Australia vs South Africa - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Australia South Africa
🚶 Cost of living one person
$2425
$1102
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$5719
$2487
🏠 One person rent
$1445
$568
🏘️ Family rent
$2426
$919
🍽️ Food expenses
$589
$316
🚐 Transport expenses
$239
$124
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$4122
$1286
💸 GDP per capita
$64604
$6267
😃 Human freedom index
8.79
7.07
❤️ Life expectancy
83.1
66.1
👮 Corruption perceptions index
76
41
🌐 English speaking %
92.8%
31%
🎓 Higher education
98
82
😀 Quality of life
96
42
🏙️ Population
27.2M
64M

The average cost of living in Australia ($2425) is 120% more expensive than in South Africa ($1102). Australia ranked 12th vs 81st for South Africa in the list of the most expensive countries in the world.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 1.7 months in Australia compared to 1.2 months in South Africa. Ranked 4th and 124th best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

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Prices in Australia vs South Africa

We calculate prices for Australia and South Africa as a population-weighted mean of 64 and 36 cities, respectively. Since large cities tend to have a higher cost of living, it's better to visit specific city pages below for more relevant information.

Australia South Africa
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$16.4
$10.5
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$75.8
$40.8
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$11.3
$5.34
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$8.04
$2.57
 Cappuccino
$3.96
$2.32
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$2.89
$1.2
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$1653
$579
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$1197
$416
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$2975
$1083
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$2074
$849
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$117
$84.3
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$179
$130
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$53.6
$39.4
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
5.88%
11.19%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$8768
$1265
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$6090
$951
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$3.04
$1.95
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$97.1
$53.8
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$19.1
$9.1
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.33
$1.35
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.71
$1.29
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$2.53
$1.12
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.15
$1.79
🥚 Eggs, x12
$5.46
$2.59
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12.1
$8.89
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$9.48
$5.51
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$15.4
$7.92
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.66
$1.83
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.13
$1.75
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.28
$1.83
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.77
$1.81
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.82
$1.54
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.46
$1.58
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.07
$0.76
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.75
$1.56
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$14.5
$6.03
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$4.96
$1.56
🚬 Cigarette pack
$24.5
$3.29
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$8.52
$5.69
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$5.44
$4.01
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$3.16
$2.13
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$3.02
$1.42
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$51.8
$36
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$15.5
$7.67
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$60.4
$31.8
💇 Haircut, simple
$22
$7.36
👖 Brand Jeans
$79.8
$57
👟 Brand Sneakers
$117
$104
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$2052
$227
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$19056
$5433

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in Australia vs South Africa

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In Australia

City Cost of living Population
Melbourne
$2496
5.35M
Sydney
$2844
5.45M
Brisbane
$2269
2.71M
Perth
$2448
2.14M
Adelaide
$2338
1.39M
Gold Coast
$2528
608K
Canberra
$2223
381K
Wollongong
$1695
262K
Sunshine Coast
$1835
284K
Ipswich
$1813
233K
Hobart
$2308
197K
Townsville
$1839
174K
Geelong
$2217
180K
Darwin
$1861
140K
Newcastle
$1997
153K
Cairns
$1695
147K
Ballarat
$1604
116K
Bunbury
$1838
75.2K
Bendigo
$1487
103K
Toowoomba
$1766
108K
Launceston
$1753
80.9K
Melton
$1906
76.3K
Rockhampton
$1635
63.2K
Hervey Bay
$1864
57.7K
Tarneit
$1822
56.4K
Blacktown
$1710
51K
Orange
$1477
41.2K
Bundaberg
$1727
70.5K
Gladstone
$1640
34.7K
Wagga Wagga
$1583
49.7K

In South Africa

City Cost of living Population
Johannesburg
$1171
4.8M
Soweto
$1057
1.27M
Cape Town
$1366
3.78M
Pretoria
$1049
742K
Pietermaritzburg
$716
839K
Rustenburg
$1017
550K
Durban
$948
595K
Sandton
$1089
222K
Centurion
$967
237K
East London
$795
267K
Kimberley
$927
225K
Benoni
$892
159K
Randburg
$958
337K
George
$927
157K
Kroonstad
$875
169K
Springs
$792
122K
Klerksdorp
$826
187K
Potchefstroom
$791
149K
Vereeniging
$765
99.8K
Paarl
$1345
112K
Uitenhage
$980
104K
Middelburg
$899
87.3K
Port Elizabeth
$1036
312K
Komani
$1050
99K
Vanderbijlpark
$865
95.8K
Mthatha
$952
96.1K
Upington
$811
121K
Bloemfontein
$763
256K
Makhanda
$874
67.3K
Worcester
$718
97.1K