South Africa vs United Kingdom - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

South Africa United Kingdom
🚶 Cost of living one person
$815
$2183
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$1899
$5169
🏠 One person rent
$407
$1371
🏘️ Family rent
$697
$2364
🍽️ Food expenses
$237
$503
🚐 Transport expenses
$101
$155
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$1312
$3116
💸 GDP per capita
$6766
$46125
😃 Human freedom index
6.92
8.39
❤️ Life expectancy
62.3
80.7
👮 Corruption perceptions index
41
71
🌐 English speaking %
31%
98.3%
🎓 Higher education
83
100
😀 Quality of life
41
90
🏙️ Population
60.1M
67.3M

The average cost of living in South Africa ($815) is 63% less expensive than in the United Kingdom ($2183). South Africa ranked 107th vs 12th for the United Kingdom 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 1.4 months in the United Kingdom. Ranked 121st and 16th best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in South Africa vs United Kingdom infographic

Share this infographic!

Prices in South Africa vs the United Kingdom

We calculate prices for South Africa and the United Kingdom as a population-weighted mean of 36 and 277 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 United Kingdom
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$6.88
$18
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$31.6
$75.3
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$4.04
$9.16
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.92
$6.16
 Cappuccino
$1.71
$4.13
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$0.9
$2.24
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$394
$1440
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$283
$1111
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$620
$2555
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$543
$1959
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$63.4
$174
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$97.9
$268
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$38.1
$38
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
11.09%
5.8%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$790
$8083
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$670
$5251
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$1.62
$3.3
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$46.2
$85.9
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$9.2
$18.7
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.17
$1.94
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.01
$1.53
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$0.85
$1.54
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.21
$2.02
🥚 Eggs, x12
$2.02
$3.94
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$7.09
$9.27
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.29
$8.7
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$6.07
$13.5
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.37
$2.73
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.33
$1.46
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.24
$2.76
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.37
$3.2
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.17
$1.36
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.28
$1.36
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.56
$0.92
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$1.21
$2.75
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$5.02
$9.98
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.13
$2.45
🚬 Cigarette pack
$2.6
$16.7
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$3.84
$6.83
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$3.16
$5.23
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.59
$2.84
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$0.99
$2.12
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$25.9
$44.4
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$5.61
$13.7
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$25
$101
💇 Haircut, simple
$5.4
$14.3
👖 Brand Jeans
$43
$85.3
👟 Brand Sneakers
$78.2
$96.4
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$188
$1613
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$3937
$18419

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in South Africa vs the United Kingdom

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 the United Kingdom

City Cost of living Population
London
$3321
8.91M
Birmingham
$2004
1.14M
Leeds
$1872
789K
Glasgow
$1884
626K
Edinburgh
$2043
488K
Manchester
$1998
548K
Bristol
$2136
472K
Sheffield
$1715
518K
Coventry
$2320
363K
Liverpool
$1713
513K
Leicester
$1797
464K
Cardiff
$1770
361K
Westminster
$3004
255K
Bolton
$1711
285K
Belfast
$1741
334K
Nottingham
$1966
289K
Brighton and Hove
$1987
277K
Newcastle upon Tyne
$1910
300K
Milton Keynes
$2241
207K
Southampton
$1824
271K
Derby
$1654
255K
York
$1783
208K
Portsmouth
$1938
248K
Bradford
$1564
293K
Ipswich
$1719
290K
Plymouth
$1744
268K
Aberdeen
$1681
201K
Wolverhampton
$1687
251K
Kingston upon Hull
$1386
260K
Swindon
$1935
222K