Johannesburg vs Kuala Lumpur - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Johannesburg Kuala Lumpur
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1082
$866
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$2560
$2078
🏠 One person rent
$485
$415
🏘️ Family rent
$833
$706
🍽️ Food expenses
$306
$295
🚐 Transport expenses
$206
$74
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$1614
$1175
😷 Air quality
Moderate
Moderate
✈️ Airport proximity
12 km
16 km
🎓 Higher education
74
93
😀 Quality of life
62
78
🏙️ Population
4.43M
1.98M

The cost of living in Johannesburg is 25% more expensive than in Kuala Lumpur. Cities ranked 5031st and 6384th ($1082 vs $866) in the list of the most expensive cities in the world and ranked 4th and 1st in South Africa and Malaysia, respectively. Check South Africa vs Malaysia comparison.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 1.5 months in Johannesburg compared to 1.4 months in Kuala Lumpur. Johannesburg ranked 1st best city to live in South Africa vs Kuala Lumpur ranked 1st in Malaysia, while ranked 5648th and 985th among best cities to live in the world.

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Cost of living in Johannesburg vs Kuala Lumpur infographic

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Prices in Johannesburg vs Kuala Lumpur

Prices for goods and services in Johannesburg and Kuala Lumpur are partly crowdsourced by our visitors, just like yourself. Please consider telling us about your city.

Johannesburg Kuala Lumpur
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$10.1
$4.41
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$38.1
$26.8
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$5.03
$4.77
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$2.51
$4.73
☕ Cappuccino
$2.18
$3.11
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$1.08
$0.88
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$462
$522
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$342
$311
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$824
$927
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$632
$550
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$78.5
$36
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$122
$55.1
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$40.5
$25.7
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
11.57%
4.46%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$1106
$3056
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$741
$1519
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$2.21
$0.7
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$77.1
$16.2
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$11.7
$9.83
⛽ Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.32
$0.53
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.28
$2.04
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.01
$1.01
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.44
$1.45
🥚 Eggs, x12
$2.6
$2.47
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$10.5
$14
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$5.34
$4.97
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$7.4
$9.52
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.71
$3.13
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.63
$1.65
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.63
$2.66
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.77
$1.5
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.41
$1.27
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.6
$1.39
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.66
$0.46
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$1.53
$1.26
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$6.13
$17.5
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.46
$3.22
🚬 Cigarette pack
$3.19
$4.3
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$5.86
$3.73
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$4.11
$3.59
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.98
$1.76
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.49
$2.29
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$33.6
$46.7
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$7.33
$4.79
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$29.7
$21
💇 Haircut, simple
$6.46
$5.58
👖 Brand Jeans
$52.2
$62.4
👟 Brand Sneakers
$93.1
$94.3
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$227
$267
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$5503
$9002

Cost of living in other countries

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Cost of Living in the nearest cities

Cities near Johannesburg

Distance City Cost of living
11 km or 6.8 mi Sandton
$984
13 km or 8 mi Randburg
$890
19 km or 12 mi Soweto
$984
28 km or 17 mi Benoni
$826
40 km or 25 mi Springs
$740
41 km or 25 mi Centurion
$892
53 km or 33 mi Pretoria
$975
53 km or 33 mi Vereeniging
$706
59 km or 36 mi Vanderbijlpark
$799
71 km or 44 mi Brits
$875
101 km or 62 mi Rustenburg
$940
109 km or 68 mi Potchefstroom
$731
143 km or 89 mi Bethal
$838
152 km or 94 mi Middelburg
$830
155 km or 97 mi Klerksdorp
$762
179 km or 111 mi Kroonstad
$808
237 km or 147 mi Welkom
$762
244 km or 152 mi Mmabatho
$833
262 km or 163 mi Lobatse
$637
275 km or 171 mi Gaborone
$668
287 km or 179 mi Butha-Buthe
$570
302 km or 188 mi Kanye
$637
311 km or 193 mi Mbabane
$599
323 km or 201 mi Vryheid
$827
325 km or 202 mi Molepolole
$607
329 km or 204 mi Teyateyaneng
$533
333 km or 207 mi Manzini
$469
350 km or 217 mi Maseru
$650
366 km or 228 mi Mahalapye
$577
369 km or 229 mi Bloemfontein
$698
409 km or 254 mi Mafeteng
$598
417 km or 259 mi Palapye
$514
429 km or 267 mi Kimberley
$861
442 km or 275 mi Pietermaritzburg
$705
443 km or 275 mi Matola
$908
446 km or 277 mi Serowe
$536
454 km or 282 mi Maputo
$915
501 km or 311 mi Durban
$892
562 km or 349 mi Francistown
$587
577 km or 358 mi Xai-Xai
$915

Cities near Kuala Lumpur

Distance City Cost of living
11 km or 6.7 mi Petaling Jaya
$731
15 km or 9.1 mi Subang Jaya
$789
19 km or 12 mi Shah Alam
$681
24 km or 15 mi Putrajaya
$584
25 km or 16 mi Cyberjaya
$609
30 km or 19 mi Klang
$704
54 km or 33 mi Seremban
$643
123 km or 77 mi Malacca
$689
124 km or 77 mi Teluk Intan
$654
155 km or 97 mi Muar
$771
167 km or 104 mi Dumai
$519
176 km or 109 mi Ipoh
$657
196 km or 122 mi Kuantan
$552
199 km or 124 mi Batu Pahat
$788
211 km or 131 mi Tanjungbalai
$488
217 km or 135 mi Taiping
$552
219 km or 136 mi Kluang
$771
229 km or 142 mi Chukai
$598
282 km or 175 mi Tebing Tinggi
$461
291 km or 181 mi Butterworth
$701
291 km or 181 mi Kuala Terengganu
$534
292 km or 181 mi Pekanbaru
$503
293 km or 182 mi Pematangsiantar
$472
294 km or 183 mi George Town
$754
297 km or 184 mi Johor Bahru
$789
309 km or 192 mi Sungai Petani
$653
311 km or 193 mi Singapore City
$3201
315 km or 195 mi Bukit Merah
$2909
335 km or 208 mi Padangsidempuan
$563
338 km or 210 mi Kota Bharu
$517
341 km or 212 mi Medan
$466
346 km or 215 mi Batam
$542
360 km or 224 mi Binjai
$460
361 km or 225 mi Alor Setar
$509
394 km or 245 mi Tanjung Pinang
$502
402 km or 250 mi Kangar
$570
413 km or 257 mi Langkawi
$592
441 km or 274 mi Langsa
$449
451 km or 280 mi Hat Yai
$592
457 km or 284 mi Ko Lipe
$756