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

Name: China
Address: CN

😐 Solo nomad: South Africa is 19.5% more expensive than China without rent, and 39% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: South Africa is 24.2% more expensive than China without rent, and 30.5% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.84 R 145

$2.77 ¥19.31

219.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$38.50 R 631

$24.14 ¥169

59.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.07 R 83.2

$4.75 ¥33.15

6.74%

Cappuccino

$2.04 R 33.40

$3.02 ¥21.06

-32.45%

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

$1.04 R 17.02

$0.44 ¥3.06

136.36%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.74 R 12.08

$0.27 ¥1.87

174.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.31 R 37.83

$0.96 ¥6.67

140.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.47 R 40.57

$2.04 ¥14.21

21.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.07 R 17.55

$1.75 ¥12.21

-38.86%

White Bread (500g)

$1.01 R 16.51

$1.69 ¥11.79

-40.24%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.79

$0.98 ¥6.85

60.20%

Eggs

$2.33 R 38.26

$1.60 ¥11.19

45.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.68 R 126

$13.34 ¥93.1

-42.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.47 R 73.4

$3.27 ¥22.82

36.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.60 R 108

$10.63 ¥74.2

-37.91%

Apples (1kg)

$1.56 R 25.55

$1.74 ¥12.16

-10.34%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 R 23.80

$1.26 ¥8.76

15.08%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.51 R 24.79

$1.45 ¥10.13

4.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.49 R 24.39

$1.19 ¥8.28

25.21%

Potato (1kg)

$1.21 R 19.91

$0.73 ¥5.08

65.75%

Onion (1kg)

$1.33 R 21.80

$0.86 ¥5.99

54.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 R 17.70

$0.62 ¥4.30

74.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.34

$0.53 ¥3.71

77.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.85 R 46.74

$3.44 ¥24.03

-17.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.89 R 80.3

$11.63 ¥81.2

-57.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.64

$0.84 ¥5.88

64.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 R 27.65

$1.62 ¥11.30

4.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.73 R 28.33

$0.44 ¥3.07

293.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$45.33 R 743

$20.71 ¥145

118.88%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.10 R 18.01

$1.42 ¥9.91

-22.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.10 R 18.03

$0.33 ¥2.27

233.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.69 R 76.9

$6.51 ¥45.42

-27.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.32

$1.17 ¥8.19

11.11%

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

$20.6K R 337.3K

$19.2K ¥133.9K

7.24%

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

$24.2K R 396.4K

$16.6K ¥116.1K

45.32%

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

$110 R 1,811

$51.4 ¥359

114.84%

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

$32.07 R 526

$9.63 ¥67.2

233.02%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.81 R 669

$11.22 ¥78.3

263.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.33 R 514

$39.09 ¥273

-19.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.44 R 155

$14.70 ¥103

-35.78%

Cinema Ticket

$6.90 R 113

$6.14 ¥42.89

12.38%

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

$187 R 3,074

$416 ¥2,905

-54.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,385 R 71.9K

$17.9K ¥125.0K

-75.51%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.70 R 815

$45.24 ¥316

9.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.23 R 512

$32.59 ¥228

-4.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.0 R 1,526

$73.0 ¥509

27.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.7 R 1,307

$72.8 ¥508

9.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$443 R 7,265

$432 ¥3,018

2.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$369 R 6,048

$253 ¥1,767

45.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$890 R 14.6K

$923 ¥6,441

-3.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$724 R 11.9K

$546 ¥3,811

32.70%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,125 R 18.5K

$5,324 ¥37.2K

-78.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$823 R 13.5K

$2,784 ¥19.4K

-70.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,486 R 24.4K

$1,037 ¥7,240

43.30%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.55

4.06

184.48%

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

Last update for South Africa: January 12, 2026

Last update for China: January 11, 2026

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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

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