Cost of Living in South Africa - Updated Prices & Insights

Name: South Africa
Address: ZA

Solo nomad: Estimated monthly costs are $593 (excluding rent), and $1,068 including rent.

Family of 3: Estimated monthly costs are $1,458 (excluding rent), and $2,259 including rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.70 R 140

$4.62 R 74.4

$16.32 R 263

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$38.91 R 626

$27.79 R 447

$66.7 R 1,074

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.17 R 83.3

$4.31 R 69.4

$5.81 R 93.5

Cappuccino

$2.05 R 33.04

$1.14 R 18.41

$2.86 R 46.02

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

$1.02 R 16.48

$0.69 R 11.15

$1.74 R 27.96

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.76 R 12.22

$0.55 R 8.89

$1.38 R 22.21

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.26 R 36.34

$1.35 R 21.74

$3.28 R 52.7

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.53 R 40.80

$1.69 R 27.20

$3.66 R 58.9

Milk (1 liter)

$1.10 R 17.78

$0.85 R 13.70

$1.70 R 27.41

White Bread (500g)

$0.94 R 15.15

$0.60 R 9.64

$1.27 R 20.51

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.62 R 26.14

$1.14 R 18.41

$2.57 R 41.43

Eggs

$2.22 R 35.77

$1.30 R 20.93

$3.26 R 52.5

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.52 R 121

$4.92 R 79.2

$10.93 R 176

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.48 R 72.1

$2.72 R 43.80

$6.53 R 105

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.61 R 106

$4.88 R 78.6

$9.31 R 150

Apples (1kg)

$1.50 R 24.17

$0.82 R 13.18

$2.13 R 34.22

Banana (1kg)

$1.42 R 22.87

$0.83 R 13.34

$2.49 R 40.03

Oranges (1kg)

$1.46 R 23.52

$0.66 R 10.65

$3.32 R 53.4

Tomato (1kg)

$1.51 R 24.33

$0.83 R 13.36

$2.00 R 32.13

Potato (1kg)

$1.26 R 20.22

$0.57 R 9.21

$2.29 R 36.82

Onion (1kg)

$1.29 R 20.85

$0.77 R 12.41

$1.94 R 31.19

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.03 R 16.56

$0.65 R 10.47

$1.36 R 21.87

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 R 15.56

$0.68 R 10.97

$1.42 R 22.93

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.87 R 46.21

$2.49 R 40.01

$3.59 R 57.8

Wine (Bottle)

$4.90 R 78.9

$3.06 R 49.23

$9.18 R 148

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 R 21.15

$0.82 R 13.16

$2.18 R 35.10

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 R 27.93

$1.03 R 16.60

$2.86 R 46.01

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.65 R 26.54

$0.82 R 13.27

$3.85 R 61.9

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.20 R 712

$25.42 R 409

$88.4 R 1,423

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.14 R 18.35

$0.92 R 14.75

$2.28 R 36.71

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 R 17.56

$0.55 R 8.78

$1.64 R 26.34

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.70 R 75.8

$3.16 R 50.9

$8.30 R 134

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 R 20.86

$1.20 R 19.38

$1.43 R 22.99

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

$20.8K R 334.8K

$17.4K R 280.9K

$28.1K R 452.3K

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

$23.5K R 378.5K

$19.9K R 320.7K

$27.8K R 447.8K

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

$111 R 1,793

$66.8 R 1,076

$223 R 3,587

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

$32.36 R 521

$16.69 R 269

$55.8 R 899

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.49 R 652

$27.55 R 444

$55.1 R 887

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.96 R 515

$16.96 R 273

$55.0 R 886

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.72 R 156

$3.42 R 55.1

$14.26 R 230

Cinema Ticket

$6.80 R 109

$4.82 R 77.6

$11.33 R 182

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

$189 R 3,035

$112 R 1,797

$279 R 4,493

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,400 R 70.8K

$1,968 R 31.7K

$8,434 R 135.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.2 R 807

$28.56 R 460

$68.6 R 1,104

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.53 R 492

$13.91 R 224

$55.7 R 896

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.5 R 1,522

$54.0 R 869

$142 R 2,287

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$81.3 R 1,309

$45.49 R 732

$125 R 2,016

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$453 R 7,289

$257 R 4,133

$856 R 13.8K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$372 R 5,991

$255 R 4,107

$567 R 9,127

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$906 R 14.6K

$562 R 9,054

$1,647 R 26.5K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$703 R 11.3K

$470 R 7,570

$1,106 R 17.8K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,150 R 18.5K

$626 R 10.1K

$2,367 R 38.1K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$836 R 13.5K

$563 R 9,068

$1,640 R 26.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,471 R 23.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.55

9.42

13.4

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

Last update: March 2, 2026

By City in South Africa

Lowest

Highest

Rank	City	Population	Living Index	Solo costs (no rent) / month	Solo costs (with rent) / month	Family of 3 costs (no rent) / month	Family of 3 costs (with rent) / month	Mobile download speed (Mbps)	Internet download speed (Mbps)
1	Alberton	-	55	$676	$1,092	$1,341	$2,362	149.59	58.25
2	Alexandra	179624	50	$542	$999	$1,262	$2,149	17.75	80.74
3	Amersfoort	12335	50	$553	$1,001	$1,285	$2,108	260.09	15.87
4	Ballito	-	52	$547	$1,042	$1,125	$1,967	88.54	25.44
5	Bellville	112507	45	$481	$891	$1,177	$1,936	166.36	59.37
6	Benoni	158777	55	$573	$1,091	$1,269	$3,813	65.38	58.25
7	Bhisho	-	52	$660	$1,050	$1,334	$2,183	88.88	37.6
8	Bloemfontein	370000	47	$611	$954	$1,244	$1,975	202.11	37.55
9	Boksburg	260000	52	$632	$1,026	$1,548	$2,297	31.5	58.25
10	Brackenfell	80000	45	$498	$890	$1,187	$1,885	47.82	59.37
11	Brakpan	-	46	$586	$929	$1,362	$1,924	96.91	58.25
12	Burgersfort	10000	49	$503	$990	$1,393	$2,069	146.91	10.29
13	Cape Town	3740026	64	$655	$1,283	$1,591	$2,724	270.84	79.94
14	Centurion	236580	57	$789	$1,133	$1,683	$2,533	96.57	71.18
15	Durban	3442361	53	$557	$1,043	$1,313	$2,048	38.26	55.68
16	Durbanville	40000	52	$520	$1,013	$1,449	$2,261	275.04	59.37
17	East London	267007	53	$590	$1,086	$1,171	$2,060	155.05	44.3
18	Edenvale	60000	63	$663	$1,236	$1,554	$2,541	212.62	58.25
19	Emalahleni	108673	53	$796	$1,038	$1,747	$2,277	22.82	31.75
20	Fourways	-	49	$569	$979	$1,339	$1,989	125.21	82.69
21	George	-	54	$597	$1,081	$1,493	$2,415	36.32	31.5
22	Grahamstown	67264	50	$594	$1,006	$1,341	$2,106	46.27	13.94
23	Hartebeespoort	-	43	$487	$863	$1,243	$1,868	36.18	17.32
24	Heidelberg, GP	35000	51	$610	$1,029	$1,548	$2,174	151.96	11.34
25	Hermanus	-	57	$653	$1,154	$1,236	$2,482	206.27	27.71
26	Hillcrest	-	66	$511	$1,292	$1,209	$2,476	117.15	51.57
27	Howick	-	44	$411	$889	$1,078	$1,776	29.34	24.82
28	Jeffreys Bay	27107	52	$488	$1,039	$1,401	$2,018	91.31	32.73
29	Johannesburg	4434827	58	$657	$1,170	$1,603	$2,440	98.38	78.86
30	Kempton Park	-	50	$565	$985	$1,428	$2,175	53.97	58.25
31	Kimberley	225160	53	$576	$1,048	$1,425	$2,434	69.46	34.7
32	Klerksdorp	186515	48	$434	$951	$1,268	$1,994	93.03	31.7
33	Knysna	51078	55	$520	$1,104	$1,241	$2,187	50.86	33.42
34	Krugersdorp	275000	53	$593	$1,056	$1,398	$2,223	84.95	49.32
35	Kuruman	-	50	$534	$986	$1,377	$2,108	79.21	9.67
36	KwaMhlanga	18604	50	$586	$1,004	$1,507	$2,130	238.11	7.68
37	Ladismith, WC	7000	49	$507	$968	$1,378	$2,162	264.78	8.4
38	Louis Trichardt	25360	50	$488	$1,026	$1,430	$2,147	31.35	5.72
39	Margate	-	46	$465	$920	$1,164	$1,921	68.02	41.76
40	Middelburg	87348	51	$620	$1,000	$1,265	$2,159	81.33	28.9
41	Midrand	-	55	$631	$1,091	$1,488	$2,185	186.17	80.74
42	Mossel Bay	60000	50	$572	$1,005	$1,402	$2,197	87.96	31.56
43	Nelspruit	110159	50	$499	$993	$1,428	$2,132	219.78	21.46
44	Newcastle	363236	49	$469	$997	$1,232	$2,046	151.3	22.62
45	Oudtshoorn	61507	50	$580	$1,015	$1,361	$2,139	12.46	26.99
46	Paarl	112045	49	$587	$951	$1,366	$2,321	19.5	28.59
47	Pietermaritzburg	618536	53	$554	$1,063	$1,485	$2,149	102.59	41.4
48	Plettenberg Bay	-	52	$585	$1,063	$1,225	$2,322	157.44	27.86
49	Polokwane	628999	41	$531	$815	$1,325	$1,744	161.56	12.8
50	Port Elizabeth	1050000	59	$615	$1,182	$1,523	$2,467	39.97	50.4

South Africa Median Internet Speeds (Updated January 2026)

Mobile

Mbps

Fixed Broadband

Mbps

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

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Cost of Living in South Africa - Frequently Asked Questions

Many find the Cost of Living in South Africa surprisingly flexible, with options to suit lean budgets or more comfortable setups. Favor walkable neighborhoods, local markets, and reliable public transit to keep daily costs reasonable while still enjoying modern amenities in cities. The range is broad: urban cores can feel pricier, while smaller towns offer more breathing room. Seasonal tourism and exchange-rate shifts can nudge day-to-day expenses, but thoughtful housing and lifestyle choices keep options open. Tip: map a base area that minimizes commutes and maximizes access to coworking spaces and groceries.

Daily life varies by city and neighborhood, but you’ll find a mix of secure apartments, shared housing, and family-friendly blocks with easy grocery access. Cooking at home and shopping at local markets can stretch budgets, while dining out offers variety. Public transit, rideshares, and carpooling provide flexible travel options, and many neighborhoods are walkable enough to reduce commutes. For remote work, look for coworking hubs or cafés with dependable Wi‑Fi. South Africa living cost varies by location, so choose a base that minimizes long trips and maximizes access to essentials. Tip: plan a weekly errand loop to save time and fuel.

Quality of life hinges on fit: cluster where you work or study, prefer climate, and value safety and access to nature, festivals, and dining. A practical budgeting framework focuses on needs first, then flexible spending, with periodic reviews to rebalance when prices shift or seasons change. Track utility use and transportation choices, since electricity and transit costs can vary by season. Neighborhoods with mixed-use layouts and easy access to parks, cafes, and gyms tend to offer sustainable lifestyles for long stays. Tip: build in a quarterly check-in to align housing, transport, and groceries with your routine.