Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Port Elizabeth and London

For one person, living is cheaper in Port Elizabeth: $1,233 a month against $4,086 in London, rent and utilities included – about $34,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Port Elizabeth
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Port Elizabeth Living Index
196

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index

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Port Elizabeth

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,233

/mo nomad

London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,086

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Port Elizabeth and in London

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

A single person spends $1,233 per month in Port Elizabeth vs $4,086 in London, rent included.

Port Elizabeth $1,233
London $4,086

A couple spends around $1,847 per month in Port Elizabeth vs $5,816 in London, rent included.

Port Elizabeth $1,847
London $5,816

A family of three spends $2,461 per month in Port Elizabeth vs $7,546 in London, rent included.

Port Elizabeth $2,461
London $7,546

Port Elizabeth is about 70% cheaper than London, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Port Elizabeth sits 8% below the global median, while London is 205% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 R 175

$26.62 £20.11

-60.11%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.87 R 707

$108 £81.3

-60.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.02 R 99.3

$10.39 £7.85

-42.06%

Cappuccino

$2.12 R 35.03

$5.79 £4.38

-63.39%

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

$1.04 R 17.24

$3.01 £2.27

-65.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.72 R 11.93

$2.15 £1.63

-66.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.76 R 45.50

$9.35 £7.06

-70.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.06 R 50.5

$7.84 £5.93

-60.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.14 R 18.74

$1.79 £1.35

-36.31%

White Bread (500g)

$1.04 R 17.10

$2.06 £1.56

-49.51%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.44 R 23.78

$2.31 £1.74

-37.66%

Eggs

$2.81 R 46.33

$5.05 £3.82

-44.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.58 R 142

$12.57 £9.50

-31.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.47 R 90.2

$10.66 £8.05

-48.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.28 R 137

$17.13 £12.94

-51.66%

Apples (1kg)

$2.11 R 34.80

$3.03 £2.29

-30.36%

Banana (1kg)

$1.54 R 25.46

$1.41 £1.07

9.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.61 R 26.56

$3.05 £2.31

-47.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.78 R 29.43

$3.38 £2.56

-47.34%

Potato (1kg)

$1.73 R 28.56

$1.67 £1.26

3.59%

Onion (1kg)

$1.42 R 23.46

$1.73 £1.31

-17.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.29 R 21.27

$1.41 £1.07

-8.51%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.01 R 16.70

$1.79 £1.35

-43.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.13 R 51.6

$23.22 £17.55

-86.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.82 R 79.6

$12.99 £9.82

-62.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 R 20.63

$3.18 £2.40

-60.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.82 R 30.06

$4.41 £3.33

-58.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.09 R 17.96

$3.87 £2.93

-71.83%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$36.08 R 595

$250 £189

-85.57%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.12 R 35.03

$5.71 £4.31

-62.87%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.50 R 8.20

$3.33 £2.51

-84.98%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.45 R 139

$57.9 £43.76

-85.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 R 23.86

$2.04 £1.54

-28.92%

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

$35.4K R 584.3K

$37.5K £28.4K

-5.69%

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

$34.0K R 561.2K

$40.9K £30.9K

-16.83%

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

$123 R 2,024

$376 £284

-67.38%

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

$35.08 R 579

$17.88 £13.51

96.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$45.22 R 746

$40.01 £30.24

13.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.88 R 526

$61.2 £46.22

-47.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.73 R 375

$21.07 £15.93

7.88%

Cinema Ticket

$10.61 R 175

$17.95 £13.57

-40.89%

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

$176 R 2,902

$2,865 £2,165

-93.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,192 R 102.2K

$35.3K £26.7K

-82.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.6 R 1,164

$116 £87.7

-39.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.27 R 631

$54.1 £40.87

-29.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 R 1,807

$127 £95.7

-13.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.5 R 1,593

$159 £120

-39.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$612 R 10.1K

$2,853 £2,156

-78.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$418 R 6,891

$2,301 £1,739

-81.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$805 R 13.3K

$5,201 £3,931

-84.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$689 R 11.4K

$3,723 £2,813

-81.48%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$750 R 12.4K

$19.0K £14.4K

-96.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$531 R 8,754

$7,881 £5,955

-93.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,612 R 26.6K

$4,818 £3,641

-66.54%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.94

4.65

156.77%

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

Last update for Port Elizabeth: October 3, 2026

Last update for London: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Port Elizabeth

$418 34.4%

London

$2.3K 56.5% 451% $1.9K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Port Elizabeth

$203 16.7%

London

$434 10.7% 114% $231

Groceries & Markets

Port Elizabeth

$197 16.2%

London

$349 8.6% 77.6% $153

Eating Out

Port Elizabeth

$155 12.8%

London

$397 9.7% 155% $241

Clothing & Footwear

Port Elizabeth

$142 11.7%

London

$205 5% 44.8% $64

Sport & Entertainment

Port Elizabeth

$53 4.4%

London

$97 2.4% 82.8% $44

Getting Around

Port Elizabeth

$45 3.7%

London

$288 7.1% 539% $243

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $612 in Port Elizabeth versus $2,853 in London. 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 199% 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 $43.00 in Port Elizabeth versus $108 in London. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $197 vs $349 – making Port Elizabeth the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Port Elizabeth

🇬🇧 London

🕒 Local time

11:52 11:52 AM

10:52 10:52 AM

1 h behind Port Elizabeth

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,050,000

8,908,083 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

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).

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).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Port Elizabeth London 9,830 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Port Elizabeth
London

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

Port Elizabeth vs London: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,233 in Port Elizabeth, $4,086 in London – roughly 231% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,849 per month in Port Elizabeth and $6,129 in London. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Groceries cost about 78% 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 $43.00 in Port Elizabeth and $108 in London. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Port Elizabeth, where all-in costs run around $1,233, than in London at $4,086. In Port Elizabeth 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 $1,233 in Port Elizabeth to $4,086 in London. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Port Elizabeth. 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.