Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Arbon and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $3,763 in Arbon, rent and utilities included – about $26,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

172

Cost of Living Index in Arbon
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Arbon Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Arbon

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,763

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $3,763 per month in Arbon vs $1,527 in Cape Town, rent included.

Arbon $3,763
Cape Town $1,527

A couple spends around $5,707 per month in Arbon vs $2,417 in Cape Town, rent included.

Arbon $5,707
Cape Town $2,417

A family of three spends $7,651 per month in Arbon vs $3,306 in Cape Town, rent included.

Arbon $7,651
Cape Town $3,306

Arbon costs about 146% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Arbon and Cape Town sit above the global median – Arbon by 178%, Cape Town by 13%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$30.86 CHF 25.24

$12.01 R 197

156.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$144 CHF 118

$42.92 R 703

234.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$19.65 CHF 16.07

$6.15 R 101

219.51%

Cappuccino

$5.98 CHF 4.89

$2.37 R 38.81

152.32%

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

$5.82 CHF 4.76

$1.27 R 20.84

358.27%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.11 CHF 4.18

$0.94 R 15.37

443.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.19 CHF 7.52

$2.96 R 48.48

210.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.25 CHF 5.11

$3.69 R 60.5

69.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.20 CHF 1.80

$1.32 R 21.61

66.67%

White Bread (500g)

$3.12 CHF 2.55

$1.21 R 19.75

157.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.68 CHF 3.01

$2.20 R 36.05

67.27%

Eggs

$8.00 CHF 6.54

$3.10 R 50.8

158.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$25.26 CHF 20.66

$8.73 R 143

189.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$28.83 CHF 23.58

$6.89 R 113

318.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$41.88 CHF 34.26

$9.26 R 152

352.27%

Apples (1kg)

$3.48 CHF 2.84

$1.83 R 29.90

90.16%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 CHF 1.66

$1.95 R 31.94

4.10%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.43 CHF 1.99

$1.66 R 27.16

46.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.44 CHF 4.45

$2.14 R 34.99

154.21%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 CHF 1.67

$1.58 R 25.86

29.11%

Onion (1kg)

$2.12 CHF 1.73

$1.47 R 24.15

44.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.32 CHF 1.89

$1.35 R 22.05

71.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 CHF 0.98

$1.14 R 18.75

5.26%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.07 CHF 9.06

$3.58 R 58.6

209.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.77 CHF 13.71

$6.05 R 99.2

177.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.25 CHF 1.84

$1.39 R 22.82

61.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.34 CHF 1.92

$2.18 R 35.69

7.34%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.96 CHF 4.06

$1.40 R 22.88

254.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$100 CHF 82.1

$60.8 R 995

65.28%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.88 CHF 5.62

$0.93 R 15.18

639.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.89 CHF 4.00

$0.90 R 14.75

443.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$36.81 CHF 30.11

$4.96 R 81.3

642.14%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.37 CHF 1.94

$1.54 R 25.23

53.90%

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

$40.1K CHF 32.8K

$35.4K R 579.4K

13.37%

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

$40.3K CHF 32.9K

$33.4K R 546.7K

20.66%

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

$321 CHF 262

$117 R 1,918

173.90%

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

$38.33 CHF 31.35

$25.71 R 421

49.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$54.5 CHF 44.60

$39.41 R 646

38.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$90.8 CHF 74.3

$51.6 R 846

76.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$41.46 CHF 33.91

$11.35 R 186

265.29%

Cinema Ticket

$24.19 CHF 19.78

$8.89 R 146

172.10%

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

$2,284 CHF 1,868

$308 R 5,040

642.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$33.0K CHF 27.0K

$8,141 R 133.4K

305.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$146 CHF 119

$57.4 R 940

154.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$65.1 CHF 53.2

$31.75 R 520

104.98%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$144 CHF 118

$116 R 1,900

24.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$187 CHF 153

$101 R 1,650

85.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,023 CHF 1,655

$1,047 R 17.1K

93.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,740 CHF 1,423

$669 R 11.0K

159.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,949 CHF 2,412

$1,861 R 30.5K

58.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,929 CHF 2,396

$1,407 R 23.1K

108.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$14.0K CHF 11.5K

$2,410 R 39.5K

481.56%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$11.5K CHF 9,408

$1,570 R 25.7K

632.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$11.3K CHF 9,256

$1,630 R 26.7K

594.35%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

1.9

10.89

-82.55%

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

Last update for Arbon: 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

Arbon

$1.7K 46.2%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 61.5% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Arbon

$595 15.8%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 62.5% $372

Eating Out

Arbon

$480 12.8%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 63.7% $306

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Arbon

$414 11%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 55.9% $231

Clothing & Footwear

Arbon

$244 6.5%

Cape Town

$138 9% 43.6% $106

Getting Around

Arbon

$152 4%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 52.7% $80

Sport & Entertainment

Arbon

$139 3.7%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 50.2% $70

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,023 in Arbon versus $1,047 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 in Arbon are about 6.9 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $144 in Arbon versus $43 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $595 vs $223 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Arbon

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

23:26 11:26 PM

00:26 12:26 AM

1 h ahead of Arbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,853

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.22 USD

1 CHF = 1.09 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.1 USD

100 ZAR = 5.44 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 0.818 CHF (1 CHF = 1.22 USD). 1 EUR = 0.918 CHF (1 CHF = 1.09 EUR).

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 CHF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Arbon Cape Town 9,100 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Arbon
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $3,763 in Arbon, $1,527 in Cape Town – Cape Town comes out roughly 59% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $5,645 per month in Arbon and $2,291 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: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,047 there versus $2,023 in Arbon.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $3,763 in Arbon and $1,527 in Cape Town. That makes Cape Town about 59% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 39% less in Cape Town. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $3,763 in Arbon and $1,527 in Cape Town. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward Cape Town – 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 Cape Town. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Arbon makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.