Cost of living comparison
Madrid is 73.6% more expensive than Cape Town.
- Restaurants
-
pay 2.3 times more in Madrid
- Groceries
-
pay 41.9% more in Madrid
- Transportation
-
pay 42.5% more in Madrid
- Housing
-
pay 63.9% more in Madrid
- Childcare
-
pay 2.5 times more in Madrid
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 50.4% more in Madrid
- Clothing
-
pay 35.1% more in Madrid
The cost of childcare, restaurants, housing, entertainment and sports, transportation, and groceries in Madrid are more expensive than in Cape Town. Notably, childcare and restaurants are significantly more expensive in Madrid.
If you lived in Madrid instead of Cape Town, you would:
pay 2.3 times more for restaurants
Cape Town
|
Madrid
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$8.52
ZAR155.06
|
$16.08
€14.73
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$5.11
ZAR93.04
|
$10.72
€9.82
|
|
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.99
ZAR18.07
|
$2.79
€2.55
|
|
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.78
ZAR14.20
|
$1.80
€1.65
|
|
pay 41.9% more for groceries
Cape Town
|
Madrid
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.07
ZAR19.52
|
$1.50
€1.37
|
|
Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.13
ZAR75.19
|
$6.92
€6.34
|
|
Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.25
ZAR77.41
|
$4.41
€4.04
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.53
ZAR46.10
|
$3.05
€2.80
|
|
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$2.30
ZAR41.80
|
$3.78
€3.47
|
|
Apples (1 lb) |
$0.73
ZAR13.31
|
$1.13
€1.03
|
|
Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.70
ZAR12.66
|
$0.87
€0.80
|
|
Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.69
ZAR12.52
|
$1.01
€0.92
|
|
Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.70
ZAR12.72
|
$1.05
€0.96
|
|
Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.55
ZAR9.99
|
$0.83
€0.76
|
|
Onions (1 lb) |
$0.59
ZAR10.81
|
$0.82
€0.75
|
|
pay 42.5% more for transportation
Cape Town
|
Madrid
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.09
ZAR92.64
|
$6.79
€6.22
|
|
Monthly public transit pass |
$42.60
ZAR775.30
|
$42.87
€39.27
|
|
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$19,879.98
ZAR361,808.21
|
$35,759.38
€32,757.20
|
|
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$9.54
ZAR173.67
|
$14.90
€13.65
|
|
pay 63.9% more for housing
Cape Town
|
Madrid
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$43.29
ZAR787.82
|
$31.85
€29.17
|
|
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$784.43
ZAR14,276.27
|
$1,468.90
€1,345.58
|
|
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$505.72
ZAR9,203.96
|
$1,074.71
€984.48
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$71.33
ZAR1,298.10
|
$130.03
€119.11
|
|
pay 2.5 times more for childcare
Cape Town
|
Madrid
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$207.06
ZAR3,768.44
|
$567.57
€519.92
|
|
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$4,312.73
ZAR78,490.16
|
$10,069.47
€9,224.09
|
|
pay 50.4% more for entertainment and sports
Cape Town
|
Madrid
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.56
ZAR46.52
|
$3.75
€3.44
|
|
Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.12
ZAR38.67
|
$2.59
€2.37
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$2.95
ZAR53.75
|
$6.43
€5.89
|
|
Monthly membership at local gym |
$39.65
ZAR721.71
|
$43.11
€39.50
|
|
Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$6.82
ZAR124.05
|
$10.72
€9.82
|
|
pay 35.1% more for clothing
Cape Town
|
Madrid
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$53.53
ZAR974.21
|
$90.50
€82.90
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$30.86
ZAR561.60
|
$37.21
€34.09
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$104.97
ZAR1,910.35
|
$97.88
€89.66
|
|
Men's business shoes (leather) |
$77.06
ZAR1,402.53
|
$121.40
€111.21
|
|
Change currency:
Compare countries by overall cost of living
Help us improve these prices
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Madrid or Cape Town. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.