Climate
Johannesburg logs 6 outdoor-dinner months a year to Pietermaritzburg's 1 — Johannesburg wins by 5. Johannesburg also leads on hot days by 28.
Johannesburg
Feels-like °C
Dinner outside
Pietermaritzburg
Feels-like °C
Dinner outside
Cost of Living
Johannesburg averages $1,363/mo for balanced living; Pietermaritzburg has no cost baseline yet.
Johannesburg
$1,363monthly · balanced
Mobility
Johannesburg scores 2.2 on mobility (0–5 scale); Pietermaritzburg has no mobility baseline.
Culture
Johannesburg's culture score of 3.6 sits well above Pietermaritzburg's 0.0.
Nature & Outdoors
Johannesburg scores 3.5 on nature & outdoors (0–5 scale); Pietermaritzburg has no nature & outdoors baseline.
Safety
Johannesburg scores 1.2 on safety (0–5 scale); Pietermaritzburg has no safety baseline.
Career
Johannesburg scores 4.1 on career (0–5 scale); Pietermaritzburg has no career baseline.
Social & Community
Johannesburg scores 3.4 on social & community (0–5 scale); Pietermaritzburg has no social & community baseline.
Food & Dining
Johannesburg scores 3.8 on food & dining (0–5 scale); Pietermaritzburg has no food & dining baseline.
Family
Johannesburg scores 3.7 on family (0–5 scale); Pietermaritzburg has no family baseline.
Healthcare
Johannesburg scores 3.4 on healthcare (0–5 scale); Pietermaritzburg has no healthcare baseline.
Air Quality
Johannesburg averages 37.0 µg/m³ (very unhealthy) PM2.5 annually versus Pietermaritzburg's 16.5 µg/m³ (sensitive-groups) — Pietermaritzburg breathes ~55% cleaner air (20.5 µg/m³ lower).
Johannesburg
Pietermaritzburg
PM2.5 annual average
WHO classification
City Scale
Both maps at the same real-world scale — 1 cm on either map is the same distance.
Johannesburg (8.6M) and Pietermaritzburg (485K) are 18x in population — Johannesburg is the larger metro, Pietermaritzburg the smaller; on land area Johannesburg spans roughly 12x more ground.
Johannesburg is roughly 15x the scale of Pietermaritzburg
Combined population & area comparison
JohannesburgPietermaritzburgCity Scale Rankings
Johannesburg8.6M18xPietermaritzburg485K1xJohannesburg1,756 km²12xPietermaritzburg147 km²1xJohannesburg
Pietermaritzburg
Who Thrives Here
Johannesburg favours the big city energy, while Pietermaritzburg suits the clean air seeker. Both cities work well for the sunshine lover.
Also compared
LondonFrequently asked about Johannesburg vs Pietermaritzburg
▶Which is cheaper, Johannesburg or Pietermaritzburg?
▶How does the climate compare between Johannesburg and Pietermaritzburg?
▶Is Johannesburg or Pietermaritzburg safer?
▶Should I move to Johannesburg or Pietermaritzburg?
The best city depends on what matters to you
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