Germany vs South Africa - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Germany South Africa
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1777
$1102
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$4212
$2487
🏠 One person rent
$928
$568
🏘️ Family rent
$1581
$919
🍽️ Food expenses
$563
$316
🚐 Transport expenses
$132
$124
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$3481
$1286
💸 GDP per capita
$56104
$6267
😃 Human freedom index
8.67
7.07
❤️ Life expectancy
80.5
66.1
👮 Corruption perceptions index
77
41
🌐 English speaking %
56.3%
31%
🎓 Higher education
94
82
😀 Quality of life
93
42
🏙️ Population
83.5M
64M

The average cost of living in Germany ($1777) is 61% more expensive than in South Africa ($1102). Germany ranked 26th 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 2 months in Germany compared to 1.2 months in South Africa. Ranked 12th 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 Germany vs South Africa

We calculate prices for Germany and South Africa as a population-weighted mean of 662 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.

Germany South Africa
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$16.6
$10.5
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$74.6
$40.8
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$12.5
$5.34
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$5.35
$2.57
 Cappuccino
$4.23
$2.32
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$3.48
$1.2
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$884
$579
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$676
$416
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1758
$1083
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1371
$849
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$164
$84.3
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$252
$130
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$46.4
$39.4
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
3.85%
11.19%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$6063
$1265
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4133
$951
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$3.86
$1.95
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$66.2
$53.8
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$28
$9.1
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$2.01
$1.35
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.33
$1.29
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$2.24
$1.12
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.42
$1.79
🥚 Eggs, x12
$3.94
$2.59
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$15
$8.89
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12.8
$5.51
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$21.8
$7.92
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.4
$1.83
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.05
$1.75
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.38
$1.83
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.71
$1.81
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.66
$1.54
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.41
$1.58
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.74
$0.76
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.22
$1.56
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$6.93
$6.03
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.1
$1.56
🚬 Cigarette pack
$10
$3.29
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$10.3
$5.69
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$3.14
$4.01
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.75
$2.13
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.97
$1.42
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$42.5
$36
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$15.1
$7.67
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$72.1
$31.8
💇 Haircut, simple
$19
$7.36
👖 Brand Jeans
$93.9
$57
👟 Brand Sneakers
$105
$104
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$545
$227
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$16625
$5433

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in Germany vs South Africa

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In Germany

City Cost of living Population
Berlin
$2302
3.78M
Hamburg City
$2194
1.91M
Munich
$2499
1.51M
Cologne
$1990
1.09M
Frankfurt
$2230
776K
Dusseldorf
$1944
631K
Stuttgart
$2169
633K
Dortmund
$1637
595K
Bremen City
$1752
577K
Essen
$1561
587K
Nuremberg
$1777
526K
Leipzig
$1652
620K
Dresden
$1531
566K
Hanover
$1792
548K
Duisburg
$1467
504K
Mannheim
$1783
317K
Bonn
$1908
336K
Wuppertal
$1486
359K
Bielefeld
$1653
338K
Munster
$1835
323K
Augsburg
$1983
303K
Bochum
$1561
366K
Wiesbaden
$1939
286K
Karlsruhe
$1933
310K
Braunschweig
$1566
252K
Aachen
$1644
253K
Freiburg im Breisgau
$1747
237K
Monchengladbach
$1669
269K
Lubeck
$1767
219K
Kiel
$1588
249K

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