Cost of Living Comparison Between Rwanda and South Africa Cost of Living Comparison Between Rwanda and South Africa

Name: South Africa
Address: ZA

🙂 Solo nomad: Rwanda is 34.7% cheaper than South Africa without rent, and 34.1% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Rwanda is 34.8% cheaper than South Africa without rent, and 31.7% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.57 RWF 5,213

$8.84 R 145

-59.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$28.25 RWF 41.2K

$38.50 R 631

-26.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.91 RWF 8,623

$5.07 R 83.2

16.57%

Cappuccino

$2.17 RWF 3,161

$2.04 R 33.40

6.37%

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

$0.86 RWF 1,250

$1.04 R 17.02

-17.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 RWF 722

$0.74 R 12.08

-33.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.03 RWF 1,497

$2.31 R 37.83

-55.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 RWF 2,951

$2.47 R 40.57

-18.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.65 RWF 955

$1.07 R 17.55

-39.25%

White Bread (500g)

$1.00 RWF 1,467

$1.01 R 16.51

-0.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.16 RWF 1,699

$1.57 R 25.79

-26.11%

Eggs

$1.67 RWF 2,435

$2.33 R 38.26

-28.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.85 RWF 5,614

$7.68 R 126

-49.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.12 RWF 6,009

$4.47 R 73.4

-7.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$3.46 RWF 5,057

$6.60 R 108

-47.58%

Apples (1kg)

$2.65 RWF 3,866

$1.56 R 25.55

69.87%

Banana (1kg)

$0.89 RWF 1,293

$1.45 R 23.80

-38.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.40 RWF 2,041

$1.51 R 24.79

-7.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.04 RWF 1,524

$1.49 R 24.39

-30.20%

Potato (1kg)

$0.47 RWF 684

$1.21 R 19.91

-61.16%

Onion (1kg)

$0.82 RWF 1,192

$1.33 R 21.80

-38.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.44 RWF 642

$1.08 R 17.70

-59.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 RWF 1,047

$0.94 R 15.34

-23.40%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.78 RWF 2,601

$2.85 R 46.74

-37.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.48 RWF 15.3K

$4.89 R 80.3

114.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.03 RWF 1,499

$1.38 R 22.64

-25.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 RWF 2,384

$1.69 R 27.65

-3.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.36 RWF 530

$1.73 R 28.33

-79.19%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.53 RWF 40.2K

$45.33 R 743

-39.27%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.86 RWF 4,174

$1.10 R 18.01

160.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.28 RWF 1,862

$1.10 R 18.03

16.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.15 RWF 6,064

$4.69 R 76.9

-11.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.14 RWF 1,661

$1.30 R 21.32

-12.31%

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

$24.7K RWF 36.1M

$20.6K R 337.3K

20.16%

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

$22.4K RWF 32.7M

$24.2K R 396.4K

-7.42%

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

$49.40 RWF 72.1K

$110 R 1,811

-55.27%

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

$9.02 RWF 13.2K

$32.07 R 526

-71.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.40 RWF 31.2K

$40.81 R 669

-47.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.60 RWF 46.1K

$31.33 R 514

0.86%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.34 RWF 6,333

$9.44 R 155

-54.03%

Cinema Ticket

$3.41 RWF 4,980

$6.90 R 113

-50.58%

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

$135 RWF 196.6K

$187 R 3,074

-28.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,409 RWF 6.4M

$4,385 R 71.9K

0.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$18.46 RWF 26.9K

$49.70 R 815

-62.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$23.11 RWF 33.7K

$31.23 R 512

-26.00%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$27.73 RWF 40.5K

$93.0 R 1,526

-70.20%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$33.89 RWF 49.5K

$79.7 R 1,307

-57.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$433 RWF 632.1K

$443 R 7,265

-2.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$286 RWF 418.2K

$369 R 6,048

-22.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$873 RWF 1.3M

$890 R 14.6K

-1.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$555 RWF 810.6K

$724 R 11.9K

-23.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,443 RWF 3.6M

$1,125 R 18.5K

117.15%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,033 RWF 4.4M

$823 R 13.5K

268.32%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$268 RWF 391.2K

$1,486 R 24.4K

-81.97%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

16.43

11.55

42.25%

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

Last update for Rwanda: January 13, 2026

Last update for South Africa: January 12, 2026

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rwanda and South Africa Cost of Living Comparison Between Rwanda and South Africa

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