Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Afghanistan and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Afghanistan: $551 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $12,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

27

Cost of Living Index in Afghanistan
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Afghanistan Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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🇦🇫 Afghanistan

$551

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

🙂 Solo nomad: Afghanistan is 45.3% cheaper than Cape Town without rent, and 64.8% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Afghanistan is 58.2% cheaper than Cape Town without rent, and 71.9% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.35 ؋152

$11.78 R 194

-80.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$10.67 ؋691

$46.55 R 768

-77.08%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.86 ؋250

$5.96 R 98.4

-35.23%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.11 ؋137

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.74 ؋501

Cappuccino

$1.02 ؋66.4

$2.47 R 40.80

-58.70%

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

$0.45 ؋28.93

$1.33 R 21.91

-66.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.19 ؋12.01

$1.03 R 16.99

-81.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.01 R 49.72

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 R 60.4

Milk (1 liter)

$0.79 ؋51.3

$1.39 R 22.96

-43.17%

White Bread (500g)

$0.28 ؋18.17

$1.19 R 19.60

-76.47%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 ؋126

$2.11 R 34.84

-8.06%

Eggs

$1.59 ؋103

$3.01 R 49.58

-47.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.73 ؋306

$8.96 R 148

-47.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.85 ؋249

$6.65 R 110

-42.11%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.72 ؋435

$9.29 R 153

-27.66%

Apples (1kg)

$0.69 ؋44.50

$1.83 R 30.13

-62.30%

Banana (1kg)

$0.93 ؋60.0

$1.90 R 31.31

-51.05%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.03 ؋66.5

$1.75 R 28.83

-41.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.53 ؋34.53

$2.09 R 34.41

-74.64%

Potato (1kg)

$0.55 ؋35.89

$1.55 R 25.64

-64.52%

Onion (1kg)

$0.41 ؋26.32

$1.49 R 24.53

-72.48%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.40 ؋25.72

$1.30 R 21.41

-69.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.34 ؋22.25

$1.16 R 19.19

-70.69%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.82 ؋118

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.74 ؋47.89

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.02 ؋66.3

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.29 ؋148

$3.71 R 61.2

-38.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.06 R 100

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.85

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 R 36.32

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 ؋19.34

$1.51 R 24.98

-80.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$14.43 ؋934

$61.0 R 1,006

-76.33%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.49 ؋96.8

$0.63 R 10.33

136.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.48 ؋31.04

$1.53 R 25.29

-68.63%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.73 ؋112

$4.81 R 79.4

-64.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.11 ؋71.6

$1.58 R 26.08

-29.75%

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

$8,439 ؋546.5K

$35.5K R 585.7K

-76.23%

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

$34.2K ؋2.2M

$31.7K R 523.8K

7.76%

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

$57.5 ؋3,724

$116 R 1,920

-50.58%

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

$13.64 ؋884

$28.37 R 468

-51.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$163 ؋10.6K

$40.69 R 671

301.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$10.68 ؋692

$48.85 R 806

-78.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.03 ؋261

$11.13 R 184

-63.79%

Cinema Ticket

$2.57 ؋166

$8.83 R 146

-70.89%

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

$20.21 ؋1,309

$261 R 4,314

-92.27%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,302 ؋84.3K

$6,702 R 110.6K

-80.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$13.25 ؋858

$55.4 R 914

-76.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$18.30 ؋1,185

$32.27 R 532

-43.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$43.65 ؋2,827

$118 R 1,939

-62.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$32.51 ؋2,105

$107 R 1,766

-69.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$115 ؋7,464

$1,015 R 16.7K

-88.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$89.7 ؋5,810

$715 R 11.8K

-87.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$196 ؋12.7K

$1,801 R 29.7K

-89.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$111 ؋7,217

$1,330 R 22.0K

-91.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$652 ؋42.2K

$2,331 R 38.5K

-72.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$351 ؋22.7K

$1,513 R 25.0K

-76.81%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$259 ؋16.8K

$1,636 R 27.0K

-84.16%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

18.22

10.97

66.09%

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

Last update for Afghanistan: October 6, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Afghanistan

$235 42.2%

Cape Town

$185 11.7% 20.9% $49

Groceries & Markets

Afghanistan

$102 18.4%

Cape Town

$222 14.1% 117% $120

Accommodation & Living

Afghanistan

$90 16.1%

Cape Town

$715 45.3% 698% $626

Clothing & Footwear

Afghanistan

$48 8.7%

Cape Town

$141 8.9% 190% $92

Eating Out

Afghanistan

$45 8.1%

Cape Town

$174 11% 284% $128

Getting Around

Afghanistan

$20 3.5%

Cape Town

$75 4.8% 286% $56

Sport & Entertainment

Afghanistan

$16 2.9%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 321% $51

Good to know

🇦🇫 Afghanistan

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

16:01 4:01 PM

13:31 1:31 PM

2 h 30 min behind Afghanistan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

41,454,761

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Afghanistan Afghani AFN ؋

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 AFN = 1.54 USD

100 AFN = 1.38 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to AFN – Afghanistan Afghani Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇫 Afghanistan Afghani (؋)

Afghanistan Afghani exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 64.76 AFN (100 AFN = 1.54 USD). 1 EUR = 72.57 AFN (100 AFN = 1.38 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 16.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.06 USD). 1 EUR = 18.49 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

USD to AFN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Afghanistan Cape Town 9,270 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Afghanistan
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

Afghanistan vs other spots: cost of living compared

Cost of Living Comparison Between Afghanistan and Cape Town

ZAR, USD, EUR to AFN – Afghanistan Afghani Converter

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

Afghanistan

Cape Town

Afghanistan

Cape Town

Afghanistan vs other spots: cost of living compared

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