Cost of living comparison
compared to
India vs. Johannesburg Cost of Living Summary
India is 57.3% cheaper than Johannesburg.
India vs. Johannesburg Cost Breakdown
If you lived in India instead of Johannesburg, you would:
pay 61.9% less for restaurants
Johannesburg | India | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant | $11.47 ZAR194.88 | $2.31 ₹217.78 | |
| Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar | $4.93 ZAR83.80 | $3.75 ₹354.32 | |
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) | $1.06 ZAR18.04 | $0.39 ₹37.14 | |
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) | $0.84 ZAR14.20 | $0.16 ₹15.16 | |
Johannesburg vs. India - Cost of restaurants
pay 50.2% less for groceries
Johannesburg | India | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Bread 1 loaf | $1.11 ZAR18.81 | $0.46 ₹43.29 | |
| Local cheese (8 oz) | $4.31 ZAR73.30 | $2.49 ₹235.02 | |
| Milk (1 gallon) | $4.73 ZAR80.44 | $2.50 ₹235.94 | |
| Eggs 1 dozen | $2.37 ZAR40.30 | $0.92 ₹86.91 | |
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) | $2.30 ZAR39.14 | $1.32 ₹124.13 | |
| Apples (1 lb) | $0.78 ZAR13.32 | $0.88 ₹82.70 | |
| Bananas (1 lb) | $0.72 ZAR12.16 | $0.32 ₹29.81 | |
| Oranges (1 lb) | $0.72 ZAR12.19 | $0.46 ₹42.94 | |
| Tomatoes (1 lb) | $0.80 ZAR13.56 | $0.22 ₹20.81 | |
| Potatoes (1 lb) | $0.66 ZAR11.19 | $0.17 ₹15.75 | |
| Onions (1 lb) | $0.70 ZAR11.95 | $0.19 ₹18.37 | |
Johannesburg vs. India - Cost of groceries
pay 53.5% less for transportation
Johannesburg | India | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) | $4.84 ZAR82.18 | $4.38 ₹413.32 | |
| Monthly public transit pass | $86.04 ZAR1,461.61 | $9.48 ₹894.68 | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) | $22,943.68 ZAR390K | $13,332.05 ₹1M | |
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) | $11.24 ZAR190.98 | $2.95 ₹278.76 | |
Johannesburg vs. India - Cost of transportation
pay 75.2% less for housing
Johannesburg | India | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl | $41.63 ZAR707.24 | $7.18 ₹677.54 | |
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area | $434.32 ZAR7,378.20 | $129.45 ₹12,215.01 | |
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center | $380.92 ZAR6,470.94 | $85.74 ₹8,090.41 | |
| Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating | $94.21 ZAR1,600.41 | $27.98 ₹2,640.47 | |
Johannesburg vs. India - Cost of housing
pay 73.2% less for childcare
Johannesburg | India | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly | $218.24 ZAR3,707.38 | $54.51 ₹5,143.46 | |
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters | $5,560.97 ZAR94,468.69 | $1,593.07 ₹150K | |
Johannesburg vs. India - Cost of childcare
pay 32.0% less for entertainment and sports
Johannesburg | India | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) | $2.58 ZAR43.85 | $1.84 ₹173.23 | |
| Cappuccino in mid-range area | $2.24 ZAR38.09 | $1.58 ₹148.93 | |
| Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar | $3.15 ZAR53.59 | $3.49 ₹329.19 | |
| Monthly membership at local gym | $35.07 ZAR595.72 | $15.59 ₹1,470.72 | |
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema | $7.31 ZAR124.24 | $3.17 ₹299.05 | |
Johannesburg vs. India - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 55.0% less for clothing
Johannesburg | India | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Regular jeans Levi's brand | $53.86 ZAR915.01 | $22.98 ₹2,168.31 | |
| Regular dress from H&M or similar store | $41.32 ZAR702.01 | $23.83 ₹2,248.97 | |
| Running shoes Nike or Adidas | $92.73 ZAR1,575.29 | $40.59 ₹3,830.45 | |
| Men's business shoes (leather) | $82.91 ZAR1,408.39 | $29.72 ₹2,804.06 | |
Johannesburg vs. India - 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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