Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Antwerp and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $2,211 in Antwerp, rent and utilities included – about $8,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

106

Cost of Living Index in Antwerp
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Antwerp Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Antwerp

🇧🇪 Belgium

$2,211

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,211 in Antwerp versus $1,527 in Cape Town.

Antwerp $2,211
Cape Town $1,527

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,337 in Antwerp versus $2,417 in Cape Town.

Antwerp $3,337
Cape Town $2,417

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,463 in Antwerp versus $3,306 in Cape Town.

Antwerp $4,463
Cape Town $3,306

Living in Antwerp is roughly 45% more expensive than in Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Antwerp 64% above, Cape Town 13% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.63 €21.94

$12.01 R 197

105.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$96.2 €85.7

$42.92 R 703

124.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.33 €11.87

$6.15 R 101

116.75%

Cappuccino

$4.25 €3.79

$2.37 R 38.81

79.32%

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

$3.64 €3.24

$1.27 R 20.84

186.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.44 €3.07

$0.94 R 15.37

265.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.61 €5.00

$2.96 R 48.48

89.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.04 €5.38

$3.69 R 60.5

63.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 €1.24

$1.32 R 21.61

5.30%

White Bread (500g)

$2.82 €2.51

$1.21 R 19.75

133.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.19 €1.95

$2.20 R 36.05

-0.45%

Eggs

$3.84 €3.43

$3.10 R 50.8

23.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.55 €14.75

$8.73 R 143

89.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.76 €10.48

$6.89 R 113

70.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.27 €19.84

$9.26 R 152

140.50%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 €2.61

$1.83 R 29.90

60.11%

Banana (1kg)

$2.43 €2.16

$1.95 R 31.94

24.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.57 €2.29

$1.66 R 27.16

54.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.47 €3.09

$2.14 R 34.99

62.15%

Potato (1kg)

$2.62 €2.34

$1.58 R 25.86

65.82%

Onion (1kg)

$1.85 €1.65

$1.47 R 24.15

25.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.56 €1.39

$1.35 R 22.05

15.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 €1.03

$1.14 R 18.75

1.75%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.96 €11.54

$3.58 R 58.6

262.01%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.02 €8.03

$6.05 R 99.2

49.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.83 €1.63

$1.39 R 22.82

31.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.97 €1.76

$2.18 R 35.69

-9.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.38 €3.01

$1.40 R 22.88

141.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$55.1 €49.09

$60.8 R 995

-9.28%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.47 €4.87

$0.93 R 15.18

488.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.61 €2.33

$0.90 R 14.75

190.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$44.47 €39.61

$4.96 R 81.3

796.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.09 €1.86

$1.54 R 25.23

35.71%

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

$35.2K €31.3K

$35.4K R 579.4K

-0.51%

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

$36.7K €32.7K

$33.4K R 546.7K

9.93%

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

$210 €187

$117 R 1,918

79.06%

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

$22.31 €19.87

$25.71 R 421

-13.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$48.06 €42.81

$39.41 R 646

21.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.96 €33.82

$51.6 R 846

-26.45%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.25 €24.28

$11.35 R 186

140.09%

Cinema Ticket

$15.73 €14.01

$8.89 R 146

76.94%

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

$1,625 €1,448

$308 R 5,040

428.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$32.8K €29.3K

$8,141 R 133.4K

303.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$114 €102

$57.4 R 940

99.20%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 €47.31

$31.75 R 520

67.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.3

$116 R 1,900

-8.69%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$179 €160

$101 R 1,650

78.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,058 €943

$1,047 R 17.1K

1.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$853 €759

$669 R 11.0K

27.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,635 €1,457

$1,861 R 30.5K

-12.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,305 €1,163

$1,407 R 23.1K

-7.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,341 €3,867

$2,410 R 39.5K

80.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,925 €2,606

$1,570 R 25.7K

86.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,024 €2,694

$1,630 R 26.7K

85.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.53

10.89

-67.58%

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

Last update for Antwerp: November 2, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Antwerp

$853 38.6%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 21.5% $183

Groceries & Markets

Antwerp

$361 16.3%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 38.2% $138

Eating Out

Antwerp

$357 16.1%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 51.2% $183

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Antwerp

$280 12.7%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 34.9% $98

Clothing & Footwear

Antwerp

$204 9.2%

Cape Town

$138 9% 32.4% $66

Getting Around

Antwerp

$87 3.9%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 17.7% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Antwerp

$69 3.1%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 0.1% $0

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,058 in Antwerp and $1,047 in Cape Town. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Antwerp pays 86% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $96 in Antwerp vs $43 in Cape Town for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $361 vs $223 per month, with Cape Town cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇪 Antwerp

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

23:41 11:41 PM

00:41 12:41 AM

1 h ahead of Antwerp

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

525,935

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ZAR = 6.1 USD

100 ZAR = 5.44 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 0.891 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 16.38 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.1 USD). 1 EUR = 18.39 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.44 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Antwerp Cape Town 9,570 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Antwerp
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

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,211 in Antwerp and $1,527 in Cape Town, so Cape Town is about 31% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 86% higher in Antwerp, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,058 in Antwerp versus $1,047 in Cape Town. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Antwerp runs roughly 9% less than in Cape Town. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $1,625 in Antwerp versus $308 in Cape Town. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Cape Town is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

It comes down to priorities – Cape Town wins on affordability, Antwerp on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.