Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Accrington and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,586 a month against $2,214 in Accrington, rent and utilities included – about $7,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Accrington
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Accrington Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Accrington

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,214

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Accrington 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 Accrington and in Cape Town actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $2,214 per month in Accrington vs $1,586 in Cape Town, rent included.

Accrington $2,214
Cape Town $1,586

A couple spends around $3,272 per month in Accrington vs $2,425 in Cape Town, rent included.

Accrington $3,272
Cape Town $2,425

A family of three spends $4,330 per month in Accrington vs $3,263 in Cape Town, rent included.

Accrington $4,330
Cape Town $3,263

Accrington costs about 40% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Accrington and Cape Town sit above the global median – Accrington by 64%, Cape Town by 17%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.90 £15.68

$12.14 R 200

72.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$78.1 £58.6

$45.34 R 747

72.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.41 £7.06

$5.88 R 96.9

60.03%

Cappuccino

$3.38 £2.53

$2.50 R 41.18

35.20%

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

$1.34 £1.01

$1.27 R 20.94

5.51%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.04 £0.78

$0.98 R 16.14

6.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.14 £5.36

$2.99 R 49.33

138.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.04 £6.03

$3.72 R 61.4

116.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 £1.24

$1.30 R 21.40

27.69%

White Bread (500g)

$0.50 £0.38

$1.25 R 20.68

-60.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.78 £2.09

$2.23 R 36.76

24.66%

Eggs

$2.34 £1.76

$3.11 R 51.2

-24.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.91 £8.18

$9.06 R 149

20.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.78 £6.58

$6.92 R 114

26.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.73 £11.80

$9.30 R 153

69.14%

Apples (1kg)

$3.13 £2.35

$1.84 R 30.25

70.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 £1.48

$1.96 R 32.29

0.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.85 £2.14

$1.67 R 27.45

70.66%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.34 £2.51

$2.17 R 35.70

53.92%

Potato (1kg)

$1.68 £1.26

$1.57 R 25.81

7.01%

Onion (1kg)

$1.66 £1.25

$1.48 R 24.45

12.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.33 £1.00

$1.30 R 21.41

2.31%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 £1.21

$1.13 R 18.60

42.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$19.92 £14.94

$3.60 R 59.3

453.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.63 £7.97

$6.15 R 101

72.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.59 £1.94

$1.38 R 22.66

87.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.09 £2.32

$2.14 R 35.20

44.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.24 £2.43

$1.50 R 24.65

116.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$94.9 £71.2

$60.8 R 1,001

56.23%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.10 £2.33

$0.59 R 9.71

425.42%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.61 £1.21

$1.50 R 24.65

7.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$18.07 £13.56

$5.11 R 84.2

253.62%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.08 £1.56

$1.55 R 25.50

34.19%

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

$38.8K £29.1K

$36.2K R 596.5K

7.12%

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

$40.4K £30.3K

$31.2K R 514.8K

29.13%

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

$255 £192

$114 R 1,883

123.29%

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

$16.50 £12.38

$28.91 R 476

-42.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.93 £19.45

$39.73 R 654

-34.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.42 £28.82

$49.01 R 808

-21.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

Cinema Ticket

$6.74 £5.06

$9.15 R 151

-26.34%

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

$1,893 £1,420

$259 R 4,264

631.52%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.6K £16.2K

$6,794 R 111.9K

217.49%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.5 £66.4

$56.2 R 926

57.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.77 £35.09

$32.41 R 534

44.31%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$86.9 £65.2

$121 R 1,987

-27.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 £64.4

$108 R 1,781

-20.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,238 £929

$1,021 R 16.8K

21.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,014 £761

$717 R 11.8K

41.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,123 £1,593

$1,824 R 30.1K

16.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,685 £1,264

$1,327 R 21.9K

26.98%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,013 £3,761

$2,391 R 39.4K

109.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,883 £2,913

$1,542 R 25.4K

151.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.99

10.97

-54.51%

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

Last update for Accrington: October 13, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Accrington

$1K 45.8%

Cape Town

$717 45.2% 29.3% $297

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Accrington

$298 13.5%

Cape Town

$183 11.5% 38.5% $115

Eating Out

Accrington

$297 13.4%

Cape Town

$176 11.1% 40.7% $121

Groceries & Markets

Accrington

$295 13.3%

Cape Town

$225 14.2% 23.8% $70

Clothing & Footwear

Accrington

$139 6.3%

Cape Town

$143 9% 3% $4.2

Getting Around

Accrington

$119 5.4%

Cape Town

$75 4.7% 37.2% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Accrington

$52 2.3%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 29.7% $15

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,238 in Accrington versus $1,021 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $78.0 in Accrington versus $45.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $295 vs $225 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Accrington

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

19:16 7:16 PM

20:16 8:16 PM

1 h ahead of Accrington

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

34,897

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Accrington Cape Town 9,950 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Accrington
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $2,214 in Accrington, $1,586 in Cape Town – roughly 40% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,320 per month in Accrington and $2,379 in Cape Town. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Kindergarten costs $1,893 per month in Accrington and $259 in Cape Town. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 31% more in Accrington, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Cape Town, where all-in costs run around $1,586, than in Accrington at $2,214. In Cape Town it covers expenses comfortably, while in Accrington 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 $1,586 in Cape Town to $2,214 in Accrington. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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