Cost of living comparison

compared to

South Africa vs. Chile Cost of Living Summary

South Africa is 6.2% cheaper than Chile overall.

Restaurants: pay 18.1% less in South Africa
Groceries: pay 16.4% less in South Africa
Transportation: pay 15.3% more in South Africa
Housing: pay 15.8% more in South Africa
Childcare: pay 36.7% less in South Africa
Entertainment and Sports: pay 23.9% less in South Africa
Clothing: pay 20.8% more in South Africa

The cost of clothing, housing, and transportation in South Africa are more expensive than in Chile. Expenses including childcare, entertainment and sports, restaurants, and groceries are lower in South Africa.

South Africa vs. Chile Cost Breakdown

If you lived in South Africa instead of Chile, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 18.1% less for restaurants

	Chile	South Africa
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$8.18 CLF0.1900	$9.33 ZAR159.73	+14.1%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$7.32 CLF0.1700	$5.11 ZAR87.49	-30.2%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.38 CLF0.0300	$1.03 ZAR17.65	-25.5%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.16 CLF0.0300	$0.80 ZAR13.74	-30.8%
Average			-18.1%

Chile vs. South Africa - Cost of restaurants

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pay 16.4% less for groceries

	Chile	South Africa
Bread 1 loaf	$1.58 CLF0.0400	$1.00 ZAR17.16	-36.6%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.12 CLF0.1200	$3.88 ZAR66.47	-24.1%
Milk (1 gallon)	$4.40 CLF0.1000	$4.37 ZAR74.79	-0.6%
Eggs 1 dozen	$3.45 CLF0.0800	$2.33 ZAR39.93	-32.5%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.77 CLF0.0700	$2.13 ZAR36.52	-23.1%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.82 CLF0.0200	$0.73 ZAR12.46	-11.0%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.77 CLF0.0200	$0.65 ZAR11.16	-15.3%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.81 CLF0.0200	$0.68 ZAR11.70	-16.1%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.76 CLF0.0200	$0.71 ZAR12.14	-7.1%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.60 CLF0.0100	$0.59 ZAR10.02	-2.9%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.68 CLF0.0200	$0.60 ZAR10.27	-11.3%
Average			-16.4%

Chile vs. South Africa - Cost of groceries

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pay 15.3% more for transportation

	Chile	South Africa
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.21 CLF0.1200	$4.92 ZAR84.25	-5.6%
Monthly public transit pass	$33.81 CLF0.8000	$56.18 ZAR961.29	+66.2%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$16,755.00 CLF396.3700	$21,394.82 ZAR366,106.47	+27.7%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$12.79 CLF0.3000	$9.34 ZAR159.79	-27.0%
Average			+15.3%

Chile vs. South Africa - Cost of transportation

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pay 15.8% more for housing

	Chile	South Africa
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$22.87 CLF0.5400	$39.36 ZAR673.48	+72.1%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$464.44 CLF10.9900	$404.16 ZAR6,915.94	-13.0%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$367.42 CLF8.6900	$361.59 ZAR6,187.51	-1.6%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$83.36 CLF1.9700	$88.13 ZAR1,508.04	+5.7%
Average			+15.8%

Chile vs. South Africa - Cost of housing

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pay 36.7% less for childcare

	Chile	South Africa
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$328.13 CLF7.7600	$173.48 ZAR2,968.50	-47.1%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$5,378.73 CLF127.2400	$3,962.11 ZAR67,799.29	-26.3%
Average			-36.7%

Chile vs. South Africa - Cost of childcare

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pay 23.9% less for entertainment and sports

	Chile	South Africa
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.03 CLF0.0700	$2.18 ZAR37.27	-28.2%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.86 CLF0.0700	$2.05 ZAR35.06	-28.4%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$5.14 CLF0.1200	$2.96 ZAR50.72	-42.3%
Monthly membership at local gym	$41.02 CLF0.9700	$30.26 ZAR517.83	-26.2%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$6.50 CLF0.1500	$6.85 ZAR117.19	+5.4%
Average			-23.9%

Chile vs. South Africa - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 20.8% more for clothing

	Chile	South Africa
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$44.48 CLF1.0500	$50.74 ZAR868.31	+14.1%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$28.40 CLF0.6700	$32.75 ZAR560.46	+15.3%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$63.99 CLF1.5100	$94.19 ZAR1,611.79	+47.2%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$76.71 CLF1.8100	$81.80 ZAR1,399.67	+6.6%
Average			+20.8%

Chile vs. South Africa - Cost of clothing

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The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025

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