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

Name: Lesotho
Address: LS

🙂 Solo nomad: South Africa is 0.4% cheaper than Lesotho without rent, and 22.2% more expensive with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: South Africa is 6.8% cheaper than Lesotho without rent, and 29.6% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.70 R 143

$9.88 LSL 163

-11.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$38.91 R 641

$27.80 LSL 458

39.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.17 R 85.3

$8.31 LSL 137

-37.79%

Cappuccino

$2.05 R 33.82

$1.77 LSL 29.23

15.82%

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

$1.02 R 16.87

$1.27 LSL 20.86

-19.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.76 R 12.51

$0.79 LSL 13.06

-3.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.26 R 37.20

$1.79 LSL 29.48

26.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.53 R 41.77

$2.27 LSL 37.33

11.45%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.10 R 18.20

$1.00 LSL 16.53

10.00%

White Bread (500g)

$0.94 R 15.51

$0.75 LSL 12.31

25.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.62 R 26.76

$1.91 LSL 31.47

-15.18%

Eggs

$2.22 R 36.61

$1.32 LSL 21.73

68.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.52 R 124

$6.05 LSL 99.7

24.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.48 R 73.8

$5.69 LSL 93.7

-21.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.61 R 109

$5.23 LSL 86.2

26.39%

Apples (1kg)

$1.50 R 24.74

$1.59 LSL 26.12

-5.66%

Banana (1kg)

$1.42 R 23.41

$1.75 LSL 28.92

-18.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.46 R 24.08

$2.27 LSL 37.35

-35.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.51 R 24.91

$2.19 LSL 36.06

-31.05%

Potato (1kg)

$1.26 R 20.70

$1.47 LSL 24.30

-14.29%

Onion (1kg)

$1.29 R 21.34

$1.13 LSL 18.67

14.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.03 R 16.95

$1.41 LSL 23.24

-26.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 R 15.93

$0.84 LSL 13.90

15.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.87 R 47.30

$4.84 LSL 79.8

-40.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.90 R 80.7

$4.89 LSL 80.6

0.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 R 21.65

$1.30 LSL 21.49

0.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 R 28.59

$1.52 LSL 25.12

13.82%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.65 R 27.17

$0.71 LSL 11.76

132.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.20 R 728

$28.32 LSL 467

56.07%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.14 R 18.79

$0.74 LSL 12.28

54.05%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 R 17.98

$0.66 LSL 10.96

65.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.70 R 77.5

$10.24 LSL 169

-54.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.35

$1.26 LSL 20.81

3.17%

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

$20.8K R 342.7K

$19.3K LSL 318.6K

7.55%

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

$23.5K R 387.5K

$15.1K LSL 248.5K

55.95%

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

$111 R 1,835

$200 LSL 3,291

-44.24%

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

$32.36 R 533

$18.69 LSL 308

73.14%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.49 R 667

$32.32 LSL 533

25.28%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.96 R 527

$30.49 LSL 503

4.82%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.72 R 160

Cinema Ticket

$6.80 R 112

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

$189 R 3,107

$65.4 LSL 1,078

188.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,400 R 72.5K

$1,360 LSL 22.4K

223.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.2 R 827

$53.0 LSL 874

-5.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.53 R 503

$39.90 LSL 657

-23.48%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.5 R 1,558

$110 LSL 1,817

-14.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$81.3 R 1,340

$131 LSL 2,164

-38.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$453 R 7,461

$151 LSL 2,492

199.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$372 R 6,132

$77.6 LSL 1,279

379.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$906 R 14.9K

$402 LSL 6,632

125.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$703 R 11.6K

$160 LSL 2,638

339.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,150 R 19.0K

$393 LSL 6,483

192.30%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$836 R 13.8K

$540 LSL 8,899

54.76%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,471 R 24.2K

$765 LSL 12.6K

92.33%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.55

8.5

35.88%

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

Last update for South Africa: March 2, 2026

Last update for Lesotho: March 2, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated January 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated January 2026)

South Africa

Lesotho

South Africa

Lesotho

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