Cost of living comparison
California is 3.3 times more expensive than South Africa.
If you lived in California instead of South Africa, you would:
pay 2.8 times more for restaurants
South Africa
|
California
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$7.74
R147.55
|
$19.70
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$3.92
R74.78
|
$10.02
|
|
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.87
R16.57
|
$2.59
|
|
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.65
R12.41
|
$2.01
|
|
pay 2.9 times more for groceries
South Africa
|
California
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$0.82
R15.60
|
$3.79
|
|
Local cheese (8 oz) |
$3.09
R58.97
|
$6.34
|
|
Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.51
R66.90
|
$4.47
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$1.71
R32.67
|
$4.63
|
|
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$1.85
R35.22
|
$6.05
|
|
Apples (1 lb) |
$0.61
R11.65
|
$2.14
|
|
Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.57
R10.85
|
$0.86
|
|
Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.59
R11.27
|
$1.77
|
|
Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.59
R11.16
|
$2.23
|
|
Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.47
R8.89
|
$1.42
|
|
Onions (1 lb) |
$0.47
R8.86
|
$1.24
|
|
pay 61.7% more for transportation
South Africa
|
California
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.65
R88.60
|
$4.89
|
|
Monthly public transit pass |
$40.67
R775.11
|
$68.08
|
|
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$18,011.69
R343,270.72
|
$25,571.45
|
|
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$7.53
R143.57
|
$17.49
|
|
pay 3.9 times more for housing
South Africa
|
California
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$48.06
R915.87
|
$70.94
|
|
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$341.02
R6,499.30
|
$2,161.66
|
|
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$317.79
R6,056.53
|
$1,891.75
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$80.15
R1,527.51
|
$151.84
|
|
pay 7.6 times more for childcare
South Africa
|
California
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$157.19
R2,995.71
|
$1,413.75
|
|
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$3,082.89
R58,754.36
|
$18,865.17
|
|
pay 2.9 times more for entertainment and sports
South Africa
|
California
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.70
R32.32
|
$6.51
|
|
Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$1.67
R31.90
|
$4.78
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$2.56
R48.86
|
$9.86
|
|
Monthly membership at local gym |
$30.74
R585.79
|
$52.94
|
|
Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$5.40
R102.86
|
$13.37
|
|
pay 29.4% more for clothing
South Africa
|
California
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$43.19
R823.07
|
$49.43
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$26.96
R513.75
|
$38.84
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$80.72
R1,538.31
|
$81.58
|
|
Men's business shoes (leather) |
$71.81
R1,368.57
|
$113.48
|
|
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