Cost of living comparison

compared to

Johannesburg vs. Dar Es Salaam Cost of Living Summary

Johannesburg is 52.5% more expensive than Dar Es Salaam.

Restaurants: pay 2.5 times more in Johannesburg
Groceries: pay 23.0% more in Johannesburg
Transportation: pay 2.1 times more in Johannesburg
Housing: pay 21.8% more in Johannesburg
Childcare: pay 58.8% less in Johannesburg
Entertainment and Sports: pay 40.5% more in Johannesburg
Clothing: pay 75.6% more in Johannesburg

The cost of restaurants, transportation, clothing, entertainment and sports, groceries, and housing in Johannesburg are more expensive than in Dar Es Salaam. Notably, restaurants, transportation, and clothing are significantly more expensive in Johannesburg.

Johannesburg vs. Dar Es Salaam Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Johannesburg instead of Dar Es Salaam, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 2.5 times more for restaurants

	Dar Es Salaam	Johannesburg
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$3.23 TZS7,870.71	$11.47 ZAR194.18	+254.9%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$10.10 TZS24,595.96	$4.93 ZAR83.50	-51.2%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.40 TZS983.84	$1.06 ZAR17.97	+162.8%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.25 TZS598.50	$0.84 ZAR14.15	+240.0%
Average			+151.6%

Dar Es Salaam vs. Johannesburg - Cost of restaurants

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pay 23.0% more for groceries

	Dar Es Salaam	Johannesburg
Bread 1 loaf	$0.81 TZS1,967.68	$1.11 ZAR18.74	+37.0%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$4.78 TZS11,642.09	$4.31 ZAR73.04	-9.8%
Milk (1 gallon)	$4.19 TZS10,190.86	$4.73 ZAR80.15	+13.1%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.12 TZS5,159.69	$2.37 ZAR40.15	+11.9%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.67 TZS6,502.68	$2.30 ZAR39.00	-13.7%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.23 TZS2,996.33	$0.78 ZAR13.27	-36.3%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.44 TZS1,065.45	$0.72 ZAR12.12	+63.6%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.49 TZS1,204.91	$0.72 ZAR12.15	+45.0%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.44 TZS1,059.87	$0.80 ZAR13.51	+83.4%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.44 TZS1,059.87	$0.66 ZAR11.14	+51.3%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.65 TZS1,589.81	$0.70 ZAR11.91	+7.8%
Average			+23.0%

Dar Es Salaam vs. Johannesburg - Cost of groceries

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pay 2.1 times more for transportation

	Dar Es Salaam	Johannesburg
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.63 TZS11,265.81	$4.84 ZAR81.88	+4.6%
Monthly public transit pass	$15.76 TZS38,369.70	$86.04 ZAR1,456.32	+446.0%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$17,898.05 TZS43,581,752.00	$22,943.68 ZAR388,351.61	+28.2%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$14.49 TZS35,295.20	$11.24 ZAR190.29	-22.4%
Average			+114.1%

Dar Es Salaam vs. Johannesburg - Cost of transportation

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pay 21.8% more for housing

	Dar Es Salaam	Johannesburg
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$35.62 TZS86,741.75	$41.63 ZAR704.68	+16.9%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$519.76 TZS1,265,615.85	$434.32 ZAR7,351.50	-16.4%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$257.24 TZS626,378.35	$380.92 ZAR6,447.52	+48.1%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$67.97 TZS165,516.34	$94.21 ZAR1,594.62	+38.6%
Average			+21.8%

Dar Es Salaam vs. Johannesburg - Cost of housing

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pay 58.8% less for childcare

	Dar Es Salaam	Johannesburg
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$427.61 TZS1,041,228.96	$218.24 ZAR3,693.96	-49.0%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$17,689.39 TZS43,073,674.24	$5,560.97 ZAR94,126.72	-68.6%
Average			-58.8%

Dar Es Salaam vs. Johannesburg - Cost of childcare

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pay 40.5% more for entertainment and sports

	Dar Es Salaam	Johannesburg
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.01 TZS2,459.60	$2.58 ZAR43.69	+155.5%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.06 TZS5,017.58	$2.24 ZAR37.95	+8.8%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.12 TZS5,165.15	$3.15 ZAR53.40	+48.7%
Monthly membership at local gym	$85.86 TZS209,065.66	$35.07 ZAR593.56	-59.2%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$4.92 TZS11,990.53	$7.31 ZAR123.79	+48.5%
Average			+40.5%

Dar Es Salaam vs. Johannesburg - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 75.6% more for clothing

	Dar Es Salaam	Johannesburg
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$22.22 TZS54,111.11	$53.86 ZAR911.70	+142.4%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$37.04 TZS90,185.19	$41.32 ZAR699.47	+11.6%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$40.40 TZS98,383.84	$92.73 ZAR1,569.59	+129.5%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$69.70 TZS169,712.12	$82.91 ZAR1,403.29	+19.0%
Average			+75.6%

Dar Es Salaam vs. Johannesburg - 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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