Cost of living comparison

compared to

South Africa vs. Tonga Cost of Living Summary

South Africa is 2.2 times more expensive than Tonga overall.

Restaurants: pay 42.4% less in South Africa
Groceries: pay 38.5% less in South Africa
Transportation: pay 60.7% more in South Africa
Housing: pay 47.3% less in South Africa
Childcare: pay 8.5 times more in South Africa
Entertainment and Sports: pay 44.3% less in South Africa
Clothing: pay 3.2 times more in South Africa

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

South Africa vs. Tonga Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 42.4% less for restaurants

	Tonga	South Africa
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$8.31 TOP20.00	$9.33 ZAR159.73	+12.4%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$10.38 TOP25.00	$5.11 ZAR87.49	-50.8%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$2.84 TOP6.83	$1.03 ZAR17.65	-63.7%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$2.46 TOP5.92	$0.80 ZAR13.74	-67.3%
Average			-42.4%

Tonga vs. South Africa - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 38.5% less for groceries

	Tonga	South Africa
Bread 1 loaf	$1.04 TOP2.50	$1.00 ZAR17.16	-3.4%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$4.50 TOP10.83	$3.88 ZAR66.47	-13.7%
Milk (1 gallon)	$5.92 TOP14.26	$4.37 ZAR74.79	-26.2%
Eggs 1 dozen	$5.09 TOP12.27	$2.33 ZAR39.93	-54.2%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.67 TOP6.43	$2.13 ZAR36.52	-20.0%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.26 TOP3.02	$0.73 ZAR12.46	-42.0%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.26 TOP3.02	$0.65 ZAR11.16	-48.1%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.32 TOP3.18	$0.68 ZAR11.70	-48.2%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.70 TOP4.08	$0.71 ZAR12.14	-58.2%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.44 TOP3.48	$0.59 ZAR10.02	-59.5%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.19 TOP2.87	$0.60 ZAR10.27	-49.7%
Average			-38.5%

Tonga vs. South Africa - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 60.7% more for transportation

	Tonga	South Africa
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.50 TOP13.25	$4.92 ZAR84.25	-10.5%
Monthly public transit pass	$41.53 TOP100.00	$56.18 ZAR961.29	+35.3%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$5,814.53 TOP14,000.00	$21,394.82 ZAR366,106.47	+268.0%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$18.69 TOP45.00	$9.34 ZAR159.79	-50.0%
Average			+60.7%

Tonga vs. South Africa - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 47.3% less for housing

	Tonga	South Africa
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$124.60 TOP300.00	$39.36 ZAR673.48	-68.4%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$622.99 TOP1,500.00	$404.16 ZAR6,915.94	-35.1%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	??	$361.59 ZAR6,187.51
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$142.92 TOP344.12	$88.13 ZAR1,508.04	-38.3%
Average			-47.3%

Tonga vs. South Africa - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 8.5 times more for childcare

	Tonga	South Africa
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$157.82 TOP380.00	$173.48 ZAR2,968.50	+9.9%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$249.19 TOP600.00	$3,962.11 ZAR67,799.29	+1490.0%
Average			+750.0%

Tonga vs. South Africa - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 44.3% less for entertainment and sports

	Tonga	South Africa
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.32 TOP8.00	$2.18 ZAR37.27	-34.5%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.91 TOP7.00	$2.05 ZAR35.06	-29.5%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$10.18 TOP24.50	$2.96 ZAR50.72	-70.9%
Monthly membership at local gym	$31.15 TOP75.00	$30.26 ZAR517.83	-2.9%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$41.53 TOP100.00	$6.85 ZAR117.19	-83.5%
Average			-44.3%

Tonga vs. South Africa - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 3.2 times more for clothing

	Tonga	South Africa
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$14.54 TOP35.00	$50.74 ZAR868.31	+249.1%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$17.65 TOP42.50	$32.75 ZAR560.46	+85.6%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$20.77 TOP50.00	$94.19 ZAR1,611.79	+353.6%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$29.07 TOP70.00	$81.80 ZAR1,399.67	+181.3%
Average			+217.4%

Tonga vs. South Africa - Cost of clothing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

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

More cost comparisons

Tonga vs.

China

Tonga vs.

Poland

Tonga vs.

Italy

Tonga vs.

France

Tonga vs.

Ireland

Tonga vs.

United States

Tonga vs.

Vietnam

Tonga vs.

Peru

Share this

Compare by city

For example, try comparing the cost of living in Nuku'alofa vs. Pretoria

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

Add prices for Tonga

Add prices for South Africa

ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about South Africa or Tonga. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.