Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Pietermaritzburg

For one person, living is cheaper in Pietermaritzburg: $1,036 a month against $4,086 in London, rent and utilities included – about $36,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

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Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Pietermaritzburg
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Pietermaritzburg Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,086

/mo nomad

Pietermaritzburg

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,036

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Pietermaritzburg

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

A single person spends $4,086 per month in London vs $1,036 in Pietermaritzburg, rent included.

London $4,086
Pietermaritzburg $1,036

A couple spends around $5,816 per month in London vs $1,560 in Pietermaritzburg, rent included.

London $5,816
Pietermaritzburg $1,560

A family of three spends $7,546 per month in London vs $2,083 in Pietermaritzburg, rent included.

London $7,546
Pietermaritzburg $2,083

London costs about 294% more than Pietermaritzburg, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

London sits 205% above the global median, while Pietermaritzburg is 23% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.62 £20.11

$7.91 R 130

236.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$108 £81.3

$35.62 R 588

202.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.39 £7.85

$5.61 R 92.6

85.20%

Cappuccino

$5.79 £4.38

$2.29 R 37.86

152.84%

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

$3.01 £2.27

$1.16 R 19.12

159.48%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 £1.63

$0.97 R 16.08

121.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.35 £7.06

$2.24 R 36.89

317.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.84 £5.93

$2.56 R 42.25

206.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.79 £1.35

$1.33 R 21.88

34.59%

White Bread (500g)

$2.06 £1.56

$1.00 R 16.45

106.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.31 £1.74

$1.74 R 28.78

32.76%

Eggs

$5.05 £3.82

$3.20 R 52.7

57.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.57 £9.50

$6.93 R 114

81.39%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.66 £8.05

$4.96 R 81.8

114.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.13 £12.94

$6.57 R 108

160.73%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 £2.29

$2.02 R 33.40

50.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 £1.07

$1.90 R 31.31

-25.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.05 £2.31

$2.20 R 36.35

38.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.38 £2.56

$2.06 R 34.00

64.08%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 £1.26

$1.75 R 28.92

-4.57%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 £1.31

$1.75 R 28.93

-1.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.41 £1.07

$1.53 R 25.31

-7.84%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 £1.35

$1.09 R 17.98

64.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.22 £17.55

$3.01 R 49.69

671.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.99 £9.82

$3.94 R 65.0

229.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.18 £2.40

$1.38 R 22.72

130.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 £3.33

$1.80 R 29.70

145.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.87 £2.93

$2.84 R 46.92

36.27%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$250 £189

$19.57 R 323

1177.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.71 £4.31

$1.65 R 27.23

246.06%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 £2.51

$1.07 R 17.60

211.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$57.9 £43.76

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 £1.54

$1.42 R 23.49

43.66%

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

$37.5K £28.4K

$26.7K R 440.1K

40.75%

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

$40.9K £30.9K

$26.2K R 432.5K

56.00%

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

$376 £284

$206 R 3,398

82.63%

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

$17.88 £13.51

$31.68 R 523

-43.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.01 £30.24

$36.96 R 610

8.25%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.2 £46.22

$43.95 R 725

39.16%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.07 £15.93

$3.03 R 50.1

595.38%

Cinema Ticket

$17.95 £13.57

$4.72 R 77.8

280.30%

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

$2,865 £2,165

$181 R 2,993

1479.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.7K

$5,207 R 85.9K

578.79%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$116 £87.7

$55.4 R 914

109.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.1 £40.87

$33.93 R 560

59.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 £95.7

$116 R 1,910

9.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$159 £120

$68.9 R 1,137

131.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,853 £2,156

$219 R 3,607

1204.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,301 £1,739

$222 R 3,670

934.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,201 £3,931

$581 R 9,593

794.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,723 £2,813

$406 R 6,698

816.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$19.0K £14.4K

$5,971 R 98.5K

218.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,881 £5,955

$149 R 2,455

5197.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,818 £3,641

$1,074 R 17.7K

348.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.65

11.67

-60.15%

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

Last update for London: October 4, 2026

Last update for Pietermaritzburg: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.3K 56.5%

Pietermaritzburg

$222 21.4% 90.3% $2.1K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$434 10.7%

Pietermaritzburg

$275 26.4% 36.7% $159

Eating Out

London

$397 9.7%

Pietermaritzburg

$132 12.8% 66.6% $264

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.6%

Pietermaritzburg

$195 18.8% 44.1% $154

Getting Around

London

$288 7.1%

Pietermaritzburg

$38 3.7% 86.8% $250

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5%

Pietermaritzburg

$123 11.9% 39.9% $82

Sport & Entertainment

London

$97 2.4%

Pietermaritzburg

$53 5.1% 45% $44

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,853 in London versus $219 in Pietermaritzburg. 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 349% 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 $36.00 in Pietermaritzburg. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $349 vs $195 – making Pietermaritzburg the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇿🇦 Pietermaritzburg

🕒 Local time

12:57 12:57 PM

13:57 1:57 PM

1 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

618,536

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 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 = 0.847 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 16.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.06 USD). 1 EUR = 18.49 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

London Pietermaritzburg 9,500 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

London
Pietermaritzburg

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 Pietermaritzburg: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $4,086 in London, $1,036 in Pietermaritzburg – roughly 294% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $6,129 per month in London and $1,555 in Pietermaritzburg. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Groceries cost about 79% more in London, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $108 in London and $36.00 in Pietermaritzburg. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Pietermaritzburg, where all-in costs run around $1,036, than in London at $4,086. In Pietermaritzburg it covers expenses comfortably, while in London it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. London has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,036 in Pietermaritzburg to $4,086 in London. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Pietermaritzburg. 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.