Cost of living comparison
compared to
South Africa vs. Japan Cost of Living Summary
South Africa is 17.5% cheaper than Japan overall.
- Restaurants
- pay 11.0% more in South Africa
- Groceries
- pay 38.9% less in South Africa
- Transportation
- pay 15.3% less in South Africa
- Housing
- pay 8.2% less in South Africa
- Childcare
- pay 55.8% less in South Africa
- Entertainment and Sports
- pay 33.3% less in South Africa
- Clothing
- pay 18.3% more in South Africa
South Africa vs. Japan Cost Breakdown
If you lived in South Africa instead of Japan, you would:
pay 11.0% more for restaurants
Japan | South Africa | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant | $6.60 ¥1,068 | $9.33 ZAR158.57 | |
| Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar | $5.10 ¥825 | $5.11 ZAR86.86 | |
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) | $1.07 ¥172 | $1.03 ZAR17.52 | |
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) | $0.76 ¥123 | $0.80 ZAR13.64 | |
Japan vs. South Africa - Cost of restaurants
pay 38.9% less for groceries
Japan | South Africa | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Bread 1 loaf | $1.50 ¥243 | $1.00 ZAR17.04 | |
| Local cheese (8 oz) | $5.07 ¥819 | $3.88 ZAR65.99 | |
| Milk (1 gallon) | $5.67 ¥917 | $4.37 ZAR74.25 | |
| Eggs 1 dozen | $2.08 ¥336 | $2.33 ZAR39.64 | |
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) | $2.93 ¥474 | $2.13 ZAR36.25 | |
| Apples (1 lb) | $2.14 ¥346 | $0.73 ZAR12.37 | |
| Bananas (1 lb) | $1.12 ¥181 | $0.65 ZAR11.08 | |
| Oranges (1 lb) | $1.69 ¥274 | $0.68 ZAR11.61 | |
| Tomatoes (1 lb) | $2.13 ¥345 | $0.71 ZAR12.05 | |
| Potatoes (1 lb) | $1.22 ¥197 | $0.59 ZAR9.95 | |
| Onions (1 lb) | $1.15 ¥187 | $0.60 ZAR10.19 | |
Japan vs. South Africa - Cost of groceries
pay 15.3% less for transportation
Japan | South Africa | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) | $4.39 ¥710 | $4.92 ZAR83.64 | |
| Monthly public transit pass | $59.14 ¥9,567 | $56.18 ZAR954.32 | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) | $22,599.51 ¥4M | $21,394.82 ZAR363K | |
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) | $25.32 ¥4,096 | $9.34 ZAR158.63 | |
Japan vs. South Africa - Cost of transportation
pay 8.2% less for housing
Japan | South Africa | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl | $33.91 ¥5,486 | $39.36 ZAR668.59 | |
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area | $543.18 ¥87,862 | $404.16 ZAR6,865.77 | |
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center | $353.61 ¥57,199 | $361.59 ZAR6,142.63 | |
| Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating | $118.72 ¥19,203 | $88.13 ZAR1,497.10 | |
Japan vs. South Africa - Cost of housing
pay 55.8% less for childcare
Japan | South Africa | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly | $296.89 ¥48,023 | $173.48 ZAR2,946.96 | |
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters | $13,159.48 ¥2M | $3,962.11 ZAR67,307.48 | |
Japan vs. South Africa - Cost of childcare
pay 33.3% less for entertainment and sports
Japan | South Africa | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) | $2.60 ¥421 | $2.18 ZAR37.00 | |
| Cappuccino in mid-range area | $3.03 ¥489 | $2.05 ZAR34.81 | |
| Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar | $3.89 ¥628 | $2.96 ZAR50.35 | |
| Monthly membership at local gym | $59.54 ¥9,631 | $30.26 ZAR514.07 | |
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema | $12.46 ¥2,016 | $6.85 ZAR116.34 | |
Japan vs. South Africa - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 18.3% more for clothing
Japan | South Africa | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Regular jeans Levi's brand | $44.79 ¥7,246 | $50.74 ZAR862.01 | |
| Regular dress from H&M or similar store | $32.04 ¥5,183 | $32.75 ZAR556.39 | |
| Running shoes Nike or Adidas | $57.37 ¥9,280 | $94.19 ZAR1,600.10 | |
| Men's business shoes (leather) | $87.37 ¥14,133 | $81.80 ZAR1,389.52 | |
Japan vs. South Africa - Cost of clothing
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: June 2026
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Moving from Japan to South Africa · UN DESA 2020
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