Cost of living comparison
compared to
District of Columbia vs. South Africa Cost of Living Summary
District of Columbia is 2.9 times more expensive than South Africa overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 2.5 times more in District of Columbia
- Groceries
-
pay 2.4 times more in District of Columbia
- Transportation
-
pay 19.0% more in District of Columbia
- Housing
-
pay 4.8 times more in District of Columbia
- Childcare
-
pay 11.7 times more in District of Columbia
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 3.2 times more in District of Columbia
- Clothing
-
pay 27.6% more in District of Columbia
District of Columbia vs. South Africa Cost Breakdown
If you lived in District of Columbia instead of South Africa, you would:
pay 2.5 times more for restaurants
|
South Africa
|
District of Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$10.21
ZAR168.71
|
$28.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$5.91
ZAR97.65
|
$12.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.08
ZAR17.90
|
$3.17
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.84
ZAR13.80
|
$2.64
|
|
South Africa vs. District of Columbia - Cost of restaurants
pay 2.4 times more for groceries
|
South Africa
|
District of Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.07
ZAR17.62
|
$4.11
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.08
ZAR67.44
|
$8.53
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.58
ZAR75.61
|
$4.95
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.56
ZAR42.35
|
$5.64
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$2.31
ZAR38.22
|
$7.63
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$0.81
ZAR13.42
|
$3.17
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.74
ZAR12.15
|
$1.06
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.79
ZAR12.97
|
$2.27
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.77
ZAR12.73
|
$2.64
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.64
ZAR10.64
|
$1.29
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.66
ZAR10.87
|
$1.73
|
|
South Africa vs. District of Columbia - Cost of groceries
pay 19.0% more for transportation
|
South Africa
|
District of Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.49
ZAR90.67
|
$4.19
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$65.15
ZAR1,076.25
|
$120.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$32,517.32
ZAR537K
|
$36,375.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$7.35
ZAR121.39
|
$16.73
|
|
South Africa vs. District of Columbia - Cost of transportation
pay 4.8 times more for housing
|
South Africa
|
District of Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$38.93
ZAR643.18
|
$77.77
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$421.37
ZAR6,961.07
|
$2,717.33
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$369.24
ZAR6,099.94
|
$2,228.89
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$105.57
ZAR1,743.99
|
$161.22
|
|
South Africa vs. District of Columbia - Cost of housing
pay 11.7 times more for childcare
|
South Africa
|
District of Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$199.53
ZAR3,296.31
|
$3,221.33
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$4,917.78
ZAR81,241.91
|
$41,506.00
|
|
South Africa vs. District of Columbia - Cost of childcare
pay 3.2 times more for entertainment and sports
|
South Africa
|
District of Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.25
ZAR37.19
|
$9.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.25
ZAR37.24
|
$6.15
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$3.16
ZAR52.21
|
$13.94
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$31.59
ZAR521.88
|
$114.30
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$7.32
ZAR120.89
|
$18.00
|
|
South Africa vs. District of Columbia - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 27.6% more for clothing
|
South Africa
|
District of Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$52.66
ZAR869.92
|
$71.42
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$34.13
ZAR563.81
|
$44.11
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$99.75
ZAR1,647.89
|
$104.50
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$86.61
ZAR1,430.75
|
$125.16
|
|
South Africa vs. District of Columbia - Cost of clothing
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this
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Compare further: South Africa vs. District of Columbia
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