Cost of living comparison
compared to
Johannesburg vs. Moscow Cost of Living Summary
Johannesburg is 6.2% more expensive than Moscow.
- Restaurants
-
pay 1.9% less in Johannesburg
- Groceries
-
pay 9.7% more in Johannesburg
- Transportation
-
pay 65.9% more in Johannesburg
- Housing
-
pay 76.6% more in Johannesburg
- Childcare
-
pay 64.0% less in Johannesburg
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 14.3% less in Johannesburg
- Clothing
-
pay 28.6% less in Johannesburg
The cost of housing, transportation, and groceries in Johannesburg are more expensive than in Moscow. Expenses including childcare, clothing, entertainment and sports, and restaurants are lower in Johannesburg. Notably, housing is significantly more expensive in Johannesburg.
Johannesburg vs. Moscow Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Johannesburg instead of Moscow, you would:
pay 1.9% less for restaurants
|
Moscow
|
Johannesburg
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$11.93
RUB911.35
|
$11.47
ZAR194.18
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$5.97
RUB455.67
|
$4.93
ZAR83.50
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.38
RUB105.57
|
$1.06
ZAR17.97
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.61
RUB46.71
|
$0.84
ZAR14.15
|
|
Moscow vs. Johannesburg - Cost of restaurants
pay 9.7% more for groceries
|
Moscow
|
Johannesburg
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$0.85
RUB64.62
|
$1.11
ZAR18.74
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.27
RUB478.82
|
$4.31
ZAR73.04
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.62
RUB352.84
|
$4.73
ZAR80.15
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$1.68
RUB128.49
|
$2.37
ZAR40.15
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$2.46
RUB188.10
|
$2.30
ZAR39.00
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$0.81
RUB61.80
|
$0.78
ZAR13.27
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.87
RUB66.45
|
$0.72
ZAR12.12
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.90
RUB68.87
|
$0.72
ZAR12.15
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.64
RUB125.22
|
$0.80
ZAR13.51
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.43
RUB32.60
|
$0.66
ZAR11.14
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.34
RUB25.86
|
$0.70
ZAR11.91
|
|
Moscow vs. Johannesburg - Cost of groceries
pay 65.9% more for transportation
|
Moscow
|
Johannesburg
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.84
RUB216.76
|
$4.84
ZAR81.88
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$36.64
RUB2,797.83
|
$86.04
ZAR1,456.32
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,994.59
RUB2,825,171.82
|
$22,943.68
ZAR388,351.61
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$5.73
RUB437.45
|
$11.24
ZAR190.29
|
|
Moscow vs. Johannesburg - Cost of transportation
pay 76.6% more for housing
|
Moscow
|
Johannesburg
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$7.82
RUB596.90
|
$41.63
ZAR704.68
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,253.04
RUB95,691.30
|
$434.32
ZAR7,351.50
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$709.24
RUB54,162.93
|
$380.92
ZAR6,447.52
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$110.60
RUB8,445.86
|
$94.21
ZAR1,594.62
|
|
Moscow vs. Johannesburg - Cost of housing
pay 64.0% less for childcare
|
Moscow
|
Johannesburg
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$656.36
RUB50,124.02
|
$218.24
ZAR3,693.96
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$14,285.88
RUB1,090,971.99
|
$5,560.97
ZAR94,126.72
|
|
Moscow vs. Johannesburg - Cost of childcare
pay 14.3% less for entertainment and sports
|
Moscow
|
Johannesburg
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$4.18
RUB318.97
|
$2.58
ZAR43.69
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.16
RUB241.06
|
$2.24
ZAR37.95
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$2.98
RUB227.84
|
$3.15
ZAR53.40
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$44.58
RUB3,404.36
|
$35.07
ZAR593.56
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$6.56
RUB501.24
|
$7.31
ZAR123.79
|
|
Moscow vs. Johannesburg - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 28.6% less for clothing
|
Moscow
|
Johannesburg
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$76.06
RUB5,808.16
|
$53.86
ZAR911.70
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$47.73
RUB3,645.38
|
$41.32
ZAR699.47
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$122.95
RUB9,389.02
|
$92.73
ZAR1,569.59
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$156.80
RUB11,974.07
|
$82.91
ZAR1,403.29
|
|
Moscow vs. Johannesburg - 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: December 2025
Change currency:
Compare countries by overall cost of living
See the
cost of living in Russia vs. South Africa.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Russia and South Africa.
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Johannesburg or Moscow. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.