Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Accra and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Accra: $1,073 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $5,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

52

Cost of Living Index in Accra
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Accra Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Accra

🇬🇭 Ghana

$1,073

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Accra and in Cape Town

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Accra and in Cape Town actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,073 per month in Accra vs $1,568 in Cape Town, rent included.

Accra $1,073
Cape Town $1,568

A couple spends around $1,700 per month in Accra vs $2,438 in Cape Town, rent included.

Accra $1,700
Cape Town $2,438

A family of three spends $2,327 per month in Accra vs $3,307 in Cape Town, rent included.

Accra $2,327
Cape Town $3,307

Accra is about 32% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Accra sits 20% below the global median, while Cape Town is 17% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.11 GHS 95.1

$11.78 R 195

-31.15%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$51.8 GHS 608

$46.55 R 772

11.32%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.46 GHS 123

$5.96 R 98.9

75.50%

Cappuccino

$4.51 GHS 52.9

$2.47 R 41.01

82.59%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.54 GHS 18.10

$1.33 R 22.03

15.79%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.45 GHS 5.24

$1.03 R 17.08

-56.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.86 GHS 21.84

$3.01 R 49.98

-38.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.24 GHS 26.29

$3.66 R 60.8

-38.80%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.61 GHS 42.37

$1.39 R 23.08

159.71%

White Bread (500g)

$1.59 GHS 18.64

$1.19 R 19.70

33.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.19 GHS 37.42

$2.11 R 35.02

51.18%

Eggs

$2.58 GHS 30.24

$3.01 R 49.84

-14.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.93 GHS 140

$8.96 R 149

33.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.02 GHS 82.3

$6.65 R 110

5.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.91 GHS 116

$9.29 R 154

6.67%

Apples (1kg)

$3.69 GHS 43.24

$1.83 R 30.28

101.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 GHS 16.41

$1.90 R 31.47

-26.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.78 GHS 20.85

$1.75 R 28.98

1.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.68 GHS 43.12

$2.09 R 34.59

76.08%

Potato (1kg)

$2.64 GHS 31.00

$1.55 R 25.78

70.32%

Onion (1kg)

$2.62 GHS 30.68

$1.49 R 24.65

75.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.76 GHS 8.86

$1.30 R 21.53

-41.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 GHS 6.97

$1.16 R 19.29

-49.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.50 GHS 29.32

$3.71 R 61.5

-32.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.33 GHS 86.0

$6.06 R 101

20.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 GHS 14.99

$1.39 R 22.97

-7.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.29 GHS 26.89

$2.20 R 36.51

4.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.47 GHS 17.28

$1.51 R 25.11

-2.65%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.26 GHS 472

$61.0 R 1,011

-33.96%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.72 GHS 20.23

$0.63 R 10.38

173.02%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.25 GHS 14.70

$1.53 R 25.42

-18.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.16 GHS 48.79

$4.81 R 79.8

-13.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 GHS 15.06

$1.58 R 26.22

-18.99%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$8,061 GHS 94.6K

$35.5K R 588.7K

-77.29%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$9,921 GHS 116.4K

$31.7K R 526.6K

-68.75%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$74.8 GHS 877

$116 R 1,930

-35.77%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$18.90 GHS 222

$28.37 R 471

-33.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.82 GHS 491

$40.69 R 675

2.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 GHS 840

$48.85 R 810

46.53%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.07 GHS 212

$11.13 R 185

62.35%

Cinema Ticket

$12.59 GHS 148

$8.83 R 146

42.58%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$470 GHS 5,510

$261 R 4,336

79.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.6K GHS 218.4K

$6,702 R 111.2K

177.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$14.28 GHS 167

$55.4 R 919

-74.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$18.36 GHS 215

$32.27 R 535

-43.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$36.02 GHS 423

$118 R 1,949

-69.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$52.4 GHS 615

$107 R 1,775

-51.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$691 GHS 8,109

$1,015 R 16.8K

-31.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$280 GHS 3,286

$715 R 11.9K

-60.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,092 GHS 12.8K

$1,801 R 29.9K

-39.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$467 GHS 5,480

$1,330 R 22.1K

-64.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,799 GHS 32.8K

$2,331 R 38.7K

20.08%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,424 GHS 16.7K

$1,513 R 25.1K

-5.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$175 GHS 2,048

$1,636 R 27.1K

-89.33%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

26.75

10.97

143.85%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Accra: October 4, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Accra

$280 26.2%

Cape Town

$715 45.3% 155% $435

Groceries & Markets

Accra

$277 25.9%

Cape Town

$222 14.1% 19.7% $55

Eating Out

Accra

$172 16.1%

Cape Town

$174 11% 0.9% $1.5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Accra

$135 12.7%

Cape Town

$185 11.7% 36.9% $50

Sport & Entertainment

Accra

$97 9%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 31.3% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Accra

$54 5.1%

Cape Town

$141 8.9% 158% $86

Getting Around

Accra

$54 5.1%

Cape Town

$75 4.8% 39.1% $21

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $691 in Accra versus $1,015 in Cape Town. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 837% higher in Cape Town, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $52.0 in Accra versus $47.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $277 vs $222 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇭 Accra

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

06:23 6:23 AM

08:23 8:23 AM

2 h ahead of Accra

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,388,000 Capital

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Ghanaian Cedi GHS ₵

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 GHS = 8.53 USD

100 GHS = 7.6 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.03 USD

100 ZAR = 5.38 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to GHS – Ghanaian Cedi Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇭 Ghanaian Cedi (₵)

Ghanaian Cedi exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 11.73 GHS (100 GHS = 8.53 USD). 1 EUR = 13.16 GHS (100 GHS = 7.6 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 16.59 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.03 USD). 1 EUR = 18.6 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.38 EUR).

USD to GHS in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Accra Cape Town 4,810 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Accra
Cape Town

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Accra vs Cape Town: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,073 in Accra, $1,568 in Cape Town – roughly 46% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,610 per month in Accra and $2,352 in Cape Town. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Accra, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 25% cheaper in Cape Town – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $52.0 in Accra and $47.00 in Cape Town. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Accra, where all-in costs run around $1,073, than in Cape Town at $1,568. In Accra it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cape Town it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Cape Town has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,073 in Accra to $1,568 in Cape Town. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Accra. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Cape Town makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.