Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ahvaz and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Ahvaz: $573 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $12,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

28

Cost of Living Index in Ahvaz
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Ahvaz Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Ahvaz

🇮🇷 Iran

$573

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $573 per month in Ahvaz vs $1,586 in Cape Town, rent included.

Ahvaz $573
Cape Town $1,586

A couple spends around $875 per month in Ahvaz vs $2,425 in Cape Town, rent included.

Ahvaz $875
Cape Town $2,425

A family of three spends $1,176 per month in Ahvaz vs $3,263 in Cape Town, rent included.

Ahvaz $1,176
Cape Town $3,263

Ahvaz is about 64% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Ahvaz sits 58% below the global median, while Cape Town is 17% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.97 $1.97

$12.14 R 200

-83.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$12.01 $12.01

$45.34 R 747

-73.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.73 $3.73

$5.88 R 96.9

-36.56%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.89 $0.89

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.05 $1.05

Cappuccino

$1.19 $1.19

$2.50 R 41.18

-52.40%

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

$0.52 $0.52

$1.27 R 20.94

-59.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.96 $0.96

$0.98 R 16.14

-2.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 R 49.33

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 R 61.4

Milk (1 liter)

$0.90 $0.90

$1.30 R 21.40

-30.77%

White Bread (500g)

$0.61 $0.61

$1.25 R 20.68

-51.20%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 $1.85

$2.23 R 36.76

-17.04%

Eggs

$1.30 $1.30

$3.11 R 51.2

-58.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.09 $4.09

$9.06 R 149

-54.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.74 $3.74

$6.92 R 114

-45.95%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.73 $9.73

$9.30 R 153

4.62%

Apples (1kg)

$0.80 $0.80

$1.84 R 30.25

-56.52%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 $1.39

$1.96 R 32.29

-29.08%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.77 $0.77

$1.67 R 27.45

-53.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.56 $0.56

$2.17 R 35.70

-74.19%

Potato (1kg)

$0.54 $0.54

$1.57 R 25.81

-65.61%

Onion (1kg)

$0.51 $0.51

$1.48 R 24.45

-65.54%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.44 $0.44

$1.30 R 21.41

-66.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.29 $0.29

$1.13 R 18.60

-74.34%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$0.98 $0.98

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.48 $0.48

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.20 $1.20

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.23 $2.23

$3.60 R 59.3

-38.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.15 R 101

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.66

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 R 35.20

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.15 $0.15

$1.50 R 24.65

-90.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$9.46 $9.46

$60.8 R 1,001

-84.43%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.52 $0.52

$0.59 R 9.71

-11.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.48 $0.48

$1.50 R 24.65

-68.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.94 $2.94

$5.11 R 84.2

-42.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.10 $0.10

$1.55 R 25.50

-93.55%

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

$118.2K $118.2K

$36.2K R 596.5K

226.52%

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

$63.9K $63.9K

$31.2K R 514.8K

104.41%

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

$14.21 $14.21

$114 R 1,883

-87.57%

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

$1.56 $1.56

$28.91 R 476

-94.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$7.06 $7.06

$39.73 R 654

-82.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$18.01 $18.01

$49.01 R 808

-63.25%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.95 $5.95

$10.99 R 181

-45.86%

Cinema Ticket

$1.23 $1.23

$9.15 R 151

-86.56%

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

$105 $105

$259 R 4,264

-59.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$624 $624

$6,794 R 111.9K

-90.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.2 $52.2

$56.2 R 926

-7.05%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.41 $47.41

$32.41 R 534

46.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$97.0 $97.0

$121 R 1,987

-19.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 $103

$108 R 1,781

-4.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$318 $318

$1,021 R 16.8K

-68.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$221 $221

$717 R 11.8K

-69.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$521 $521

$1,824 R 30.1K

-71.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$348 $348

$1,327 R 21.9K

-73.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,282 $1,282

$2,391 R 39.4K

-46.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$743 $743

$1,542 R 25.4K

-51.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$537 $537

$1,639 R 27.0K

-67.24%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

23.67

10.97

115.77%

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

Last update for Ahvaz: October 10, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ahvaz

$221 38.6%

Cape Town

$717 45.2% 225% $496

Clothing & Footwear

Ahvaz

$135 23.5%

Cape Town

$143 9% 5.9% $8

Groceries & Markets

Ahvaz

$114 19.9%

Cape Town

$225 14.2% 97.5% $111

Eating Out

Ahvaz

$47 8.2%

Cape Town

$176 11.1% 273% $129

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ahvaz

$23 4%

Cape Town

$183 11.5% 701% $160

Sport & Entertainment

Ahvaz

$20 3.6%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 229% $47

Getting Around

Ahvaz

$13 2.3%

Cape Town

$75 4.7% 477% $62

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $318 in Ahvaz 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.

Salaries run about 205% 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 $12.00 in Ahvaz versus $45.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $114 vs $225 – making Ahvaz the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇷 Ahvaz

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

14:58 2:58 PM

13:28 1:28 PM

1 h 30 min behind Ahvaz

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,184,788

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

USD USD

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, EUR to USD – USD Converter

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

USD exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

ZAR to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Ahvaz Cape Town 7,920 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Ahvaz
Cape Town

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

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated March 2026)

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

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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

Yes – Cape Town is pricier by about 177%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $859 per month in Ahvaz 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 Ahvaz, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $12.00 in Ahvaz and $45.00 in Cape Town. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $573 in Ahvaz and $1,586 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 177%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Ahvaz, where all-in costs run around $573, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Ahvaz it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cape Town it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Ahvaz – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Ahvaz. 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.