Cost of living comparison
United States is 2.5 times more expensive than Cape Town.
If you lived in United States instead of Cape Town, you would:
pay 2.3 times more for restaurants
|
Cape Town
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$8.52
ZAR153.61
|
$18.59
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$5.11
ZAR92.16
|
$10.47
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.99
ZAR17.90
|
$2.50
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.78
ZAR14.07
|
$1.96
|
|
pay 2.2 times more for groceries
|
Cape Town
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.07
ZAR19.34
|
$3.49
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.13
ZAR74.49
|
$6.33
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.25
ZAR76.68
|
$3.91
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.53
ZAR45.67
|
$3.56
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$2.30
ZAR41.41
|
$5.16
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$0.73
ZAR13.18
|
$2.33
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.70
ZAR12.54
|
$0.78
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.69
ZAR12.40
|
$2.00
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.70
ZAR12.60
|
$2.16
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.55
ZAR9.90
|
$1.34
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.59
ZAR10.71
|
$1.38
|
|
pay 42.3% more for transportation
|
Cape Town
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.09
ZAR91.78
|
$3.61
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$42.60
ZAR768.03
|
$65.15
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$19,879.98
ZAR358,414.10
|
$31,583.67
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$9.54
ZAR172.04
|
$17.81
|
|
pay 2.1 times more for housing
|
Cape Town
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$43.29
ZAR780.42
|
$67.50
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$784.43
ZAR14,142.35
|
$1,655.99
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$505.72
ZAR9,117.62
|
$1,423.40
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$71.33
ZAR1,285.93
|
$148.34
|
|
pay 5.8 times more for childcare
|
Cape Town
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$207.06
ZAR3,733.09
|
$1,351.84
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$4,312.73
ZAR77,753.84
|
$22,265.44
|
|
pay 2.2 times more for entertainment and sports
|
Cape Town
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.56
ZAR46.08
|
$5.78
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.12
ZAR38.31
|
$5.04
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$2.95
ZAR53.25
|
$9.68
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$39.65
ZAR714.94
|
$50.84
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$6.82
ZAR122.88
|
$13.30
|
|
pay 12.9% more for clothing
|
Cape Town
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$53.53
ZAR965.07
|
$50.38
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$30.86
ZAR556.33
|
$40.66
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$104.97
ZAR1,892.43
|
$85.52
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$77.06
ZAR1,389.38
|
$111.08
|
|
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