Cost of Living Comparison Between Pietermaritzburg and Pretoria Cost of Living Comparison Between Pietermaritzburg and Pretoria

🙂 Solo nomad: Pietermaritzburg is 13.6% cheaper than Pretoria without rent, and 8.1% cheaper with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Pietermaritzburg is 3.6% more expensive than Pretoria without rent, and 12.7% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Pietermaritzburg
Pretoria
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$8 R 142
$8.26 R 147
-3.15%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$43.14 R 767
$33.75 R 600
27.82%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.62 R 100
$4.8 R 85.4
17.08%
Cappuccino
$2.2 R 39.19
$2.13 R 37.83
3.29%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.87 R 15.49
$1.05 R 18.73
-17.14%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.69 R 12.33
$0.83 R 14.71
-16.87%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.69 R 30.08
$2.29 R 40.81
-26.20%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.36 R 42.04
$2.81 R 50
-16.01%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Pietermaritzburg
Pretoria
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.03 R 18.4
$1.2 R 21.29
-14.17%
White Bread (500g)
$0.86 R 15.24
$1.01 R 17.95
-14.85%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.52 R 27.01
$1.64 R 29.13
-7.32%
Eggs
$2.25 R 39.95
$2.39 R 42.54
-5.86%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.19 R 128
$7.6 R 135
-5.39%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$4.83 R 85.9
$4.61 R 81.9
4.77%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$7.1 R 126
$6.42 R 114
10.59%
Apples (1kg)
$1.58 R 28.16
$1.65 R 29.34
-4.24%
Banana (1kg)
$1.77 R 31.5
$1.53 R 27.29
15.69%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.01 R 35.73
$1.67 R 29.7
20.36%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.74 R 30.87
$1.61 R 28.71
8.07%
Potato (1kg)
$1.53 R 27.17
$1.33 R 23.57
15.04%
Onion (1kg)
$1.84 R 32.79
$1.16 R 20.7
58.62%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.24 R 22.07
$1.08 R 19.27
14.81%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.98 R 17.37
$1.11 R 19.73
-11.71%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.85 R 50.6
$2.84 R 50.4
0.35%
Wine (Bottle)
$3.31 R 58.9
$5.17 R 92
-35.98%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.45 R 25.76
$1.56 R 27.67
-7.05%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.7 R 30.2
$1.81 R 32.13
-6.08%
🚌 Getting Around
Pietermaritzburg
Pretoria
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.67 R 47.54
$3.27 R 58.2
-18.35%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$18.3 R 326
$63.2 R 1,124
-71.05%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.63 R 29.01
$1.42 R 25.2
14.79%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.52 R 9.27
$1.38 R 24.62
-62.32%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.91 R 69.6
$3.11 R 55.3
25.72%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.24 R 22.13
$1.32 R 23.46
-6.06%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$23.4K R 416.2K
$19K R 337.3K
23.37%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$22.9K R 407.7K
$25.8K R 458.9K
-11.14%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Pietermaritzburg
Pretoria
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$230 R 4,094
$123 R 2,196
86.40%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$30.34 R 540
$37.49 R 667
-19.07%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$56.9 R 1,012
$38.51 R 685
47.70%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Pietermaritzburg
Pretoria
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$37.89 R 674
$32.7 R 582
15.87%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$10.26 R 182
-
Cinema Ticket
$5.12 R 91
$7.62 R 135
-32.81%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Pietermaritzburg
Pretoria
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$150 R 2,666
$195 R 3,474
-23.27%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$4,782 R 85K
$4,427 R 78.7K
8.03%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Pietermaritzburg
Pretoria
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$61.7 R 1,097
$49.99 R 889
23.38%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$38.2 R 679
$31.88 R 567
19.82%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$181 R 3,222
$87.1 R 1,549
108.05%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$76.1 R 1,354
$86.8 R 1,544
-12.34%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Pietermaritzburg
Pretoria
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$209 R 3,716
$399 R 7,102
-47.68%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$190 R 3,376
$395 R 7,024
-51.94%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$513 R 9,129
$735 R 13.1K
-30.15%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$386 R 6,863
$748 R 13.3K
-48.43%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$719 R 12.8K
$875 R 15.6K
-17.79%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$416 R 7,405
$805 R 14.3K
-48.25%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Pietermaritzburg
Pretoria
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$862 R 15.3K
$1,572 R 28K
-45.14%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.5
11.69
-1.63%

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

Last update for Pietermaritzburg: October 29, 2025

Last update for Pretoria: October 29, 2025

Similar cities

Join the CityCost newsletter – low traffic, no spam, and easy to unsubscribe. Your email stays private.