Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Upington and London

For one person, living is cheaper in Upington: $1,133 a month against $4,049 in London, rent and utilities included – about $35,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

54

Cost of Living Index in Upington
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Upington Living Index
195

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index

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Upington

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,133

/mo nomad

London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,049

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Upington and in London

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

A single person spends $1,133 per month in Upington vs $4,049 in London, rent included.

Upington $1,133
London $4,049

A couple spends around $1,760 per month in Upington vs $5,827 in London, rent included.

Upington $1,760
London $5,827

A family of three spends $2,388 per month in Upington vs $7,605 in London, rent included.

Upington $2,388
London $7,605

Upington is about 72% cheaper than London, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Upington sits 16% below the global median, while London is 199% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.40 R 204

$27.09 £20.33

-54.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.12 R 612

$104 £78.3

-64.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.69 R 93.7

$10.86 £8.15

-47.61%

Cappuccino

$1.74 R 28.68

$5.60 £4.20

-68.93%

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

$1.04 R 17.17

$3.05 £2.29

-65.90%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.76 R 12.58

$2.28 £1.71

-66.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.73 R 28.48

$9.23 £6.92

-81.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 R 46.42

$7.95 £5.96

-64.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.89 R 14.65

$1.83 £1.37

-51.37%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.66

$2.05 £1.54

-39.02%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.65 R 27.26

$2.47 £1.86

-33.20%

Eggs

$2.64 R 43.52

$5.12 £3.84

-48.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.45 R 139

$12.89 £9.67

-34.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.12 R 84.3

$10.84 £8.14

-52.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.27 R 120

$17.03 £12.78

-57.31%

Apples (1kg)

$2.04 R 33.55

$3.07 £2.30

-33.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.71 R 28.20

$1.38 £1.03

23.91%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.78 R 29.35

$2.99 £2.24

-40.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.29

$3.39 £2.54

-45.72%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 R 24.81

$1.60 £1.20

-5.63%

Onion (1kg)

$1.58 R 25.95

$1.80 £1.35

-12.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.27 R 20.96

$1.41 £1.06

-9.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.02 R 16.78

$1.81 £1.36

-43.65%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.76 R 45.51

$23.92 £17.94

-88.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.73 R 61.4

$13.54 £10.16

-72.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 R 21.09

$3.23 £2.42

-60.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 R 28.88

$4.39 £3.29

-60.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.74 R 28.72

$3.92 £2.94

-55.61%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$243 £182

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.55 R 9.03

$5.58 £4.18

-90.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.96 R 15.86

$3.27 £2.46

-70.64%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.66 R 176

$58.4 £43.81

-81.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 R 24.69

$2.08 £1.56

-27.88%

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

$31.3K R 514.9K

$38.8K £29.1K

-19.52%

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

$34.0K R 560.5K

$40.6K £30.5K

-16.23%

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

$146 R 2,404

$380 £285

-61.60%

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

$37.98 R 626

$18.62 £13.97

103.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$38.45 R 633

$40.45 £30.35

-4.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$27.77 R 458

$61.3 £45.95

-54.66%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.05 R 198

$21.41 £16.07

-43.72%

Cinema Ticket

$6.94 R 114

$18.09 £13.57

-61.64%

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

$103 R 1,691

$2,905 £2,180

-96.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,463 R 90.0K

$35.5K £26.6K

-84.61%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.2 R 1,008

$116 £87.3

-47.44%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.44 R 551

$54.5 £40.89

-38.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,916

$128 £95.8

-8.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.9 R 1,597

$167 £125

-41.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$394 R 6,494

$2,852 £2,140

-86.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$369 R 6,084

$2,269 £1,702

-83.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$616 R 10.2K

$5,250 £3,939

-88.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$737 R 12.1K

$3,752 £2,815

-80.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$763 R 12.6K

$18.5K £13.9K

-95.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$736 R 12.1K

$8,100 £6,077

-90.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$776 R 12.8K

$5,109 £3,833

-84.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.38

4.74

140.08%

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

Last update for Upington: October 18, 2026

Last update for London: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Upington

$369 32.6%

London

$2.3K 56% 514% $1.9K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Upington

$222 19.6%

London

$439 10.9% 97.5% $217

Groceries & Markets

Upington

$190 16.8%

London

$353 8.7% 85.6% $163

Eating Out

Upington

$159 14%

London

$400 9.9% 152% $241

Clothing & Footwear

Upington

$139 12.2%

London

$209 5.2% 51.2% $71

Sport & Entertainment

Upington

$42 3.7%

London

$97 2.4% 134% $56

Getting Around

Upington

$12 * 1.1%

London

$280 6.9% 2174% $268

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $394 in Upington versus $2,852 in London. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 559% higher in London, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $37.00 in Upington versus $104 in London. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $190 vs $353 – making Upington the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Upington

🇬🇧 London

🕒 Local time

00:50 12:50 AM

23:50 11:50 PM

1 h behind Upington

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,834

8,908,083 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Upington London 9,130 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Upington
London

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

Upington vs London: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,133 in Upington, $4,049 in London – roughly 257% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,700 per month in Upington and $6,073 in London. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Upington, 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 $1,133 in Upington and $4,049 in London. That's a gap of about 257%.

Kindergarten costs $103 per month in Upington and $2,905 in London. 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 Upington, where all-in costs run around $1,133, than in London at $4,049. In Upington it covers expenses comfortably, while in London it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. London has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,133 in Upington to $4,049 in London. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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