Cost of living comparison

compared to

South Africa vs. Ottawa Cost of Living Summary

South Africa is 47.4% cheaper than Ottawa.

Restaurants: pay 53.3% less in South Africa
Groceries: pay 50.0% less in South Africa
Transportation: pay 23.4% less in South Africa
Housing: pay 51.0% less in South Africa
Childcare: pay 81.2% less in South Africa
Entertainment and Sports: pay 53.0% less in South Africa
Clothing: pay 19.7% less in South Africa

Expenses including childcare, restaurants, entertainment and sports, housing, groceries, and transportation are lower in South Africa.

South Africa vs. Ottawa Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 53.3% less for restaurants

	Ottawa	South Africa
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$17.96 CA$25.95	$8.97 ZAR167.89	-50.0%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$10.78 CA$15.57	$4.77 ZAR89.27	-55.7%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$2.17 CA$3.14	$0.95 ZAR17.86	-56.0%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.53 CA$2.21	$0.74 ZAR13.87	-51.6%
Average			-53.3%

Ottawa vs. South Africa - Cost of restaurants

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pay 50.0% less for groceries

	Ottawa	South Africa
Bread 1 loaf	$2.65 CA$3.83	$0.99 ZAR18.54	-62.6%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$6.28 CA$9.07	$3.67 ZAR68.77	-41.5%
Milk (1 gallon)	$9.92 CA$14.34	$4.20 ZAR78.56	-57.7%
Eggs 1 dozen	$3.31 CA$4.79	$2.23 ZAR41.67	-32.8%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$5.89 CA$8.51	$2.03 ZAR37.95	-65.6%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.93 CA$2.79	$0.68 ZAR12.67	-65.0%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.64 CA$0.92	$0.62 ZAR11.55	-3.1%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.44 CA$2.08	$0.64 ZAR12.01	-55.5%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.69 CA$2.44	$0.70 ZAR13.07	-58.6%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.20 CA$1.74	$0.55 ZAR10.36	-53.9%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.31 CA$1.89	$0.61 ZAR11.39	-53.4%
Average			-50.0%

Ottawa vs. South Africa - Cost of groceries

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pay 23.4% less for transportation

	Ottawa	South Africa
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.15 CA$6.00	$4.99 ZAR93.35	+20.2%
Monthly public transit pass	$92.50 CA$133.65	$52.31 ZAR978.84	-43.5%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$24,412.64 CA$35,270.16	$20,607.77 ZAR385,612.54	-15.6%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$18.80 CA$27.15	$8.55 ZAR159.97	-54.5%
Average			-23.4%

Ottawa vs. South Africa - Cost of transportation

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pay 51.0% less for housing

	Ottawa	South Africa
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$50.21 CA$72.55	$41.37 ZAR774.11	-17.6%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,425.51 CA$2,059.51	$382.55 ZAR7,158.34	-73.2%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$1,269.57 CA$1,834.21	$326.35 ZAR6,106.61	-74.3%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$131.33 CA$189.74	$80.40 ZAR1,504.41	-38.8%
Average			-51.0%

Ottawa vs. South Africa - Cost of housing

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pay 81.2% less for childcare

	Ottawa	South Africa
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$999.72 CA$1,444.35	$174.12 ZAR3,258.07	-82.6%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$19,936.07 CA$28,802.64	$4,033.53 ZAR75,475.36	-79.8%
Average			-81.2%

Ottawa vs. South Africa - Cost of childcare

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pay 53.0% less for entertainment and sports

	Ottawa	South Africa
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$5.75 CA$8.30	$2.11 ZAR39.44	-63.3%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.71 CA$5.36	$1.88 ZAR35.23	-49.3%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$12.93 CA$18.68	$2.90 ZAR54.34	-77.5%
Monthly membership at local gym	$46.27 CA$66.85	$29.50 ZAR552.01	-36.2%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$10.78 CA$15.57	$6.62 ZAR123.89	-38.6%
Average			-53.0%

Ottawa vs. South Africa - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 19.7% less for clothing

	Ottawa	South Africa
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$57.20 CA$82.63	$47.72 ZAR892.85	-16.6%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$44.39 CA$64.13	$32.06 ZAR599.89	-27.8%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$97.78 CA$141.26	$90.39 ZAR1,691.36	-7.6%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$110.86 CA$160.16	$81.37 ZAR1,522.54	-26.6%
Average			-19.7%

Ottawa vs. South Africa - Cost of clothing

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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: January 2025

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