Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Arnhem and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $2,589 in Arnhem, rent and utilities included – about $12,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

124

Cost of Living Index in Arnhem
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Arnhem Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Arnhem

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$2,589

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,589 in Arnhem versus $1,527 in Cape Town.

Arnhem $2,589
Cape Town $1,527

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,794 in Arnhem versus $2,417 in Cape Town.

Arnhem $3,794
Cape Town $2,417

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,000 in Arnhem versus $3,306 in Cape Town.

Arnhem $5,000
Cape Town $3,306

Living in Arnhem is roughly 69% 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: Arnhem 91% above, Cape Town 13% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.53 €20.05

$12.01 R 197

87.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$85.8 €76.3

$42.92 R 704

99.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.67 €13.06

$6.15 R 101

138.54%

Cappuccino

$4.17 €3.71

$2.37 R 38.87

75.95%

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

$3.39 €3.02

$1.27 R 20.87

166.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.94 €2.62

$0.94 R 15.39

212.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.55 €4.94

$2.96 R 48.55

87.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.65 €5.03

$3.69 R 60.5

53.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.42 €1.27

$1.32 R 21.64

7.58%

White Bread (500g)

$2.07 €1.84

$1.21 R 19.78

71.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.46 €2.19

$2.20 R 36.10

11.82%

Eggs

$5.14 €4.57

$3.10 R 50.9

65.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.16 €11.71

$8.73 R 143

50.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.09 €12.54

$6.89 R 113

104.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.08 €14.31

$9.26 R 152

73.65%

Apples (1kg)

$2.68 €2.38

$1.83 R 29.94

46.45%

Banana (1kg)

$2.41 €2.15

$1.95 R 31.99

23.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.66 R 27.20

9.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.12 €4.56

$2.14 R 35.04

139.25%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 €1.72

$1.58 R 25.90

22.15%

Onion (1kg)

$2.36 €2.10

$1.47 R 24.19

60.54%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.29 €1.14

$1.35 R 22.08

-4.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.80 €0.71

$1.14 R 18.77

-29.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.07 €12.52

$3.58 R 58.7

293.02%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.17 €6.38

$6.05 R 99.3

18.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.43 €1.27

$1.39 R 22.85

2.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 €2.41

$2.18 R 35.75

24.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.41 €3.93

$1.40 R 22.92

215.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$113 €101

$60.8 R 997

86.04%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.83 €4.30

$0.93 R 15.20

419.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.50 €3.12

$0.90 R 14.77

288.89%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$66.4 €59.1

$4.96 R 81.4

1237.90%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.48 €2.21

$1.54 R 25.26

61.04%

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

$42.2K €37.6K

$35.4K R 580.2K

19.36%

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

$40.0K €35.6K

$33.4K R 547.5K

19.76%

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

$282 €251

$117 R 1,921

140.56%

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

$22.92 €20.40

$25.71 R 422

-10.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$61.4 €54.6

$39.41 R 647

55.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.50 €36.93

$51.6 R 847

-19.59%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.38 €10.13

$11.35 R 186

0.26%

Cinema Ticket

$14.53 €12.93

$8.89 R 146

63.44%

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

$3,018 €2,685

$308 R 5,047

880.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,954 €5,298

$8,141 R 133.6K

-26.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$96.6 €85.9

$57.4 R 941

68.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.18 €25.97

$31.75 R 521

-8.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 €95.7

$116 R 1,903

-7.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$156 €139

$101 R 1,652

54.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,415 €1,260

$1,047 R 17.2K

35.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,149 €1,023

$669 R 11.0K

71.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,213 €1,969

$1,861 R 30.5K

18.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,841 €1,639

$1,407 R 23.1K

30.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,150 €4,583

$2,410 R 39.5K

113.70%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,156 €3,699

$1,570 R 25.8K

164.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,721 €3,312

$1,630 R 26.7K

128.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.95

10.89

-63.73%

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

Last update for Arnhem: 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

Arnhem

$1.1K 44.4%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 41.8% $480

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Arnhem

$366 14.1%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 50.2% $184

Eating Out

Arnhem

$339 13.1%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 48.6% $165

Groceries & Markets

Arnhem

$336 13%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 33.6% $113

Clothing & Footwear

Arnhem

$175 6.8%

Cape Town

$138 9% 21.4% $38

Getting Around

Arnhem

$153 5.9%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 53.1% $81

Sport & Entertainment

Arnhem

$71 2.7%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 1.7% $1.2

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,415 in Arnhem and $1,047 in Cape Town. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Arnhem pays about 2.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $86 in Arnhem vs $43 in Cape Town for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $336 vs $223 per month, with Cape Town cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇱 Arnhem

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

22:16 10:16 PM

23:16 11:16 PM

1 h ahead of Arnhem

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

165,770

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ZAR = 6.09 USD

100 ZAR = 5.43 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 = 0.89 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 16.41 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.09 USD). 1 EUR = 18.42 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.43 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Arnhem Cape Town 9,630 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Arnhem
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

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,589 in Arnhem and $1,527 in Cape Town, so Cape Town is about 41% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Arnhem is about 2.3 times higher, 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: $1,415 in Arnhem versus $1,047 in Cape Town. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 51% higher in Arnhem. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Cape Town – a meal for two runs $43 versus $86 in Arnhem. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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.

Expats usually find Cape Town gentler on the wallet – expenses run 41% less than in Arnhem. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.