South Africa vs Switzerland - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

South Africa Switzerland
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1016
$3186
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$2301
$7750
🏠 One person rent
$520
$1830
🏘️ Family rent
$843
$3162
🍽️ Food expenses
$290
$946
🚐 Transport expenses
$120
$137
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$1121
$7360
💸 GDP per capita
$6253
$104K
😃 Human freedom index
7.1
9.14
❤️ Life expectancy
66.1
84.1
👮 Corruption perceptions index
41
81
🌐 English speaking %
31%
61.3%
🎓 Higher education
82
99
😀 Quality of life
40
100
🏙️ Population
64M
9.03M

The average cost of living in South Africa ($1016) is 68% less expensive than in Switzerland ($3186). South Africa ranked 94th vs 4th 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 1.1 months in South Africa compared to 2.3 months in Switzerland. Ranked 128th and 1st best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in South Africa vs Switzerland infographic

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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
$9.29
$30.3
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$37.7
$114
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$4.92
$19
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$2.37
$9.09
 Cappuccino
$2.1
$6.4
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$1.09
$5.42
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$518
$1889
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$376
$1540
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$933
$3598
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$746
$2878
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$75.4
$162
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$117
$249
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$40.2
$58.1
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
11.51%
2.45%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$1209
$18825
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$891
$8948
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$2.01
$4.33
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$46.6
$102
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$10.7
$40.8
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.27
$2.22
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.18
$2.25
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.01
$3.62
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.56
$4.19
🥚 Eggs, x12
$2.45
$7.96
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$8.66
$24.4
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$5.01
$26.8
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$7.26
$47.1
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.67
$3.9
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.6
$2.41
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.62
$3.05
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.65
$5.81
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.35
$2.74
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.41
$2.41
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.68
$0.92
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$1.44
$3.55
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$5.62
$15.3
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.42
$2.61
🚬 Cigarette pack
$3.01
$11.2
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$5.02
$18.9
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$3.6
$5.88
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.86
$4.67
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.35
$4.41
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$32.7
$90.9
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$6.96
$23.9
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$29.6
$144
💇 Haircut, simple
$6.48
$46.7
👖 Brand Jeans
$52.4
$134
👟 Brand Sneakers
$96.9
$160
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$201
$2481
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$4714
$22968

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in South Africa vs Switzerland

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

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

In Switzerland

City Cost of living Population
Zurich
$3691
449K
Geneva
$3577
207K
Basel
$2964
176K
Lausanne
$3069
144K
Bern
$2945
137K
Winterthur
$3207
119K
Lucerne
$3231
85.5K
St. Gallen
$2694
78.2K
Lugano
$2673
63.5K
Biel/Bienne
$2576
55.9K
Koniz
$2956
43K
Thun
$2725
43.9K
Schaffhausen
$2699
38.7K
Altstetten
$3392
36.3K
Zug
$3836
31.5K
Uster
$3249
36.8K
Bellinzona
$3158
43.8K
Chur
$2846
35.4K
Fribourg
$2755
38.7K
Vernier
$3358
34.8K
Neuchatel
$2732
33.5K
Lancy
$3317
31.9K
Sion
$2397
34.7K
Montreux
$3399
26K
Yverdon-les-Bains
$3123
30.2K
Emmen
$3197
29.3K
Dubendorf
$3276
28K
La Chaux-de-Fonds
$2567
37.2K
Kriens
$3175
27K
Rapperswil-Jona
$3169
27K