Australia vs South Africa - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Australia South Africa
🚶 Cost of living one person
$2460
$1116
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$5814
$2517
🏠 One person rent
$1470
$573
🏘️ Family rent
$2471
$928
🍽️ Food expenses
$593
$324
🚐 Transport expenses
$241
$125
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$4220
$395
💸 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 %
91.1%
50.7%
🎓 Higher education
98
82
😀 Quality of life
97
38
🏙️ Population
27.2M
64M

The average cost of living in Australia ($2460) is 121% more expensive than in South Africa ($1116). Australia ranked 11th vs 79th 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 0.4 months in South Africa. Ranked 4th and 135th 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
$16.2
$10.6
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$75.6
$41.8
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$11.3
$5.7
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$8.26
$2.46
 Cappuccino
$4.03
$2.34
🥤 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
$1697
$579
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$1204
$417
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$2994
$1059
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$2097
$867
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$117
$95.7
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$179
$147
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$52.7
$39.7
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
5.8%
11.1%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$8713
$1300
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$6062
$937
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$3.01
$1.91
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$98.4
$60.8
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$18.7
$9.05
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.36
$1.34
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.67
$1.27
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$2.48
$1.12
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.13
$1.81
🥚 Eggs, x12
$5.54
$2.6
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$11.9
$8.53
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$9.63
$5.69
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$15.3
$8.33
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.82
$1.94
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.09
$1.81
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.21
$1.88
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.82
$1.9
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.88
$1.55
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.41
$1.6
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.05
$0.81
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.74
$1.52
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$14.5
$5.87
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$4.85
$1.61
🚬 Cigarette pack
$26.1
$3.26
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$7.91
$5.56
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$5.41
$3.89
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$3.38
$2.06
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$3.22
$1.38
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$55.3
$35.7
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$16
$7.85
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$61.5
$30.7
💇 Haircut, simple
$22.8
$7.32
👖 Brand Jeans
$80.5
$56.4
👟 Brand Sneakers
$116
$107
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$2231
$235
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$20538
$5552

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in Australia vs South Africa

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Cost of Living in Popular cities

In Australia

City Cost of living Population
Melbourne
$2543
5.35M
Sydney
$2844
5.45M
Brisbane
$2323
2.71M
Perth
$2562
2.14M
Adelaide
$2355
1.39M
Gold Coast
$2530
608K
Canberra
$2258
381K
Wollongong
$1695
262K
Sunshine Coast
$1838
284K
Ipswich
$1825
233K
Hobart
$2364
197K
Townsville
$2015
174K
Cairns
$1851
147K
Darwin
$2065
140K
Geelong
$2179
180K
Newcastle
$1995
153K
Launceston
$1728
80.9K
Toowoomba
$1720
108K
Ballarat
$1606
116K
Bunbury
$1831
75.2K
Bendigo
$1493
103K
Melton
$1896
76.3K
Rockhampton
$1642
63.2K
Tarneit
$1813
56.4K
Pakenham
$1936
54.1K
Hervey Bay
$1883
57.7K
Berwick
$1915
50.3K
Blacktown
$1709
51K
Orange
$1460
41.2K
Gladstone
$1643
34.7K

In South Africa

City Cost of living Population
Johannesburg
$1204
4.8M
Cape Town
$1386
3.78M
Soweto
$1031
1.27M
Pretoria
$1015
742K
Pietermaritzburg
$725
619K
Durban
$938
595K
Rustenburg
$994
550K
Randburg
$912
337K
Port Elizabeth
$1020
312K
East London
$773
267K
Bloemfontein
$742
256K
Centurion
$997
237K
Kimberley
$904
225K
Sandton
$1104
222K
Klerksdorp
$860
187K
Kroonstad
$872
169K
Benoni
$851
159K
George
$877
157K
Potchefstroom
$789
149K
Upington
$796
121K
Springs
$784
122K
Paarl
$1421
112K
Uitenhage
$968
104K
Vereeniging
$742
99.8K
Vanderbijlpark
$867
95.8K
Worcester
$763
97.1K
Mthatha
$953
96.1K
Middelburg
$875
87.3K
Komani
$1033
68.9K
Makhanda
$863
67.3K