Cost of living comparison
Cape Town is 44.7% cheaper than United States overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 56.5% less in Cape Town
- Groceries
-
pay 46.1% less in Cape Town
- Transportation
-
pay 19.3% less in Cape Town
- Housing
-
pay 51.2% less in Cape Town
- Childcare
-
pay 82.7% less in Cape Town
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 50.8% less in Cape Town
- Clothing
-
pay 6.4% less in Cape Town
Expenses including childcare, restaurants, housing, entertainment and sports, groceries, and transportation are lower in Cape Town.
If you lived in Cape Town instead of United States, you would:
pay 56.5% less for restaurants
|
United States
|
Cape Town
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$18.59
|
$8.52
ZAR159.23
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.47
|
$5.11
ZAR95.54
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.50
|
$0.99
ZAR18.56
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.96
|
$0.78
ZAR14.59
|
|
pay 46.1% less for groceries
|
United States
|
Cape Town
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.49
|
$1.07
ZAR20.04
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.33
|
$4.13
ZAR77.21
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.91
|
$4.25
ZAR79.49
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.56
|
$2.53
ZAR47.34
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.16
|
$2.30
ZAR42.92
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.33
|
$0.73
ZAR13.66
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.78
|
$0.70
ZAR13.00
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.00
|
$0.69
ZAR12.85
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.16
|
$0.70
ZAR13.06
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.34
|
$0.55
ZAR10.26
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.38
|
$0.59
ZAR11.10
|
|
pay 19.3% less for transportation
|
United States
|
Cape Town
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.61
|
$5.09
ZAR95.13
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$65.15
|
$42.60
ZAR796.13
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$31,583.67
|
$19,879.98
ZAR371,526.93
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$17.81
|
$9.54
ZAR178.33
|
|
pay 51.2% less for housing
|
United States
|
Cape Town
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$67.50
|
$43.29
ZAR808.98
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,655.99
|
$784.43
ZAR14,659.76
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,423.40
|
$505.72
ZAR9,451.19
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$148.34
|
$71.33
ZAR1,332.97
|
|
pay 82.7% less for childcare
|
United States
|
Cape Town
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,351.84
|
$207.06
ZAR3,869.67
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$22,265.44
|
$4,312.73
ZAR80,598.52
|
|
pay 50.8% less for entertainment and sports
|
United States
|
Cape Town
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.78
|
$2.56
ZAR47.77
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.04
|
$2.12
ZAR39.71
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$9.68
|
$2.95
ZAR55.20
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$50.84
|
$39.65
ZAR741.09
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.30
|
$6.82
ZAR127.38
|
|
pay 6.4% less for clothing
|
United States
|
Cape Town
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$50.38
|
$53.53
ZAR1,000.38
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$40.66
|
$30.86
ZAR576.68
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$85.52
|
$104.97
ZAR1,961.66
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$111.08
|
$77.06
ZAR1,440.21
|
|
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 Cape Town or United States. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.