Japan vs South Africa - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Japan South Africa
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1130
$1016
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$2751
$2301
🏠 One person rent
$510
$520
🏘️ Family rent
$843
$843
🍽️ Food expenses
$388
$290
🚐 Transport expenses
$134
$120
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$1977
$1121
💸 GDP per capita
$32476
$6253
😃 Human freedom index
8.73
7.1
❤️ Life expectancy
84
66.1
👮 Corruption perceptions index
71
41
🌐 English speaking %
15%
31%
🎓 Higher education
98
82
😀 Quality of life
89
40
🏙️ Population
124M
64M

The average cost of living in Japan ($1130) is 11% more expensive than in South Africa ($1016). Japan ranked 76th vs 94th 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 Japan compared to 1.1 months in South Africa. Ranked 18th and 128th best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in Japan vs South Africa infographic

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Prices in Japan vs South Africa

We calculate prices for Japan and South Africa as a population-weighted mean of 907 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.

Japan South Africa
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$6.32
$9.29
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$34.1
$37.7
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$4.95
$4.92
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$2.96
$2.37
 Cappuccino
$3.11
$2.1
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$1.09
$1.09
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$514
$518
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$355
$376
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1107
$933
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$694
$746
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$92.9
$75.4
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$143
$117
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$30.2
$40.2
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
1.8%
11.51%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4931
$1209
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$2794
$891
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$1.66
$2.01
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$59.9
$46.6
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$25.5
$10.7
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.11
$1.27
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.43
$1.18
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.42
$1.01
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.03
$1.56
🥚 Eggs, x12
$2.06
$2.45
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$11.2
$8.66
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$6.28
$5.01
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$18.7
$7.26
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.71
$1.67
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.47
$1.6
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.68
$1.62
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.51
$1.65
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.62
$1.35
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.39
$1.41
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.6
$0.68
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$1.46
$1.44
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$8.31
$5.62
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.93
$1.42
🚬 Cigarette pack
$3.66
$3.01
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$10.3
$5.02
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$3.65
$3.6
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.36
$1.86
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.63
$1.35
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$53.7
$32.7
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$12.1
$6.96
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$33.3
$29.6
💇 Haircut, simple
$16.4
$6.48
👖 Brand Jeans
$45.2
$52.4
👟 Brand Sneakers
$56.9
$96.9
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$336
$201
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$12869
$4714

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in Japan vs South Africa

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In Japan

City Cost of living Population
Tokyo
$1698
14.3M
Yokohama
$1336
3.76M
Osaka
$1237
2.75M
Nagoya
$1189
2.33M
Kawasaki
$1354
1.54M
Sapporo
$1181
1.96M
Hiroshima
$883
1.2M
Kyoto
$1107
1.46M
Kobe
$1106
1.52M
Saitama
$1037
1.33M
Fukuoka
$1065
1.6M
Chiba
$1251
975K
Shizuoka
$1025
686K
Sakai
$1115
824K
Sagamihara
$1021
726K
Sendai
$1069
1.06M
Niigata
$1007
791K
Kitakyushu
$1078
935K
Funabashi
$1117
641K
Hachioji
$1286
576K
Kawaguchi
$1025
594K
Hamamatsu
$1016
788K
Kumamoto
$991
738K
Kagoshima
$1016
594K
Kashiwa
$1116
428K
Utsunomiya
$1052
518K
Machida
$1049
434K
Matsudo
$1024
498K
Ichikawa
$1041
496K
Nishinomiya
$1091
487K

In South Africa

City Cost of living Population
Johannesburg
$1082
4.43M
Soweto
$984
1.27M
Cape Town
$1231
3.78M
Pretoria
$975
742K
Pietermaritzburg
$705
839K
Rustenburg
$940
550K
Durban
$892
595K
Centurion
$892
237K
Sandton
$984
222K
Randburg
$890
337K
East London
$784
267K
Kimberley
$861
225K
Benoni
$826
159K
George
$857
157K
Klerksdorp
$762
187K
Springs
$740
122K
Kroonstad
$808
169K
Paarl
$1243
112K
Potchefstroom
$731
149K
Vereeniging
$706
99K
Middelburg
$830
87.3K
Makhanda
$814
67.3K
Uitenhage
$946
104K
Worcester
$666
97.1K
Vanderbijlpark
$799
95.8K
Port Elizabeth
$1005
312K
Upington
$746
121K
Mthatha
$901
96.1K
Bloemfontein
$698
256K
Komani
$988
68.9K