China vs South Africa - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

China South Africa
🚶 Cost of living one person
$663
$1116
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$1807
$2517
🏠 One person rent
$276
$573
🏘️ Family rent
$463
$928
🍽️ Food expenses
$235
$324
🚐 Transport expenses
$72.4
$125
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$868
$395
💸 GDP per capita
$13303
$6267
😃 Human freedom index
4.93
7.07
❤️ Life expectancy
78
66.1
👮 Corruption perceptions index
43
41
🌐 English speaking %
0.7%
50.7%
🎓 Higher education
88
82
😀 Quality of life
52
38
🏙️ Population
1.41B
64M

The average cost of living in China ($663) is 41% less expensive than in South Africa ($1116). China ranked 158th 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 1.3 months in China compared to 0.4 months in South Africa. Ranked 85th 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 China vs South Africa

We calculate prices for China and South Africa as a population-weighted mean of 544 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.

China South Africa
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$3.15
$10.6
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$21.8
$41.8
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$5.04
$5.7
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.32
$2.46
 Cappuccino
$2.84
$2.34
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$0.51
$1.2
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$316
$579
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$209
$417
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$687
$1059
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$419
$867
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$35.8
$95.7
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$55.1
$147
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$11
$39.7
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
3.45%
11.1%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4148
$1300
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$2286
$937
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$0.37
$1.91
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$20.7
$60.8
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$4.21
$9.05
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.19
$1.34
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.78
$1.27
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.68
$1.12
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.01
$1.81
🥚 Eggs, x12
$1.59
$2.6
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$13.2
$8.53
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.58
$5.69
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$11
$8.33
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.81
$1.94
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.25
$1.81
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.49
$1.88
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.27
$1.9
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$0.76
$1.55
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$0.92
$1.6
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.39
$0.81
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$1.27
$1.52
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$12
$5.87
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$0.86
$1.61
🚬 Cigarette pack
$3.51
$3.26
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$5.2
$5.56
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$4.85
$3.89
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.53
$2.06
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.74
$1.38
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$39.7
$35.7
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$6.26
$7.85
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$34.5
$30.7
💇 Haircut, simple
$5.76
$7.32
👖 Brand Jeans
$46.5
$56.4
👟 Brand Sneakers
$73.8
$107
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$479
$235
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$17696
$5552

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in China vs South Africa

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In China

City Cost of living Population
Chongqing
$631
32.1M
Shanghai
$1147
24.9M
Chengdu
$688
20.9M
Guangzhou
$785
18.7M
Suzhou
$798
12.7M
Beijing
$1108
21.9M
Shenzhen
$995
17.5M
Tianjin
$682
13.9M
Wuhan
$657
12.3M
Baoding
$480
11.5M
Xi'an
$594
13M
Nanjing
$789
9.31M
Zhengzhou
$523
12.6M
Qingdao
$649
10.1M
Ningbo
$660
9.4M
Hangzhou
$899
11.9M
Changsha
$622
10M
Nantong
$581
7.73M
Shenyang
$612
9.07M
Hefei
$670
9.37M
Jinan
$546
9.2M
Harbin
$713
10M
Linyi
$523
11M
Dongguan
$694
10.5M
Shijiazhuang
$521
10.6M
Changchun
$607
9.07M
Xuzhou
$531
9.08M
Fuzhou
$679
8.29M
Dalian
$737
7.45M
Wenzhou
$774
9.57M

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