Cost of living comparison

compared to

South Africa vs. Kuwait Cost of Living Summary

South Africa is 10.5% more expensive than Kuwait overall.

Restaurants: pay 52.7% more in South Africa
Groceries: pay 9.5% more in South Africa
Transportation: pay 61.4% more in South Africa
Housing: pay 8.1% more in South Africa
Childcare: pay 30.9% less in South Africa
Entertainment and Sports: pay 38.2% less in South Africa
Clothing: pay 11.0% more in South Africa

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

South Africa vs. Kuwait Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 52.7% more for restaurants

	Kuwait	South Africa
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$8.58 KWD2.640	$9.33 ZAR159.73	+8.7%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$8.32 KWD2.550	$5.11 ZAR87.49	-38.5%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.53 KWD0.160	$1.03 ZAR17.65	+94.9%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.33 KWD0.100	$0.80 ZAR13.74	+145.6%
Average			+52.7%

Kuwait vs. South Africa - Cost of restaurants

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pay 9.5% more for groceries

	Kuwait	South Africa
Bread 1 loaf	$0.99 KWD0.300	$1.00 ZAR17.16	+1.0%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$2.15 KWD0.660	$3.88 ZAR66.47	+80.4%
Milk (1 gallon)	$5.32 KWD1.630	$4.37 ZAR74.79	-17.9%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.88 KWD0.580	$2.33 ZAR39.93	+24.1%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.77 KWD0.850	$2.13 ZAR36.52	-23.0%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.95 KWD0.290	$0.73 ZAR12.46	-23.4%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.78 KWD0.240	$0.65 ZAR11.16	-16.8%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.61 KWD0.190	$0.68 ZAR11.70	+12.6%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.60 KWD0.180	$0.71 ZAR12.14	+18.6%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.50 KWD0.150	$0.59 ZAR10.02	+17.1%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.46 KWD0.140	$0.60 ZAR10.27	+31.6%
Average			+9.5%

Kuwait vs. South Africa - Cost of groceries

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pay 61.4% more for transportation

	Kuwait	South Africa
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$1.33 KWD0.410	$4.92 ZAR84.25	+269.8%
Monthly public transit pass	$43.22 KWD13.270	$56.18 ZAR961.29	+30.0%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$20,235.14 KWD6,211.780	$21,394.82 ZAR366,106.47	+5.7%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$23.22 KWD7.130	$9.34 ZAR159.79	-59.8%
Average			+61.4%

Kuwait vs. South Africa - Cost of transportation

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pay 8.1% more for housing

	Kuwait	South Africa
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$27.12 KWD8.320	$39.36 ZAR673.48	+45.1%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$802.93 KWD246.480	$404.16 ZAR6,915.94	-49.7%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$600.40 KWD184.310	$361.59 ZAR6,187.51	-39.8%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$49.82 KWD15.290	$88.13 ZAR1,508.04	+76.9%
Average			+8.1%

Kuwait vs. South Africa - Cost of housing

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pay 30.9% less for childcare

	Kuwait	South Africa
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$234.17 KWD71.890	$173.48 ZAR2,968.50	-25.9%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$6,190.94 KWD1,900.490	$3,962.11 ZAR67,799.29	-36.0%
Average			-30.9%

Kuwait vs. South Africa - Cost of childcare

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pay 38.2% less for entertainment and sports

	Kuwait	South Africa
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$2.96 KWD0.910	$2.18 ZAR37.27	-26.5%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$5.05 KWD1.550	$2.05 ZAR35.06	-59.5%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.94 KWD0.900	$2.96 ZAR50.72	+0.7%
Monthly membership at local gym	$101.00 KWD31.010	$30.26 ZAR517.83	-70.0%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$10.68 KWD3.280	$6.85 ZAR117.19	-35.9%
Average			-38.2%

Kuwait vs. South Africa - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 11.0% more for clothing

	Kuwait	South Africa
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$38.78 KWD11.910	$50.74 ZAR868.31	+30.8%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$37.81 KWD11.610	$32.75 ZAR560.46	-13.4%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$84.62 KWD25.980	$94.19 ZAR1,611.79	+11.3%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$70.86 KWD21.750	$81.80 ZAR1,399.67	+15.4%
Average			+11.0%

Kuwait 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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