Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Arklow and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,586 a month against $2,624 in Arklow, rent and utilities included – about $12,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

128

Cost of Living Index in Arklow
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Arklow Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Arklow

🇮🇪 Ireland

$2,624

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,624 per month in Arklow vs $1,586 in Cape Town, rent included.

Arklow $2,624
Cape Town $1,586

A couple spends around $3,680 per month in Arklow vs $2,425 in Cape Town, rent included.

Arklow $3,680
Cape Town $2,425

A family of three spends $4,737 per month in Arklow vs $3,263 in Cape Town, rent included.

Arklow $4,737
Cape Town $3,263

Arklow costs about 65% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Arklow and Cape Town sit above the global median – Arklow by 94%, Cape Town by 17%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.34 €19.84

$12.14 R 200

84.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$89.5 €79.5

$45.34 R 745

97.35%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.25 €9.99

$5.88 R 96.7

91.33%

Cappuccino

$4.12 €3.66

$2.50 R 41.09

64.80%

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

$2.93 €2.60

$1.27 R 20.90

130.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.00

$0.98 R 16.11

129.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.47 €4.86

$2.99 R 49.23

82.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.16 €4.58

$3.72 R 61.2

38.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.69 €1.50

$1.30 R 21.36

30.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.23 €1.98

$1.25 R 20.63

78.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$2.23 R 36.69

-14.80%

Eggs

$4.64 €4.12

$3.11 R 51.1

49.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.19 €12.60

$9.06 R 149

56.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.17 €11.69

$6.92 R 114

90.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.67 €14.80

$9.30 R 153

79.25%

Apples (1kg)

$3.26 €2.90

$1.84 R 30.19

77.17%

Banana (1kg)

$2.90 €2.58

$1.96 R 32.22

47.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.42 €3.04

$1.67 R 27.39

104.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.70 €4.18

$2.17 R 35.63

116.59%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 €2.09

$1.57 R 25.76

50.32%

Onion (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$1.48 R 24.40

23.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.30 R 21.37

11.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.13 R 18.57

90.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$20.31 €18.04

$3.60 R 59.2

464.17%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.59 €12.07

$6.15 R 101

120.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.08 €3.62

$1.38 R 22.61

195.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.61 €3.20

$2.14 R 35.12

68.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.40 €2.14

$1.50 R 24.60

60.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 999

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.18 €4.60

$0.59 R 9.69

777.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.54 €1.37

$1.50 R 24.60

2.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.30 €29.57

$5.11 R 84.0

551.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.12 €1.89

$1.55 R 25.45

36.77%

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

$38.8K €34.4K

$36.2K R 595.3K

7.13%

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

$37.3K €33.1K

$31.2K R 513.7K

19.38%

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

$240 €213

$114 R 1,880

109.85%

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

$22.10 €19.62

$28.91 R 475

-23.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.2 €49.00

$39.73 R 653

38.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.5 €51.1

$49.01 R 806

17.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

Cinema Ticket

$13.58 €12.06

$9.15 R 150

48.42%

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

$1,066 €947

$259 R 4,256

311.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,404 €4,800

$6,794 R 111.7K

-20.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$93.9 €83.4

$56.2 R 924

67.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.32 €38.47

$32.41 R 533

33.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.5

$121 R 1,983

-11.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 €105

$108 R 1,777

9.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,566 €1,391

$1,021 R 16.8K

53.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,325 €1,176

$717 R 11.8K

84.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,857 €2,538

$1,824 R 30.0K

56.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,819 €1,616

$1,327 R 21.8K

37.13%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.3K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,863 €4,319

$1,639 R 26.9K

196.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.14

10.97

-62.26%

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

Last update for Arklow: October 11, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Arklow

$1.3K 50.5%

Cape Town

$717 45.2% 45.9% $608

Groceries & Markets

Arklow

$392 14.9%

Cape Town

$225 14.2% 42.6% $167

Eating Out

Arklow

$320 12.2%

Cape Town

$176 11.1% 45% $144

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Arklow

$317 12.1%

Cape Town

$183 11.5% 42.3% $134

Clothing & Footwear

Arklow

$163 6.2%

Cape Town

$143 9% 12.3% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Arklow

$85 3.2%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 20.5% $17

Getting Around

Arklow

$23 * 0.9%

Cape Town

$75 4.7% 232% $52

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,566 in Arklow 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 197% higher in Arklow, 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 $89.0 in Arklow versus $45.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $392 vs $225 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇪 Arklow

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

07:43 7:43 AM

08:43 8:43 AM

1 h ahead of Arklow

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

13,399

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.13 USD

100 ZAR = 6.08 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.888 EUR (1 EUR = 1.13 USD).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 16.44 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.08 USD). 1 EUR = 18.51 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Arklow Cape Town 9,930 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Arklow
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $2,624 in Arklow, $1,586 in Cape Town – roughly 65% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,936 per month in Arklow 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 Cape Town, 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 $89.0 in Arklow and $45.00 in Cape Town. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 74% more in Arklow, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Cape Town, where all-in costs run around $1,586, than in Arklow at $2,624. In Cape Town it covers expenses comfortably, while in Arklow it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Cape Town has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,586 in Cape Town to $2,624 in Arklow. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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 Cape Town. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Arklow makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.