Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Durban

For one person, living is cheaper in Durban: $1,160 a month against $4,086 in London, rent and utilities included – about $35,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

196

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Durban
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Durban Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,086

/mo nomad

Durban

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,160

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Durban

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 Durban actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $4,086 per month in London vs $1,160 in Durban, rent included.

London $4,086
Durban $1,160

A couple spends around $5,816 per month in London vs $1,785 in Durban, rent included.

London $5,816
Durban $1,785

A family of three spends $7,546 per month in London vs $2,411 in Durban, rent included.

London $7,546
Durban $2,411

London costs about 252% more than Durban, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

London sits 205% above the global median, while Durban is 13% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.62 £20.12

$8.01 R 133

232.33%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$108 £81.3

$38.89 R 645

176.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.39 £7.86

$6.13 R 102

69.49%

Cappuccino

$5.79 £4.38

$2.64 R 43.85

119.32%

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

$3.01 £2.27

$1.13 R 18.77

166.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 £1.63

$0.91 R 15.07

136.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.35 £7.07

$2.44 R 40.47

283.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.84 £5.93

$2.56 R 42.52

206.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.79 £1.35

$1.21 R 20.12

47.93%

White Bread (500g)

$2.06 £1.56

$0.93 R 15.43

121.51%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.31 £1.74

$1.49 R 24.70

55.03%

Eggs

$5.05 £3.82

$2.35 R 38.98

114.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.57 £9.50

$8.20 R 136

53.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.66 £8.05

$5.28 R 87.6

101.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.13 £12.95

$7.04 R 117

143.32%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 £2.29

$1.97 R 32.66

53.81%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 £1.07

$1.95 R 32.39

-27.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.05 £2.31

$1.96 R 32.56

55.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.38 £2.56

$1.67 R 27.66

102.40%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 £1.26

$1.53 R 25.40

9.15%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 £1.31

$1.43 R 23.79

20.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.41 £1.07

$1.16 R 19.21

21.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 £1.35

$1.20 R 19.97

49.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.22 £17.55

$3.56 R 59.0

552.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.99 £9.82

$4.68 R 77.6

177.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.18 £2.41

$1.38 R 22.96

130.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 £3.34

$1.91 R 31.66

130.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.87 £2.93

$1.75 R 28.97

121.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$250 £189

$21.37 R 354

1070.10%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.71 £4.31

$0.44 R 7.24

1197.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 £2.51

$0.71 R 11.78

369.01%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$57.9 £43.77

$7.68 R 127

654.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 £1.54

$1.54 R 25.48

32.47%

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

$37.5K £28.4K

$35.0K R 580.7K

7.25%

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

$40.9K £30.9K

$31.1K R 515.2K

31.66%

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

$376 £284

$144 R 2,384

161.61%

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

$17.88 £13.51

$35.56 R 590

-49.72%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.01 £30.25

$38.72 R 642

3.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.2 £46.23

$31.39 R 521

94.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.07 £15.93

$8.72 R 145

141.63%

Cinema Ticket

$17.95 £13.57

$7.31 R 121

145.55%

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

$2,865 £2,166

$307 R 5,089

833.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.7K

$7,645 R 126.8K

362.30%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$116 £87.7

$52.9 R 878

119.20%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.1 £40.88

$30.31 R 503

78.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 £95.7

$97.3 R 1,614

30.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$159 £120

$82.0 R 1,360

94.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,853 £2,157

$467 R 7,748

510.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,301 £1,740

$396 R 6,571

480.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,201 £3,932

$835 R 13.9K

522.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,723 £2,814

$777 R 12.9K

379.34%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$19.0K £14.4K

$879 R 14.6K

2063.58%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,881 £5,957

$585 R 9,697

1247.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,818 £3,642

$1,246 R 20.7K

286.63%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.65

11.78

-60.53%

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

Last update for London: October 4, 2026

Last update for Durban: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.3K 56.5%

Durban

$396 34.6% 82.8% $1.9K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$434 10.7%

Durban

$218 19.1% 49.8% $216

Eating Out

London

$397 9.7%

Durban

$140 12.2% 64.8% $257

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.6%

Durban

$193 16.9% 44.7% $156

Getting Around

London

$288 7.1%

Durban

$32 2.8% 88.8% $256

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5%

Durban

$118 10.3% 42.4% $87

Sport & Entertainment

London

$97 2.4%

Durban

$46 4% 52.6% $51

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,853 in London versus $467 in Durban. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 287% higher in London, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $108 in London versus $39.00 in Durban. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $349 vs $193 – making Durban the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇿🇦 Durban

🕒 Local time

06:33 6:33 AM

07:33 7:33 AM

1 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

3,442,361

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.03 USD

100 ZAR = 5.38 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 16.59 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.03 USD). 1 EUR = 18.6 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.38 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

London Durban 9,550 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

London
Durban

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 Durban: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – London is pricier by about 252%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $6,129 per month in London and $1,739 in Durban. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Durban, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $4,086 in London and $1,160 in Durban. That's a gap of about 252%.

Public transport costs about 1070% less in Durban. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Durban, where all-in costs run around $1,160, than in London at $4,086. In Durban it covers expenses comfortably, while in London it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Durban – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Durban. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, London makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.