Cost of living comparison
compared to
South Africa vs. Virgin Islands Cost of Living Summary
South Africa is 58.7% cheaper than Virgin Islands overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 62.1% less in South Africa
- Groceries
-
pay 72.7% less in South Africa
- Transportation
-
pay 36.2% less in South Africa
- Housing
-
pay 67.8% less in South Africa
- Childcare
-
pay 80.4% less in South Africa
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 57.2% less in South Africa
- Clothing
-
pay 34.8% less in South Africa
Expenses including childcare, groceries, housing, restaurants, entertainment and sports, and transportation are lower in South Africa.
South Africa vs. Virgin Islands Cost Breakdown
If you lived in South Africa instead of Virgin Islands, you would:
pay 62.1% less for restaurants
|
Virgin Islands
|
South Africa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$25.50
|
$9.33
ZAR157.99
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.48
|
$5.11
ZAR86.54
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.10
|
$1.03
ZAR17.46
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.42
|
$0.80
ZAR13.59
|
|
Virgin Islands vs. South Africa - Cost of restaurants
pay 72.7% less for groceries
|
Virgin Islands
|
South Africa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$6.43
|
$1.00
ZAR16.97
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.40
|
$3.88
ZAR65.75
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$9.85
|
$4.37
ZAR73.98
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$7.46
|
$2.33
ZAR39.49
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$11.78
|
$2.13
ZAR36.12
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$4.66
|
$0.73
ZAR12.33
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$2.67
|
$0.65
ZAR11.04
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$3.50
|
$0.68
ZAR11.57
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$4.69
|
$0.71
ZAR12.00
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.28
|
$0.59
ZAR9.91
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$2.53
|
$0.60
ZAR10.16
|
|
Virgin Islands vs. South Africa - Cost of groceries
pay 36.2% less for transportation
|
Virgin Islands
|
South Africa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.28
|
$4.92
ZAR83.33
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$60.00
|
$56.18
ZAR950.86
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$45,000.00
|
$21,394.82
ZAR362,135.06
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$44.85
|
$9.34
ZAR158.05
|
|
Virgin Islands vs. South Africa - Cost of transportation
pay 67.8% less for housing
|
Virgin Islands
|
South Africa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$98.46
|
$39.36
ZAR666.17
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,513.89
|
$404.16
ZAR6,840.92
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,216.50
|
$361.59
ZAR6,120.39
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$272.68
|
$88.13
ZAR1,491.68
|
|
Virgin Islands vs. South Africa - Cost of housing
pay 80.4% less for childcare
|
Virgin Islands
|
South Africa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,287.50
|
$173.48
ZAR2,936.29
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$15,433.33
|
$3,962.11
ZAR67,063.83
|
|
Virgin Islands vs. South Africa - Cost of childcare
pay 57.2% less for entertainment and sports
|
Virgin Islands
|
South Africa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.50
|
$2.18
ZAR36.86
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$6.93
|
$2.05
ZAR34.68
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$4.50
|
$2.96
ZAR50.17
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$118.33
|
$30.26
ZAR512.21
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$11.50
|
$6.85
ZAR115.92
|
|
Virgin Islands vs. South Africa - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 34.8% less for clothing
|
Virgin Islands
|
South Africa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$71.67
|
$50.74
ZAR858.89
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$62.33
|
$32.75
ZAR554.38
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$146.25
|
$94.19
ZAR1,594.31
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$111.67
|
$81.80
ZAR1,384.49
|
|
Virgin Islands vs. South Africa - 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
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