Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Uitenhage and Johannesburg

For one person, living is cheaper in Uitenhage: $1,167 a month against $1,428 in Johannesburg, rent and utilities included – about $3,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

55

Cost of Living Index in Uitenhage
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Uitenhage Living Index
69

Cost of Living Index in Johannesburg
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Johannesburg Living Index

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Uitenhage

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,167

/mo nomad

Johannesburg

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,428

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Uitenhage and in Johannesburg

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Uitenhage and in Johannesburg actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,167 per month in Uitenhage vs $1,428 in Johannesburg, rent included.

Uitenhage $1,167
Johannesburg $1,428

A couple spends around $1,832 per month in Uitenhage vs $2,226 in Johannesburg, rent included.

Uitenhage $1,832
Johannesburg $2,226

A family of three spends $2,497 per month in Uitenhage vs $3,023 in Johannesburg, rent included.

Uitenhage $2,497
Johannesburg $3,023

Uitenhage is about 18% cheaper than Johannesburg, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Uitenhage sits 14% below the global median, while Johannesburg is 5% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.99 R 181

$12.35 R 204

-11.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.28 R 713

$46.17 R 761

-6.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$7.42 R 122

-20.75%

Cappuccino

$2.17 R 35.83

$2.45 R 40.29

-11.43%

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

$1.06 R 17.38

$1.28 R 21.09

-17.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.73 R 12.00

$0.92 R 15.08

-20.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.68 R 44.15

$2.36 R 38.87

13.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.25 R 53.5

$2.82 R 46.43

15.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 R 19.29

$1.37 R 22.51

-14.60%

White Bread (500g)

$0.81 R 13.36

$1.26 R 20.81

-35.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.52 R 25.02

$1.72 R 28.37

-11.63%

Eggs

$2.84 R 46.76

$2.76 R 45.42

2.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.91 R 147

$8.96 R 148

-0.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.35 R 88.2

$5.74 R 94.5

-6.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.73 R 144

$9.17 R 151

-4.80%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.29

$2.12 R 35.00

3.77%

Banana (1kg)

$1.51 R 24.85

$1.87 R 30.87

-19.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.69 R 27.80

$1.83 R 30.17

-7.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.82 R 29.92

$2.06 R 33.92

-11.65%

Potato (1kg)

$1.77 R 29.08

$1.68 R 27.63

5.36%

Onion (1kg)

$1.45 R 23.94

$1.79 R 29.44

-18.99%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.50

$1.47 R 24.22

-11.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.02 R 16.84

$1.31 R 21.66

-22.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.12 R 51.4

$3.53 R 58.2

-11.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.68 R 60.6

$5.93 R 97.7

-37.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 R 21.16

$1.85 R 30.49

-30.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.82 R 29.97

$2.33 R 38.34

-21.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.51 R 24.95

$2.06 R 33.90

-26.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$91.6 R 1,509

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.60 R 9.82

$0.88 R 14.54

-31.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.51 R 8.41

$0.87 R 14.41

-41.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.68 R 143

$14.78 R 243

-41.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 R 24.50

$1.53 R 25.23

-2.61%

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

$35.6K R 587.1K

$35.7K R 588.6K

-0.26%

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

$35.0K R 577.1K

$35.2K R 580.5K

-0.60%

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

$125 R 2,066

$227 R 3,743

-44.81%

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

$35.55 R 586

$39.37 R 649

-9.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$45.37 R 747

$37.62 R 620

20.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.09 R 496

$37.85 R 624

-20.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.05 R 199

$17.16 R 283

-29.78%

Cinema Ticket

$10.55 R 174

$8.43 R 139

25.15%

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

$179 R 2,955

$248 R 4,089

-27.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,248 R 102.9K

$5,491 R 90.5K

13.79%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.6 R 1,196

$60.2 R 991

20.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.39 R 632

$45.06 R 742

-14.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$114 R 1,873

$112 R 1,846

1.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.2 R 1,584

$112 R 1,849

-14.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$443 R 7,304

$519 R 8,550

-14.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$401 R 6,606

$416 R 6,861

-3.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$646 R 10.6K

$1,068 R 17.6K

-39.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$798 R 13.1K

$903 R 14.9K

-11.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$897 R 14.8K

$1,038 R 17.1K

-13.56%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$740 R 12.2K

$763 R 12.6K

-2.98%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,716 R 28.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.94

10.91

9.44%

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

Last update for Uitenhage: October 20, 2026

Last update for Johannesburg: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Uitenhage

$401 34.4%

Johannesburg

$416 29.2% 3.9% $15

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Uitenhage

$206 17.7%

Johannesburg

$304 21.3% 47.4% $98

Groceries & Markets

Uitenhage

$196 16.8%

Johannesburg

$223 15.6% 13.7% $27

Eating Out

Uitenhage

$159 13.6%

Johannesburg

$177 12.4% 11.3% $18

Clothing & Footwear

Uitenhage

$144 12.4%

Johannesburg

$148 10.4% 2.7% $3.9

Sport & Entertainment

Uitenhage

$51 4.4%

Johannesburg

$55 3.8% 6.9% $3.5

Getting Around

Uitenhage

$9.2 * 0.8%

Johannesburg

$105 7.4% 1041% $96

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $443 in Uitenhage versus $519 in Johannesburg. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43.00 in Uitenhage versus $46.00 in Johannesburg. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $196 vs $223 – making Uitenhage the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Uitenhage

🇿🇦 Johannesburg

🕒 Local time

14:26 2:26 PM

Same time as Uitenhage

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

103,639

4,434,827

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Uitenhage Johannesburg 880 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Uitenhage
Johannesburg

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

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

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Uitenhage vs Johannesburg: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Johannesburg costs about 22% more than Uitenhage, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,750 per month in Uitenhage and $2,142 in Johannesburg. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Uitenhage, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,167 in Uitenhage and $1,428 in Johannesburg. That's a gap of about 22%.

Kindergarten costs $179 per month in Uitenhage and $248 in Johannesburg. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Uitenhage, where all-in costs run around $1,167, than in Johannesburg at $1,428. In Uitenhage it covers expenses comfortably, while in Johannesburg it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Uitenhage costs $1,167 versus $1,428 in Johannesburg. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Uitenhage. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Johannesburg makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.