Fast food price insights
What the drive-thru really costs: prices from 1,289 fast food restaurants in South Africa across 5 chains, checked 2026-10-03. Every figure below compares each restaurant's own pickup price from the brand's ordering app, so the numbers are what you would actually pay at the window.
Data as of . Updated daily. Prices are in South African rand.
Key findings
- Nando's has the biggest price gap between locations: its priciest restaurant charges 39% more than its cheapest for the same basket. Steers has the smallest gap, 0%.
- Cape Town, WC is the biggest cluster of bargain fast food in South Africa: 23 of its 23 restaurants rank in their brand's cheapest fifth nationally.
- KwaZulu-Natal is the cheapest province for fast food overall (Drive Thru Index 100, where 100 is the national typical price) and Limpopo the most expensive (100), averaging each brand against its own national prices.
- A Steers King Steer costs R99.90 at every one of its 630 restaurants in South Africa: the brand charges one price nationwide.
- A Wimpy Wimpy Burger costs anywhere from R75.90 to R82.90 across 95 restaurants in South Africa; the typical price is R82.90.
- Wimpy charges about the same in every province: no province's typical basket is even 1% dearer than another's.
- A Fishaways Hake & Chips costs R59.90 at every one of its 216 restaurants in South Africa: the brand charges one price nationwide.
- A Galito's 1/4 Chicken costs R49.00 at every one of its 61 restaurants in South Africa: the brand charges one price nationwide.
- A Nando's 1/4 Chicken costs anywhere from R60.00 to R93.00 across 287 restaurants in South Africa; the typical price is R60.00.
- Nando's charges about the same in every province: no province's typical basket is even 1% dearer than another's.
- For Steers, Bloemfontein, FS has the most bargain restaurants: 10 of 10 are in the brand's cheapest fifth nationally.
- For Wimpy, Cape Town City Central, WC has the most bargain restaurants: 5 of 5 are in the brand's cheapest fifth nationally.
- For Galito's, Nelspruit, MP has the most bargain restaurants: 6 of 6 are in the brand's cheapest fifth nationally.
- For Nando's, Cape Town, WC has the most bargain restaurants: 23 of 23 are in the brand's cheapest fifth nationally.
The scoop
Nando’s has the biggest sizzle spreadAcross 285 Nando’s restaurants, the priciest store is 42% above its cheapest. The basket is R232.00 in Nelspruit, MP, but R330.00 in Johannesburg, GP, with 1/4 Chicken running R60.00 to R93.00.
Fishaways keeps one national priceFishaways is the same price everywhere across 217 stores. Its basket sits at R237.60, and Hake & Chips is R59.90 wherever you land.
Galito’s is steady across the mapGalito’s also has identical pricing at all 61 stores compared. The basket is R192.00 everywhere, with 1/4 Chicken at R49.00.
Wimpy’s burger wiggle is modestWimpy’s priciest store is 6% above its cheapest across 95 restaurants. The basket is R316.60 in Cape Town City Central, WC, and R335.60 in Pongola, KZN, while the Wimpy Burger runs R75.90 to R82.90.
Nando’s has the biggest footprintNando’s leads the restaurant count with 285 locations on this map. Fishaways follows with 217, then Wimpy at 95 and Galito’s at 61.
Cheapest to most expensive provinces
Each province's Drive Thru Index score averages every brand's typical basket there against that brand's own national typical price, so 100 is the national norm, 90 is 10% cheaper and 120 is 20% pricier. Brands are never compared with each other.
| Rank | Province | Index | vs national | Brands | Restaurants compared |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | KwaZulu-Natal | 100 | +0% | 5 | 222 |
| 2 | Gauteng | 100 | +0% | 5 | 469 |
| 3 | Eastern Cape | 100 | +0% | 4 | 103 |
| 4 | North West | 100 | +0% | 4 | 59 |
| 5 | Free State | 100 | +0% | 4 | 58 |
| 6 | Western Cape | 100 | +0% | 4 | 167 |
| 7 | Mpumalanga | 100 | +0% | 5 | 105 |
| 8 | Limpopo | 100 | +0% | 5 | 72 |
Bargain clusters
Where cheap fast food clusters: the places with the most restaurants whose basket ranks in their own brand's cheapest fifth nationally. Each brand is judged against itself, never against another brand's prices.
| City, all brands | Bargain restaurants | Restaurants compared | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cape Town, WC | 23 | 23 | 100% |
| Bloemfontein, FS | 22 | 22 | 100% |
| Kempton Park, GP | 17 | 17 | 100% |
| Polokwane, LP | 16 | 16 | 100% |
| Nelspruit, MP | 16 | 16 | 100% |
| Brand | Top bargain cities | Top bargain provinces |
|---|---|---|
| Steers | Bloemfontein, FS (10 of 10), Klerksdorp, NW (7 of 7), Kempton Park, GP (7 of 7) | GP (214 of 214), KZN (107 of 107), WC (97 of 97) |
| Wimpy | Cape Town City Central, WC (5 of 5) | GP (36 of 36), WC (11 of 11), MP (11 of 11) |
| Fishaways | — | GP (87 of 87), KZN (41 of 41), WC (20 of 20) |
| Galito's | Nelspruit, MP (6 of 6) | MP (19 of 19), GP (15 of 15), LP (10 of 10) |
| Nando's | Cape Town, WC (23 of 23), Pretoria, GP (14 of 14), Johannesburg, GP (9 of 10) | GP (116 of 117), KZN (59 of 59), WC (39 of 39) |
By brand
| Brand | Restaurants | Item | Typical price | Range | Cheapest province | Priciest province | Gap between locations | Delivery vs pickup |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steers | 630 | King Steer | R99.90 | R99.90 to R99.90 | KZN | NC | 0% | — |
| Wimpy | 95 | Wimpy Burger | R82.90 | R75.90 to R82.90 | FS | LP | 4% | — |
| Fishaways | 216 | Hake & Chips | R59.90 | R59.90 to R59.90 | KZN | LP | 0% | — |
| Galito's | 61 | 1/4 Chicken | R49.00 | R49.00 to R49.00 | MP | GP | 0% | — |
| Nando's | 287 | 1/4 Chicken | R60.00 | R60.00 to R93.00 | KZN | NW | 39% | — |
Questions people ask
- How much does a Steers King Steer cost in South Africa?
- As of 2026-10-03, a King Steer costs R99.90 at all 630 Steers restaurants.
- How much does a Wimpy Wimpy Burger cost in South Africa?
- As of 2026-10-03, a Wimpy Burger costs R75.90 to R82.90 at 95 Wimpy restaurants, with a typical price of R82.90.
- How much does a Fishaways Hake & Chips cost in South Africa?
- As of 2026-10-03, a Hake & Chips costs R59.90 at all 216 Fishaways restaurants.
- How much does a Galito's 1/4 Chicken cost in South Africa?
- As of 2026-10-03, a 1/4 Chicken costs R49.00 at all 61 Galito's restaurants.
- How much does a Nando's 1/4 Chicken cost in South Africa?
- As of 2026-10-03, a 1/4 Chicken costs R60.00 to R93.00 at 287 Nando's restaurants, with a typical price of R60.00.
How the index works
Every day we check the menu at every US restaurant of each chain, using the same ordering app its customers use, and record each item's pickup and delivery price. Restaurants are compared on a basket of items that every full-menu restaurant of that brand sells, so a comparison is never skewed by a missing item. Restaurants with a limited menu, and prices that are clearly a menu code error, are left out of comparisons. "Typical" means the median restaurant.
Browse prices for every state and city or download states.csv and cities.csv.
Citing this data: Source: Drive Thru Index (https://drivethruindex.com), prices checked 2026-10-03. Journalists are welcome to quote any figure on this page.