Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ar-rustaq and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Ar-rustaq: $958 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $7,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cape Town outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

46

Cost of Living Index in Ar-rustaq
Learn more

Ar-rustaq Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
Learn more

Cape Town Living Index

Jump to prices

Ar-rustaq

🇴🇲 Oman

$958

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $958 per month in Ar-rustaq vs $1,586 in Cape Town, rent included.

Ar-rustaq $958
Cape Town $1,586

A couple spends around $1,438 per month in Ar-rustaq vs $2,425 in Cape Town, rent included.

Ar-rustaq $1,438
Cape Town $2,425

A family of three spends $1,918 per month in Ar-rustaq vs $3,263 in Cape Town, rent included.

Ar-rustaq $1,918
Cape Town $3,263

Ar-rustaq is about 40% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Ar-rustaq sits 29% below the global median, while Cape Town is 17% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.31 OMR 2.04

$12.14 R 200

-56.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.09 OMR 15.05

$45.34 R 747

-13.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.01 OMR 3.08

$5.88 R 96.9

36.22%

Cappuccino

$5.10 OMR 1.96

$2.50 R 41.18

104.00%

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

$0.86 OMR 0.33

$1.27 R 20.94

-32.28%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.29 OMR 0.11

$0.98 R 16.14

-70.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$13.07 OMR 5.03

$2.99 R 49.33

337.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$12.84 OMR 4.94

$3.72 R 61.4

245.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.29 OMR 0.88

$1.30 R 21.40

76.15%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 OMR 0.46

$1.25 R 20.68

-4.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.84 OMR 0.71

$2.23 R 36.76

-17.49%

Eggs

$3.06 OMR 1.18

$3.11 R 51.2

-1.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.51 OMR 2.89

$9.06 R 149

-17.11%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.11 OMR 2.74

$6.92 R 114

2.75%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.73 OMR 4.13

$9.30 R 153

15.38%

Apples (1kg)

$3.67 OMR 1.41

$1.84 R 30.25

99.46%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 OMR 0.78

$1.96 R 32.29

3.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.31 OMR 0.89

$1.67 R 27.45

38.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.32 OMR 0.51

$2.17 R 35.70

-39.17%

Potato (1kg)

$1.17 OMR 0.45

$1.57 R 25.81

-25.48%

Onion (1kg)

$1.28 OMR 0.49

$1.48 R 24.45

-13.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.84 OMR 0.71

$1.30 R 21.41

41.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.71 OMR 0.27

$1.13 R 18.60

-37.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 OMR 2.53

$3.60 R 59.3

82.78%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.57 OMR 5.99

$6.15 R 101

153.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.81 OMR 2.24

$1.38 R 22.66

321.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$10.12 OMR 3.89

$2.14 R 35.20

372.90%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R 24.65

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.17 OMR 1.22

$0.59 R 9.71

437.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.56 OMR 0.99

$1.50 R 24.65

70.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.96 OMR 3.06

$5.11 R 84.2

55.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.63 OMR 0.24

$1.55 R 25.50

-59.35%

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

$25.8K OMR 9,938

$36.2K R 596.5K

-28.71%

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

$23.0K OMR 8,854

$31.2K R 514.8K

-26.40%

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

$181 OMR 69.8

$114 R 1,883

58.62%

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

$28.68 OMR 11.04

$28.91 R 476

-0.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$70.4 OMR 27.10

$39.73 R 654

77.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

Cinema Ticket

$10.32 OMR 3.97

$9.15 R 151

12.79%

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

$293 OMR 113

$259 R 4,264

13.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.7K OMR 4,101

$6,794 R 111.9K

56.81%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 OMR 22.09

$56.2 R 926

2.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.10 OMR 16.59

$32.41 R 534

32.98%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$88.8 OMR 34.20

$121 R 1,987

-26.33%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.7 OMR 33.39

$108 R 1,781

-19.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,439 OMR 1,709

$1,639 R 27.0K

170.90%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.25

10.97

-52.14%

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

Last update for Ar-rustaq: October 10, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Ar-rustaq

$293 30.6%

Cape Town

$225 14.2% 23.3% $68

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ar-rustaq

$280 29.3%

Cape Town

$183 11.5% 34.8% $97

Eating Out

Ar-rustaq

$223 23.3%

Cape Town

$176 11.1% 21.1% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Ar-rustaq

$124 13%

Cape Town

$143 9% 14.9% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Ar-rustaq

$21 * 2.2%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 226% $47

Getting Around

Ar-rustaq

$16 * 1.7%

Cape Town

$75 4.7% 368% $59

Accommodation & Living

Ar-rustaq

- * 0%

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Salaries run about 171% higher in Ar-rustaq, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $39.00 in Ar-rustaq versus $45.00 in Cape Town. Groceries tell a different story – $293 in Ar-rustaq vs $225 in Cape Town – so Cape Town wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇴🇲 Ar-rustaq

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

20:07 8:07 PM

18:07 6:07 PM

2 h behind Ar-rustaq

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

120,000

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Omani Rial OMR ر.ع.

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 OMR = 2.6 USD

1 OMR = 2.31 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to OMR – Omani Rial Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇴🇲 Omani Rial (ر.ع.)

Omani Rial exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.385 OMR (1 OMR = 2.6 USD). 1 EUR = 0.433 OMR (1 OMR = 2.31 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to OMR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ar-rustaq Cape Town 7,590 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Ar-rustaq
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

Ar-rustaq vs Cape Town: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Cape Town is pricier by about 66%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,437 per month in Ar-rustaq and $2,379 in Cape Town. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $958 in Ar-rustaq and $1,586 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 66%.

Kindergarten costs $293 per month in Ar-rustaq and $259 in Cape Town. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Ar-rustaq, where all-in costs run around $958, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Ar-rustaq it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cape Town it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Ar-rustaq. 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.