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

🙂 Solo nomad: South Africa is 41.3% cheaper than Eritrea without rent, and 27.7% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: South Africa is 30.8% cheaper than Eritrea without rent, and 20.5% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
South Africa
Eritrea
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$9.05 R 161
$12.47 ERN 188
-27.43%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$38.84 R 691
$30.46 ERN 459
27.51%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$4.9 R 87.1
$5.44 ERN 81.9
-9.93%
Cappuccino
$1.98 R 35.28
$0.8 ERN 12.01
147.50%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.96 R 17.06
$1.81 ERN 27.25
-46.96%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.75 R 13.31
$1.35 ERN 20.29
-44.44%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.18 R 38.72
$1.02 ERN 15.34
113.73%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.54 R 45.1
$2.06 ERN 30.99
23.30%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
South Africa
Eritrea
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.1 R 19.58
$1.6 ERN 24.16
-31.25%
White Bread (500g)
$1.03 R 18.32
$0.51 ERN 7.73
101.96%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.56 R 27.71
$2.03 ERN 30.61
-23.15%
Eggs
$2.25 R 39.93
$4.59 ERN 69.2
-50.98%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.67 R 136
$2.92 ERN 44.01
162.67%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$4.62 R 82.2
$27.32 ERN 412
-83.09%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$6.86 R 122
$9.88 ERN 149
-30.57%
Apples (1kg)
$1.58 R 28.02
$12.09 ERN 182
-86.93%
Banana (1kg)
$1.42 R 25.3
$1.3 ERN 19.62
9.23%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.44 R 25.58
$1.93 ERN 29.15
-25.39%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.49 R 26.5
$1.24 ERN 18.67
20.16%
Potato (1kg)
$1.25 R 22.16
$1.79 ERN 26.95
-30.17%
Onion (1kg)
$1.34 R 23.81
$1.09 ERN 16.44
22.94%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.09 R 19.31
$0.68 ERN 10.25
60.29%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.96 R 17.15
$2.2 ERN 33.16
-56.36%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.9 R 51.6
$1.95 ERN 29.41
48.72%
Wine (Bottle)
$5.07 R 90.3
$11.94 ERN 180
-57.54%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.38 R 24.49
$0.99 ERN 14.87
39.39%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.68 R 29.79
$1.2 ERN 18.09
40.00%
🚌 Getting Around
South Africa
Eritrea
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.71 R 30.47
$0.14 ERN 2.17
1121.43%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$45.01 R 801
$8.23 ERN 124
446.90%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.1 R 19.61
$0.64 ERN 9.6
71.88%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.09 R 19.41
$0.65 ERN 9.77
67.69%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$4.8 R 85.3
$8.47 ERN 128
-43.33%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 R 23.23
$2.2 ERN 33.12
-40.45%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21K R 374.2K
$65.8K ERN 991.8K
-68.03%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.7K R 421.3K
$70.2K ERN 1.1M
-66.24%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
South Africa
Eritrea
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$113 R 2,009
$27.29 ERN 411
313.89%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$33.11 R 589
$66.9 ERN 1,008
-50.52%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$41.49 R 738
$200 ERN 3,013
-79.25%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
South Africa
Eritrea
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$31.69 R 564
$27.5 ERN 414
15.24%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$9.45 R 168
$7.54 ERN 114
25.33%
Cinema Ticket
$6.7 R 119
$1.11 ERN 16.79
503.60%
🧸 Childcare & Education
South Africa
Eritrea
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$186 R 3,303
$24.96 ERN 376
644.15%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$4,336 R 77.1K
$1,693 ERN 25.5K
156.11%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
South Africa
Eritrea
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$48.56 R 864
$83.6 ERN 1,260
-41.93%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$30.74 R 547
$74.2 ERN 1,118
-58.55%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$92 R 1,636
$198 ERN 2,978
-53.45%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$79.6 R 1,415
$93.5 ERN 1,409
-14.89%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
South Africa
Eritrea
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$442 R 7,860
$470 ERN 7,080
-5.94%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$370 R 6,579
$393 ERN 5,928
-5.95%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$880 R 15.7K
$713 ERN 10.7K
23.52%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$724 R 12.9K
$650 ERN 9,795
11.34%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$1,021 R 18.2K
$407 ERN 6,135
150.79%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$803 R 14.3K
$2,185 ERN 32.9K
-63.24%
💵 Salaries & Financials
South Africa
Eritrea
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,406 R 25K
$887 ERN 13.4K
58.56%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.55
12
-3.75%

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

Last update for South Africa: October 29, 2025

Last update for Eritrea: October 28, 2025

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