Cost of Living Comparison Between Pietermaritzburg and Cape Town Cost of Living Comparison Between Pietermaritzburg and Cape Town

🙂 Solo nomad: Pietermaritzburg is 1.6% cheaper than Cape Town without rent, and 19.3% cheaper with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Pietermaritzburg is 4.8% more expensive than Cape Town without rent, and 21.9% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.96 R 130

$11.06 R 180

-28.03%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.18 R 704

$45.39 R 740

-4.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.51 R 89.8

$5.09 R 82.9

8.25%

Cappuccino

$2.12 R 34.57

$2.08 R 33.88

1.92%

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

$0.87 R 14.16

$1.16 R 18.97

-25.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.69 R 11.29

$0.89 R 14.55

-22.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.63 R 26.61

$2.84 R 46.27

-42.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.42 R 39.49

$2.45 R 39.90

-1.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.07 R 17.46

$1.10 R 17.88

-2.73%

White Bread (500g)

$0.80 R 13.07

$1.10 R 17.86

-27.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 R 24.48

$1.83 R 29.85

-18.03%

Eggs

$2.25 R 36.69

$2.50 R 40.77

-10.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.04 R 115

$8.65 R 141

-18.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.69 R 76.4

$5.06 R 82.5

-7.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.02 R 114

$7.58 R 124

-7.39%

Apples (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.14

$1.57 R 25.61

5.73%

Banana (1kg)

$1.76 R 28.75

$1.41 R 23.04

24.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.00 R 32.67

$1.50 R 24.51

33.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.16

$1.53 R 24.94

9.15%

Potato (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.06

$1.09 R 17.69

35.78%

Onion (1kg)

$1.78 R 28.98

$1.18 R 19.27

50.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 R 20.92

$1.06 R 17.27

20.75%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 R 15.69

$0.99 R 16.09

-3.03%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.90 R 47.29

$3.11 R 50.6

-6.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.61 R 58.9

$6.36 R 104

-43.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.45 R 23.62

$1.37 R 22.31

5.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.78 R 28.94

$1.75 R 28.60

1.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.70 R 44.03

$0.92 R 14.94

193.48%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$18.09 R 295

$48.28 R 787

-62.53%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.64 R 26.71

$1.38 R 22.45

18.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 R 8.59

$0.93 R 15.16

-43.01%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.97 R 64.7

$4.37 R 71.2

-9.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.24 R 20.29

$1.20 R 19.56

3.33%

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

$24.0K R 391.2K

$21.6K R 351.9K

11.18%

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

$22.6K R 368.0K

$24.0K R 391.3K

-5.95%

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

$237 R 3,857

$101 R 1,654

133.21%

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

$30.12 R 491

$32.97 R 537

-8.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$58.2 R 948

$40.85 R 666

42.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.31 R 624

$42.59 R 694

-10.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.89 R 129

Cinema Ticket

$5.08 R 82.8

$6.62 R 108

-23.26%

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

$149 R 2,427

$213 R 3,469

-30.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,742 R 77.3K

$5,331 R 86.9K

-11.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.1 R 996

$54.6 R 890

11.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.43 R 626

$33.27 R 542

15.51%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$181 R 2,947

$114 R 1,866

57.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.5 R 1,197

$84.0 R 1,369

-12.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$208 R 3,398

$767 R 12.5K

-72.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$185 R 3,018

$525 R 8,551

-64.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$518 R 8,449

$1,440 R 23.5K

-64.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 R 6,212

$1,008 R 16.4K

-62.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$756 R 12.3K

$2,240 R 36.5K

-66.27%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$445 R 7,247

$1,451 R 23.6K

-69.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$884 R 14.4K

$1,707 R 27.8K

-48.20%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.5

11.77

-2.29%

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

Last update for Pietermaritzburg: April 12, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: April 14, 2026

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

Pietermaritzburg vs other spots: cost of living compared

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