Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Port Shepstone and Pretoria

For one person, living is cheaper in Port Shepstone: $1,007 a month against $1,279 in Pretoria, rent and utilities included – about $3,300 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

48

Cost of Living Index in Port Shepstone
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Port Shepstone Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Pretoria
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Pretoria Living Index

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Port Shepstone

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,007

/mo nomad

Pretoria

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,279

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Port Shepstone and in Pretoria

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,007 in Port Shepstone versus $1,279 in Pretoria.

Port Shepstone $1,007
Pretoria $1,279

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,582 in Port Shepstone versus $1,979 in Pretoria.

Port Shepstone $1,582
Pretoria $1,979

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,156 in Port Shepstone versus $2,678 in Pretoria.

Port Shepstone $2,156
Pretoria $2,678

Living in Port Shepstone costs roughly 21% less than in Pretoria, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Port Shepstone 26% lower, Pretoria 6% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.04 R 134

$9.28 R 155

-13.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.88 R 665

$36.09 R 601

10.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.95 R 99.2

$5.20 R 86.7

14.42%

Cappuccino

$2.64 R 44.00

$2.18 R 36.39

21.10%

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

$1.14 R 19.00

$1.03 R 17.16

10.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.86 R 14.32

$0.85 R 14.08

1.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.49 R 41.51

$2.61 R 43.57

-4.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.64 R 44.03

$3.24 R 54.0

-18.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.95 R 15.80

$1.17 R 19.48

-18.80%

White Bread (500g)

$0.71 R 11.76

$1.13 R 18.75

-37.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.24 R 20.70

$1.83 R 30.53

-32.24%

Eggs

$1.48 R 24.60

$2.40 R 39.95

-38.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.20 R 120

$8.16 R 136

-11.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.69 R 61.4

$4.97 R 82.8

-25.75%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.49 R 125

$7.38 R 123

1.49%

Apples (1kg)

$1.24 R 20.64

$1.70 R 28.36

-27.06%

Banana (1kg)

$0.75 R 12.49

$1.61 R 26.85

-53.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.62 R 10.34

$1.77 R 29.55

-64.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.51 R 25.10

$1.56 R 26.06

-3.21%

Potato (1kg)

$0.60 R 9.92

$1.12 R 18.64

-46.43%

Onion (1kg)

$1.40 R 23.32

$1.22 R 20.29

14.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.88 R 14.73

$1.22 R 20.39

-27.87%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 R 10.50

$1.27 R 21.15

-50.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.70 R 61.6

$3.17 R 52.9

16.72%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.88 R 81.4

$4.94 R 82.3

-1.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.46 R 24.33

$1.50 R 24.98

-2.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.92 R 32.01

$1.92 R 31.92

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.54 R 25.69

$4.77 R 79.5

-67.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$179 R 2,981

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.45 R 7.52

$0.29 R 4.82

55.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.75 R 12.54

$0.79 R 13.21

-5.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.76 R 129

$14.24 R 237

-45.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 R 22.62

$1.55 R 25.76

-12.26%

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

$36.2K R 602.5K

$35.0K R 583.0K

3.35%

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

$33.3K R 554.1K

$35.0K R 582.9K

-4.94%

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

$123 R 2,046

$148 R 2,473

-17.27%

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

$18.50 R 308

$36.56 R 609

-49.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$36.99 R 616

$36.12 R 602

2.41%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.96 R 533

$31.26 R 521

2.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.10 R 185

$10.56 R 176

5.11%

Cinema Ticket

$7.29 R 121

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

$315 R 5,249

$263 R 4,388

19.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,688 R 128.1K

$7,829 R 130.5K

-1.81%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.6 R 893

$52.1 R 868

2.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.74 R 512

$31.93 R 532

-3.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100 R 1,674

$91.8 R 1,530

9.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.4 R 1,440

$82.2 R 1,369

5.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$397 R 6,621

$450 R 7,498

-11.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$363 R 6,053

$359 R 5,987

1.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$745 R 12.4K

$1,040 R 17.3K

-28.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$743 R 12.4K

$735 R 12.3K

0.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$886 R 14.8K

$869 R 14.5K

2.02%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$678 R 11.3K

$664 R 11.1K

2.06%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,014 R 50.2K

$1,386 R 23.1K

117.48%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.78

11.34

3.88%

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

Last update for Port Shepstone: October 24, 2026

Last update for Pretoria: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Port Shepstone

$363 36.1%

Pretoria

$359 28.1% 1.1% $4

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Port Shepstone

$178 17.7%

Pretoria

$221 17.3% 24% $43

Groceries & Markets

Port Shepstone

$147 14.6%

Pretoria

$192 15% 30.1% $44

Eating Out

Port Shepstone

$140 13.9%

Pretoria

$143 11.2% 2.5% $3.5

Clothing & Footwear

Port Shepstone

$122 12.1%

Pretoria

$116 9.1% 4.9% $5.9

Sport & Entertainment

Port Shepstone

$47 4.6%

Pretoria

$46 3.6% 1.5% $0.7

Getting Around

Port Shepstone

$10 * 1%

Pretoria

$202 15.8% 1848% $192

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $397 in Port Shepstone and $450 in Pretoria. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Port Shepstone pays about 2.2 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $40 in Port Shepstone vs $36 in Pretoria. Groceries flip the comparison at $147 vs $192, with Port Shepstone cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Port Shepstone

🇿🇦 Pretoria

🕒 Local time

22:36 10:36 PM

Same time as Port Shepstone

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

52,793

741,651 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6 USD

100 ZAR = 5.36 EUR

100 ZAR = 6 USD

100 ZAR = 5.36 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Port Shepstone Pretoria 600 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Port Shepstone
Pretoria

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 Shepstone vs Pretoria: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Port Shepstone wins on cost – living expenses run 21% lower than in Pretoria. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Port Shepstone the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Port Shepstone is about 2.2 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $397 in Port Shepstone versus $450 in Pretoria. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $315 in Port Shepstone versus $263 in Pretoria. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Pretoria – a meal for two runs $36 versus $40 in Port Shepstone. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Port Shepstone is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.