Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Centurion

For one person, living is cheaper in Centurion: $1,377 a month against $3,986 in London, rent and utilities included – about $31,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

194

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index
67

Cost of Living Index in Centurion
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Centurion Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,986

/mo nomad

Centurion

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,377

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Centurion

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,986 in London versus $1,377 in Centurion.

London $3,986
Centurion $1,377

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,791 in London versus $2,224 in Centurion.

London $5,791
Centurion $2,224

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,595 in London versus $3,071 in Centurion.

London $7,595
Centurion $3,071

Living in London is roughly 189% more expensive than in Centurion, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: London 195% above, Centurion 2% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.93 £19.45

$22.13 R 365

17.17%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$107 £79.9

$40.73 R 671

161.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.71 £8.03

$5.76 R 95.0

85.94%

Cappuccino

$5.47 £4.11

$2.57 R 42.33

112.84%

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

$2.97 £2.23

$0.94 R 15.52

215.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 £1.65

$0.87 R 14.35

152.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.13 £6.85

$2.10 R 34.57

334.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.94 £5.96

$2.45 R 40.42

224.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.86 £1.40

$1.23 R 20.27

51.22%

White Bread (500g)

$2.07 £1.55

$1.22 R 20.11

69.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 £1.81

$2.17 R 35.83

11.52%

Eggs

$5.09 £3.82

$3.07 R 50.6

65.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.87 £9.66

$9.79 R 161

31.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.43 £7.82

$6.92 R 114

50.72%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.87 £12.66

$7.29 R 120

131.41%

Apples (1kg)

$3.11 £2.33

$1.82 R 29.92

70.88%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 £1.05

$1.80 R 29.64

-22.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.08 £2.31

$2.12 R 34.88

45.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.27 £2.45

$2.08 R 34.20

57.21%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 £1.19

$1.52 R 24.98

3.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.74 £1.31

$1.85 R 30.44

-5.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.40 £1.05

$1.35 R 22.24

3.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.80 £1.35

$1.46 R 23.99

23.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.28 £17.46

$3.77 R 62.1

517.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 £9.77

$5.90 R 97.1

120.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.17 £2.38

$1.59 R 26.20

99.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.42 £3.32

$2.02 R 33.27

118.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.07 £3.05

$2.47 R 40.75

64.78%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$247 £185

$97.9 R 1,613

152.00%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.58 £4.18

$1.22 R 20.14

357.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.36 £2.52

$1.23 R 20.20

173.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$56.8 £42.57

$8.89 R 146

538.36%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 £1.60

$1.50 R 24.75

42.00%

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

$38.2K £28.6K

$35.9K R 591.7K

6.33%

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

$40.9K £30.7K

$32.1K R 528.7K

27.45%

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

$372 £279

$137 R 2,260

171.23%

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

$17.82 £13.37

$30.65 R 505

-41.86%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.37 £30.29

$40.07 R 660

0.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$60.0 £44.99

$43.79 R 721

36.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.29 £15.97

Cinema Ticket

$17.74 £13.31

$10.73 R 177

65.33%

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

$2,864 £2,149

$314 R 5,174

812.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.5K

$4,299 R 70.8K

721.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$114 £85.5

$58.5 R 965

94.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.3 £40.71

$43.75 R 721

24.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$124 £93.2

$117 R 1,925

6.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$163 £122

$103 R 1,699

58.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,869 £2,152

$345 R 5,689

730.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,233 £1,675

$371 R 6,115

501.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,266 £3,950

$575 R 9,479

815.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,778 £2,834

$896 R 14.8K

321.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$18.3K £13.8K

$518 R 8,536

3438.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,024 £6,019

$612 R 10.1K

1211.24%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,037 £3,778

$2,342 R 38.6K

115.08%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.74

10.5

-54.86%

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

Last update for London: October 10, 2026

Last update for Centurion: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.2K 56%

Centurion

$371 27% 83.4% $1.9K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$430 10.8%

Centurion

$208 15.1% 51.7% $222

Eating Out

London

$388 9.7%

Centurion

$248 18% 36% $140

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.8%

Centurion

$225 16.3% 35.6% $125

Getting Around

London

$285 7.2%

Centurion

$115 8.4% 59.7% $170

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5.1%

Centurion

$145 10.5% 29.3% $60

Sport & Entertainment

London

$95 2.4%

Centurion

$65 4.7% 31.7% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,869 in London and $345 in Centurion. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

London pays 115% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $107 in London vs $41.00 in Centurion for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $349 vs $225 per month, with Centurion cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇿🇦 Centurion

🕒 Local time

23:41 11:41 PM

00:41 12:41 AM

1 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

236,580

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

London Centurion 9,030 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

London
Centurion

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

London vs Centurion: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Centurion wins on cost – living expenses run 189% lower than in London. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Centurion the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 115% higher in London, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $2,869 in London versus $345 in Centurion. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Centurion runs roughly 152% less than in London. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $2,864 in London versus $314 in Centurion. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,377 in Centurion versus $3,986 in London, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Centurion but tight or insufficient in London. The gap between the two cities makes Centurion the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Centurion delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,377 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Centurion hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, London and Centurion are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Centurion gentler on the wallet – expenses run 189% less than in London. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.