Nigeria vs South Africa - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Nigeria South Africa
🚶 Cost of living one person
$879
$1016
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$1884
$2301
🏠 One person rent
$499
$520
🏘️ Family rent
$813
$843
🍽️ Food expenses
$227
$290
🚐 Transport expenses
$108
$120
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$85
$1121
💸 GDP per capita
$807
$6253
😃 Human freedom index
5.61
7.1
❤️ Life expectancy
54.5
66.1
👮 Corruption perceptions index
26
41
🌐 English speaking %
60.6%
31%
🎓 Higher education
61
82
😀 Quality of life
13
40
🏙️ Population
233M
64M

The average cost of living in Nigeria ($879) is 13% less expensive than in South Africa ($1016). Nigeria ranked 114th 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 0.1 months in Nigeria compared to 1.1 months in South Africa. Ranked 188th and 128th best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in Nigeria vs South Africa infographic

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Prices in Nigeria vs South Africa

We calculate prices for Nigeria and South Africa as a population-weighted mean of 33 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.

Nigeria South Africa
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$2.69
$9.29
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$33.1
$37.7
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$4.5
$4.92
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$0.98
$2.37
 Cappuccino
$2.26
$2.1
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$0.44
$1.09
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$576
$518
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$418
$376
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1753
$933
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1082
$746
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$22.4
$75.4
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$34.3
$117
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$26.6
$40.2
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
19.64%
11.51%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$1323
$1209
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$1239
$891
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$0.59
$2.01
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$27.4
$46.6
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$12.8
$10.7
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$0.6
$1.27
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$2.17
$1.18
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.16
$1.01
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.84
$1.56
🥚 Eggs, x12
$1.78
$2.45
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$5.03
$8.66
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.96
$5.01
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.78
$7.26
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.84
$1.67
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.06
$1.6
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.82
$1.62
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.77
$1.65
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.79
$1.35
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2
$1.41
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.39
$0.68
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$0.71
$1.44
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$3.74
$5.62
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$0.76
$1.42
🚬 Cigarette pack
$1.39
$3.01
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$1.92
$5.02
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$1.26
$3.6
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$0.81
$1.86
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$0.75
$1.35
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$28.5
$32.7
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$5.12
$6.96
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$9.39
$29.6
💇 Haircut, simple
$1.66
$6.48
👖 Brand Jeans
$18.5
$52.4
👟 Brand Sneakers
$59.3
$96.9
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$85.4
$201
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$1849
$4714

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in Nigeria vs South Africa

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In Nigeria

City Cost of living Population
Lagos
$1102
15.1M
Kano
$563
4.35M
Ibadan
$752
2.55M
Port Harcourt
$676
3.33M
Abuja
$1514
1.69M
Benin
$632
1.78M
Onitsha
$1051
1.48M
Akure
$644
848K
Enugu
$563
1.03M
Ilorin
$526
848K
Kaduna
$393
760K
Aba
$674
1.16M
Maiduguri
$618
1.2M
Bauchi
$781
694K
Owerri
$1774
908K
Ado Ekiti
$642
447K
Abeokuta
$1013
889K
Oyo
$664
387K
Zaria
$652
408K
Jos
$810
623K
Gusau
$638
383K
Minna
$852
322K
Warri
$926
363K
Katsina
$618
318K
Ife
$778
502K
Sokoto
$466
428K
Owo
$664
222K
Osogbo
$705
202K
Umuahia
$961
359K
Calabar
$397
371K

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