South Africa vs Sweden - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

South Africa Sweden
🚶 Cost of living one person
$815
$1578
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$1899
$3550
🏠 One person rent
$407
$827
🏘️ Family rent
$697
$1432
🍽️ Food expenses
$237
$507
🚐 Transport expenses
$101
$116
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$1312
$2823
💸 GDP per capita
$6766
$56374
😃 Human freedom index
6.92
8.75
❤️ Life expectancy
62.3
83.2
👮 Corruption perceptions index
41
82
🌐 English speaking %
31%
89%
🎓 Higher education
83
95
😀 Quality of life
41
92
🏙️ Population
60.1M
10.4M

The average cost of living in South Africa ($815) is 48% less expensive than in Sweden ($1578). South Africa ranked 107th vs 28th for Sweden in the list of the most expensive countries in the world.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 1.6 months in South Africa compared to 1.8 months in Sweden. Ranked 121st and 11th best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in South Africa vs Sweden infographic

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Prices in South Africa vs Sweden

We calculate prices for South Africa and Sweden as a population-weighted mean of 36 and 60 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.

South Africa Sweden
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$6.88
$12
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$31.6
$66.7
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$4.04
$9.74
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.92
$7.14
 Cappuccino
$1.71
$4.05
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$0.9
$2.2
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$394
$936
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$283
$680
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$620
$1639
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$543
$1216
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$63.4
$68.1
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$97.9
$105
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$38.1
$30.7
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
11.09%
4.59%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$790
$5722
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$670
$3563
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$1.62
$3.32
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$46.2
$76.9
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$9.2
$22.7
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.17
$1.9
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.01
$1.58
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$0.85
$2.68
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.21
$3.22
🥚 Eggs, x12
$2.02
$4.05
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$7.09
$11.1
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.29
$11.8
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$6.07
$17.1
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.37
$2.87
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.33
$2.59
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.24
$2.95
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.37
$4.21
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.17
$1.52
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.28
$1.71
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.56
$0.94
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$1.21
$2.13
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$5.02
$10.2
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.13
$1.99
🚬 Cigarette pack
$2.6
$6.54
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$3.84
$7.18
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$3.16
$3.43
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.59
$2.71
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$0.99
$1.99
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$25.9
$38.7
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$5.61
$14.8
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$25
$29.9
💇 Haircut, simple
$5.4
$24.1
👖 Brand Jeans
$43
$81.7
👟 Brand Sneakers
$78.2
$89
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$188
$128
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$3937
$5136

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in South Africa vs Sweden

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In South Africa

City Cost of living Population
Johannesburg
$908
4.43M
Soweto
$875
1.27M
Pretoria
$783
742K
Rustenburg
$845
550K
Cape Town
$881
434K
Randburg
$776
337K
Durban
$780
595K
Centurion
$755
237K
Sandton
$889
222K
Pietermaritzburg
$609
619K
East London
$683
267K
Port Elizabeth
$866
312K
Kimberley
$753
225K
Kroonstad
$701
169K
Benoni
$741
159K
Klerksdorp
$621
187K
Bloemfontein
$601
256K
Springs
$631
122K
Vereeniging
$637
99K
Paarl
$773
112K
Worcester
$632
97.1K
Potchefstroom
$625
149K
Vanderbijlpark
$698
95.8K
Uitenhage
$805
104K
George
$684
157K
Mthatha
$689
96.1K
Upington
$643
121K
Middelburg
$866
87.3K
Bethal
$746
60.8K
Brits
$751
53.5K

In Sweden

City Cost of living Population
Stockholm
$1981
979K
Gothenburg
$1690
608K
Malmo
$1566
325K
Uppsala
$1512
167K
Helsingborg
$1392
114K
Vasteras
$1263
129K
Linkoping
$1342
116K
Orebro
$1276
127K
Lund
$1480
94.4K
Solna
$1727
85.3K
Jonkoping
$1411
101K
Eskilstuna
$1271
69.9K
Umea
$1210
91.9K
Sodertalje
$1650
76.3K
Taby
$1810
75.4K
Norrkoping
$1228
98.1K
Sollentuna
$2032
76.2K
Halmstad
$1318
71.4K
Karlstad
$1246
67.1K
Lulea
$1114
49.1K
Trollhattan
$1299
50.5K
Uddevalla
$1428
57.3K
Gavle
$1420
79K
Boras
$1250
74K
Sundsvall
$1296
58.8K
Vaxjo
$1382
71.3K
Tumba
$1699
46K
Lidingo
$1742
44.1K
Sigtuna
$1659
52.2K
Skovde
$1465
57.5K