Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Pretoria and Margate, South Africa

For one person, living is cheaper in Margate: $891 a month against $1,279 in Pretoria, rent and utilities included – about $4,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Pretoria
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Pretoria Living Index
43

Cost of Living Index in Margate
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Margate Living Index

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Pretoria

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,279

/mo nomad

Margate

🇿🇦 South Africa

$891

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Pretoria and in Margate

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,279 in Pretoria versus $891 in Margate.

Pretoria $1,279
Margate $891

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,979 in Pretoria versus $1,419 in Margate.

Pretoria $1,979
Margate $1,419

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,678 in Pretoria versus $1,947 in Margate.

Pretoria $2,678
Margate $1,947

Living in Pretoria is roughly 44% more expensive than in Margate, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Pretoria 6% lower, Margate 35% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.28 R 155

$7.72 R 129

20.21%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$36.09 R 601

$36.77 R 613

-1.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.20 R 86.7

$5.95 R 99.2

-12.61%

Cappuccino

$2.18 R 36.39

$1.89 R 31.55

15.34%

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

$1.03 R 17.16

$1.05 R 17.58

-1.90%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.85 R 14.08

$0.84 R 14.03

1.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.61 R 43.57

$2.44 R 40.72

6.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.24 R 54.0

$2.30 R 38.37

40.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 R 19.48

$0.99 R 16.45

18.18%

White Bread (500g)

$1.13 R 18.75

$0.91 R 15.10

24.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.53

$1.13 R 18.75

61.95%

Eggs

$2.40 R 39.95

$2.38 R 39.67

0.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.16 R 136

$5.21 R 86.8

56.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.97 R 82.8

$3.41 R 56.8

45.75%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.38 R 123

$6.01 R 100

22.80%

Apples (1kg)

$1.70 R 28.37

$1.16 R 19.25

46.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 R 26.85

$1.25 R 20.88

28.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.77 R 29.55

$1.09 R 18.16

62.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.56 R 26.06

$1.41 R 23.52

10.64%

Potato (1kg)

$1.12 R 18.64

$1.10 R 18.25

1.82%

Onion (1kg)

$1.22 R 20.29

$1.33 R 22.11

-8.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.22 R 20.39

$1.10 R 18.40

10.91%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 R 21.15

$0.97 R 16.18

30.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.17 R 52.9

$1.62 R 26.95

95.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.94 R 82.3

$3.63 R 60.5

36.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 R 24.98

$1.48 R 24.64

1.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.92 R 31.92

$1.85 R 30.90

3.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.77 R 79.5

$1.56 R 25.93

205.77%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$179 R 2,981

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.29 R 4.82

$0.45 R 7.43

-35.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.79 R 13.21

$0.71 R 11.90

11.27%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$14.24 R 237

$7.76 R 129

83.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.76

$1.37 R 22.90

13.14%

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

$35.0K R 583.0K

$35.1K R 584.9K

-0.32%

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

$35.0K R 583.0K

$33.7K R 561.2K

3.88%

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

$148 R 2,473

$61.6 R 1,027

140.92%

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

$36.56 R 609

$18.40 R 307

98.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$36.12 R 602

$32.91 R 548

9.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.26 R 521

$32.81 R 547

-4.72%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.56 R 176

$10.97 R 183

-3.74%

Cinema Ticket

$7.29 R 121

$4.34 R 72.3

67.97%

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

$263 R 4,388

$310 R 5,169

-15.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,829 R 130.5K

$7,680 R 128.0K

1.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.1 R 868

$54.6 R 909

-4.51%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.93 R 532

$18.27 R 304

74.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.8 R 1,530

$71.7 R 1,195

28.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$82.2 R 1,369

$49.48 R 825

66.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$450 R 7,498

$395 R 6,587

13.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$359 R 5,988

$363 R 6,055

-1.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,040 R 17.3K

$743 R 12.4K

40.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$735 R 12.3K

$724 R 12.1K

1.61%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$869 R 14.5K

$880 R 14.7K

-1.32%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$664 R 11.1K

$696 R 11.6K

-4.56%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,386 R 23.1K

$1,528 R 25.5K

-9.29%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.34

11.78

-3.74%

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

Last update for Pretoria: October 25, 2026

Last update for Margate: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Pretoria

$359 28.1%

Margate

$363 40.8% 1.1% $4.1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Pretoria

$221 17.3%

Margate

$113 12.7% 48.9% $108

Getting Around

Pretoria

$202 15.8%

Margate

$10 * 1.2% 94.9% $192

Groceries & Markets

Pretoria

$192 15%

Margate

$149 16.7% 22.4% $43

Eating Out

Pretoria

$143 11.2%

Margate

$127 14.2% 11.4% $16

Clothing & Footwear

Pretoria

$116 9.1%

Margate

$87 9.8% 24.8% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Pretoria

$46 3.6%

Margate

$41 4.7% 9.5% $4.4

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 $450 in Pretoria and $395 in Margate. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Margate pays 10% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $36 in Pretoria vs $37 in Margate. Groceries flip the comparison at $192 vs $149, with Margate cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Pretoria

🇿🇦 Margate

🕒 Local time

22:34 10:34 PM

Same time as Pretoria

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

741,651 Capital

34,407

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

100 ZAR = 6 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Pretoria Margate 610 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Pretoria
Margate

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

Pretoria vs Margate: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Margate wins on cost – living expenses run 30% lower than in Pretoria. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Margate the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 9% lower in Pretoria. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $450 in Pretoria versus $395 in Margate. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $263 in Pretoria versus $310 in Margate. 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 $37 in Margate. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Margate 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.