzburg

😐 Solo nomad: Johannesburg is 21.2% more expensive than Pietermaritzburg without rent, and 10.9% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Johannesburg is 4.3% more expensive than Pietermaritzburg without rent, and 13.2% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.4 R 203

$8 R 142

42.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.89 R 798

$43.14 R 767

4.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.98 R 88.7

$5.62 R 100

-11.39%

Cappuccino

$2.18 R 38.8

$2.2 R 39.19

-0.91%

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

$1.04 R 18.45

$0.87 R 15.49

19.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.75 R 13.39

$0.69 R 12.33

8.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.7 R 48.05

$1.69 R 30.08

59.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.55 R 45.29

$2.36 R 42.04

8.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.2 R 21.39

$1.03 R 18.4

16.50%

White Bread (500g)

$1.1 R 19.5

$0.86 R 15.24

27.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 R 30.51

$1.52 R 27.01

13.16%

Eggs

$2.47 R 43.92

$2.25 R 39.95

9.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.04 R 143

$7.19 R 128

11.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.91 R 87.4

$4.83 R 85.9

1.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.75 R 120

$7.1 R 126

-4.93%

Apples (1kg)

$1.69 R 30.11

$1.58 R 28.16

6.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 R 27.16

$1.77 R 31.5

-13.56%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.47 R 26.22

$2.01 R 35.73

-26.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.58 R 28.14

$1.74 R 30.87

-9.20%

Potato (1kg)

$1.45 R 25.8

$1.53 R 27.17

-5.23%

Onion (1kg)

$1.39 R 24.78

$1.84 R 32.79

-24.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.05 R 18.64

$1.24 R 22.07

-15.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.95 R 16.87

$0.98 R 17.37

-3.06%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.04 R 54.1

$2.85 R 50.6

6.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.99 R 107

$3.31 R 58.9

80.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 R 23.23

$1.45 R 25.76

-9.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.67 R 29.74

$1.7 R 30.2

-1.76%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.7 R 30.26

$2.67 R 47.54

-36.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$71.1 R 1,265

$18.3 R 326

288.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.1 R 19.48

$1.63 R 29.01

-32.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.94 R 16.73

$0.52 R 9.27

80.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.1 R 72.9

$3.91 R 69.6

4.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.21 R 21.58

$1.24 R 22.13

-2.42%

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

$22.3K R 396.4K

$23.4K R 416.2K

-4.75%

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

$24.4K R 433.4K

$22.9K R 407.7K

6.29%

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

$116 R 2,069

$230 R 4,094

-49.47%

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

$40.29 R 717

$30.34 R 540

32.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.05 R 748

$56.9 R 1,012

-26.07%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.62 R 616

$37.89 R 674

-8.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.93 R 248

Cinema Ticket

$7.23 R 129

$5.12 R 91

41.21%

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

$206 R 3,665

$150 R 2,666

37.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,981 R 88.6K

$4,782 R 85K

4.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.6 R 899

$61.7 R 1,097

-18.04%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.58 R 597

$38.2 R 679

-12.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.2 R 1,621

$181 R 3,222

-49.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.5 R 1,397

$76.1 R 1,354

3.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$423 R 7,519

$209 R 3,716

102.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$371 R 6,592

$190 R 3,376

95.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$901 R 16K

$513 R 9,129

75.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$692 R 12.3K

$386 R 6,863

79.28%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,111 R 19.8K

$719 R 12.8K

54.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$748 R 13.3K

$416 R 7,405

79.59%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,585 R 28.2K

$862 R 15.3K

83.87%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.51

11.5

0.09%

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

Last update for Johannesburg: October 27, 2025

Last update for Pietermaritzburg: October 29, 2025

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