South Africa vs Switzerland - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

South Africa Switzerland
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1116
$3270
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$2517
$7945
🏠 One person rent
$573
$1915
🏘️ Family rent
$928
$3289
🍽️ Food expenses
$324
$936
🚐 Transport expenses
$125
$144
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$395
$7446
💸 GDP per capita
$6267
$104K
😃 Human freedom index
7.07
9.15
❤️ Life expectancy
66.1
84.1
👮 Corruption perceptions index
41
80
🌐 English speaking %
50.7%
38.7%
🎓 Higher education
82
99
😀 Quality of life
38
100
🏙️ Population
64M
9.01M

The average cost of living in South Africa ($1116) is 66% less expensive than in Switzerland ($3270). South Africa ranked 79th vs 3rd for Switzerland in the list of the most expensive countries in the world.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 0.4 months in South Africa compared to 2.3 months in Switzerland. Ranked 135th and 1st best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

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Prices in South Africa vs Switzerland

We calculate prices for South Africa and Switzerland as a population-weighted mean of 36 and 50 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 Switzerland
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$10.6
$30.6
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$41.8
$109
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$5.7
$18.6
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$2.46
$9.37
 Cappuccino
$2.34
$6.55
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$1.2
$5.33
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$579
$2006
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$417
$1610
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1059
$3775
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$867
$2961
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$95.7
$169
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$147
$259
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$39.7
$58.9
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
11.1%
2.03%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$1300
$16647
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$937
$8785
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$1.91
$4.53
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$60.8
$98.6
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$9.05
$44.1
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.34
$2.26
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.27
$2.27
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.12
$3.58
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.81
$3.66
🥚 Eggs, x12
$2.6
$8.25
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$8.53
$24.9
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$5.69
$27.7
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$8.33
$43.2
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.94
$3.95
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.81
$2.25
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.88
$3.01
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.9
$5
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.55
$2.28
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.6
$2.23
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.81
$0.96
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$1.52
$3.42
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$5.87
$14.7
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.61
$2.66
🚬 Cigarette pack
$3.26
$11.4
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$5.56
$18.9
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$3.89
$5.9
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$2.06
$4.78
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.38
$4.45
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$35.7
$90.4
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$7.85
$24.2
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$30.7
$146
💇 Haircut, simple
$7.32
$46.9
👖 Brand Jeans
$56.4
$137
👟 Brand Sneakers
$107
$160
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$235
$2583
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$5552
$27660

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in South Africa vs Switzerland

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Cost of Living in Popular cities

In South Africa

City Cost of living Population
Johannesburg
$1204
4.8M
Cape Town
$1386
3.78M
Soweto
$1031
1.27M
Pretoria
$1015
742K
Pietermaritzburg
$725
619K
Durban
$938
595K
Rustenburg
$994
550K
Randburg
$912
337K
Port Elizabeth
$1020
312K
East London
$773
267K
Bloemfontein
$742
256K
Centurion
$997
237K
Kimberley
$904
225K
Sandton
$1104
222K
Klerksdorp
$860
187K
Kroonstad
$872
169K
Benoni
$851
159K
George
$877
157K
Potchefstroom
$789
149K
Upington
$796
121K
Springs
$784
122K
Paarl
$1421
112K
Uitenhage
$968
104K
Vereeniging
$742
99.8K
Vanderbijlpark
$867
95.8K
Worcester
$763
97.1K
Mthatha
$953
96.1K
Middelburg
$875
87.3K
Komani
$1033
68.9K
Makhanda
$863
67.3K

In Switzerland

City Cost of living Population
Zurich
$3857
452K
Geneva
$3658
209K
Basel
$3034
176K
Lausanne
$3134
145K
Bern
$2857
137K
Winterthur
$3267
120K
Lucerne
$3321
86.2K
St. Gallen
$3120
78.9K
Lugano
$2763
63.5K
Biel/Bienne
$2543
55.9K
Schaffhausen
$2611
39K
Neuchatel
$2868
45.3K
Koniz
$2907
43K
Bellinzona
$3160
45.3K
Altstetten
$3514
36.9K
Fribourg
$2891
39.2K
Chur
$2850
39.2K
Lancy
$3344
37.3K
Thun
$2711
43.9K
Uster
$3239
36.8K
Vernier
$3400
34.8K
Zug
$4491
32.1K
Montreux
$3393
27K
Sion
$2468
37.2K
Yverdon-les-Bains
$3126
30.3K
Baden
$3312
23.9K
Emmen
$3288
29.3K
Dietikon
$3348
26.9K
Riehen
$3587
22.5K
La Chaux-de-Fonds
$2554
37.6K