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

Name: Australia
Address: AU

🙂 Solo nomad: South Africa is 41.7% cheaper than Australia without rent, and 52.6% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: South Africa is 43.1% cheaper than Australia without rent, and 47.4% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.84 R 145

$16.57 A$24.86

-46.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$38.50 R 631

$77.7 A$117

-50.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.07 R 83.2

$9.88 A$14.82

-48.68%

Cappuccino

$2.04 R 33.40

$3.48 A$5.22

-41.38%

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

$1.04 R 17.02

$2.56 A$3.84

-59.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.74 R 12.08

$2.13 A$3.20

-65.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.31 R 37.83

$6.62 A$9.93

-65.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.47 R 40.57

$7.31 A$10.97

-66.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.07 R 17.55

$1.51 A$2.26

-29.14%

White Bread (500g)

$1.01 R 16.51

$2.49 A$3.74

-59.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.79

$2.07 A$3.10

-24.15%

Eggs

$2.33 R 38.26

$4.27 A$6.41

-45.43%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.68 R 126

$8.73 A$13.10

-12.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.47 R 73.4

$8.25 A$12.38

-45.82%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.60 R 108

$14.17 A$21.26

-53.42%

Apples (1kg)

$1.56 R 25.55

$3.27 A$4.90

-52.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 R 23.80

$2.68 A$4.02

-45.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.51 R 24.79

$2.89 A$4.34

-47.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.49 R 24.39

$4.28 A$6.42

-65.19%

Potato (1kg)

$1.21 R 19.91

$2.47 A$3.70

-51.01%

Onion (1kg)

$1.33 R 21.80

$2.11 A$3.16

-36.97%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 R 17.70

$2.30 A$3.44

-53.04%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.34

$1.50 A$2.24

-37.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.85 R 46.74

$31.81 A$47.72

-91.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.89 R 80.3

$13.45 A$20.17

-63.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.64

$4.48 A$6.72

-69.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 R 27.65

$5.01 A$7.51

-66.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.73 R 28.33

$2.91 A$4.37

-40.55%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$45.33 R 743

$97.0 A$146

-53.27%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.10 R 18.01

$3.67 A$5.51

-70.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.10 R 18.03

$1.81 A$2.71

-39.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.69 R 76.9

$38.37 A$57.6

-87.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.32

$1.20 A$1.79

8.33%

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

$20.6K R 337.3K

$29.1K A$43.6K

-29.24%

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

$24.2K R 396.4K

$22.7K A$34.1K

6.31%

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

$110 R 1,811

$175 A$262

-36.87%

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

$32.07 R 526

$26.26 A$39.39

22.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.81 R 669

$53.0 A$79.5

-22.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.33 R 514

$47.12 A$70.7

-33.51%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.44 R 155

$16.51 A$24.77

-42.82%

Cinema Ticket

$6.90 R 113

$13.57 A$20.35

-49.15%

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

$187 R 3,074

$1,588 A$2,382

-88.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,385 R 71.9K

$12.5K A$18.8K

-65.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.70 R 815

$69.7 A$105

-28.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.23 R 512

$50.7 A$76.0

-38.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.0 R 1,526

$102 A$153

-8.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.7 R 1,307

$109 A$163

-26.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$443 R 7,265

$1,370 A$2,055

-67.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$369 R 6,048

$1,076 A$1,613

-65.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$890 R 14.6K

$2,270 A$3,404

-60.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$724 R 11.9K

$1,772 A$2,658

-59.11%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,125 R 18.5K

$7,081 A$10.6K

-84.11%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$823 R 13.5K

$5,392 A$8,088

-84.73%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,486 R 24.4K

$3,742 A$5,614

-60.28%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.55

6.35

81.89%

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

Last update for South Africa: January 12, 2026

Last update for Australia: January 10, 2026

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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

Similar countries

🇷🇺 Russia

🇬🇪 Georgia

🇨🇱 Chile

🇵🇸 Palestine

🇳🇬 Nigeria

🇳🇦 Namibia

🇲🇿 Mozambique

🇭🇳 Honduras