Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Pretoria and Mossel Bay

For one person, living is cheaper in Mossel Bay: $1,094 a month against $1,279 in Pretoria, rent and utilities included – about $2,200 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
52

Cost of Living Index in Mossel Bay
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Mossel Bay Living Index

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Pretoria

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,279

/mo nomad

Mossel Bay

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,094

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Pretoria and in Mossel Bay

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 Mossel Bay actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,279 per month in Pretoria vs $1,094 in Mossel Bay, rent included.

Pretoria $1,279
Mossel Bay $1,094

A couple spends around $1,979 per month in Pretoria vs $1,720 in Mossel Bay, rent included.

Pretoria $1,979
Mossel Bay $1,720

A family of three spends $2,678 per month in Pretoria vs $2,346 in Mossel Bay, rent included.

Pretoria $2,678
Mossel Bay $2,346

Pretoria costs about 17% more than Mossel Bay, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Pretoria and Mossel Bay are more affordable than the global median – Pretoria 6% lower, Mossel Bay 20% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.28 R 154

$14.39 R 239

-35.51%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$36.09 R 599

$48.69 R 809

-25.88%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.20 R 86.4

$8.51 R 141

-38.90%

Cappuccino

$2.18 R 36.26

$2.56 R 42.59

-14.84%

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

$1.03 R 17.10

$1.39 R 23.08

-25.90%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.85 R 14.03

$0.95 R 15.72

-10.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.61 R 43.42

$2.45 R 40.62

6.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.24 R 53.8

$2.97 R 49.40

9.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 R 19.41

$1.10 R 18.19

6.36%

White Bread (500g)

$1.13 R 18.69

$1.07 R 17.84

5.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.42

$2.68 R 44.51

-31.72%

Eggs

$2.40 R 39.81

$3.14 R 52.1

-23.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.16 R 136

$9.54 R 158

-14.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.97 R 82.5

$5.28 R 87.7

-5.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.38 R 123

$7.90 R 131

-6.58%

Apples (1kg)

$1.70 R 28.27

$1.94 R 32.17

-12.37%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 R 26.75

$1.31 R 21.83

22.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.77 R 29.45

$1.78 R 29.58

-0.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.56 R 25.97

$2.02 R 33.62

-22.77%

Potato (1kg)

$1.12 R 18.58

$1.45 R 24.01

-22.76%

Onion (1kg)

$1.22 R 20.22

$1.70 R 28.17

-28.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.22 R 20.32

$1.21 R 20.13

0.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 R 21.08

$1.22 R 20.21

4.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.17 R 52.7

$3.71 R 61.7

-14.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.94 R 82.1

$4.92 R 81.7

0.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 R 24.89

$2.06 R 34.16

-27.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.92 R 31.81

$1.87 R 30.97

2.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.77 R 79.2

$1.37 R 22.70

248.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$179 R 2,971

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.29 R 4.80

$0.62 R 10.22

-53.23%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.79 R 13.17

$0.89 R 14.72

-11.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$14.24 R 236

$11.37 R 189

25.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.67

$1.44 R 23.86

7.64%

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

$35.0K R 581.0K

$28.6K R 475.0K

22.32%

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

$35.0K R 580.9K

$27.1K R 449.4K

29.28%

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

$148 R 2,465

$109 R 1,804

36.61%

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

$36.56 R 607

$17.95 R 298

103.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$36.12 R 600

$42.87 R 712

-15.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.26 R 519

$21.03 R 349

48.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.56 R 175

$10.91 R 181

-3.21%

Cinema Ticket

$7.29 R 121

$7.18 R 119

1.53%

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

$263 R 4,373

$275 R 4,572

-4.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,829 R 130.0K

$5,404 R 89.7K

44.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.1 R 865

$47.97 R 797

8.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.93 R 530

$21.02 R 349

51.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.8 R 1,525

$98.6 R 1,638

-6.87%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$82.2 R 1,364

$66.6 R 1,105

23.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$450 R 7,472

$503 R 8,348

-10.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$359 R 5,967

$364 R 6,049

-1.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,040 R 17.3K

$1,033 R 17.2K

0.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$735 R 12.2K

$686 R 11.4K

7.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$869 R 14.4K

$597 R 9,910

45.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$664 R 11.0K

$610 R 10.1K

8.96%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,386 R 23.0K

$1,505 R 25.0K

-7.91%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.34

11.75

-3.49%

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

Last update for Pretoria: October 25, 2026

Last update for Mossel Bay: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Pretoria

$359 28.1%

Mossel Bay

$364 33.3% 1.4% $5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Pretoria

$221 17.3%

Mossel Bay

$169 15.5% 23.4% $52

Getting Around

Pretoria

$202 15.8%

Mossel Bay

$11 * 1% 94.8% $192

Groceries & Markets

Pretoria

$192 15%

Mossel Bay

$210 19.2% 9.4% $18

Eating Out

Pretoria

$143 11.2%

Mossel Bay

$199 18.2% 39% $56

Clothing & Footwear

Pretoria

$116 9.1%

Mossel Bay

$105 9.6% 9.2% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Pretoria

$46 3.6%

Mossel Bay

$35 3.2% 22.8% $10

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $450 in Pretoria versus $503 in Mossel Bay. 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 9% higher in Mossel Bay, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $36 in Pretoria versus $49 in Mossel Bay. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $192 vs $210 – making Pretoria the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Pretoria

🇿🇦 Mossel Bay

🕒 Local time

08:59 8:59 AM

Same time as Pretoria

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

741,651 Capital

60,000

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.02 USD

100 ZAR = 5.37 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.02 USD

100 ZAR = 5.37 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Pretoria Mossel Bay 1,100 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Pretoria
Mossel Bay

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 Mossel Bay: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,279 in Pretoria, $1,094 in Mossel Bay – Mossel Bay comes out roughly 15% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,919 per month in Pretoria and $1,640 in Mossel Bay. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Pretoria, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $450 there versus $503 in Mossel Bay.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $36 in Pretoria and $49 in Mossel Bay. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 9% cheaper in Pretoria – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,279 in Pretoria and $1,094 in Mossel Bay, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.