Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ashkelon and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,586 a month against $2,394 in Ashkelon, rent and utilities included – about $9,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

117

Cost of Living Index in Ashkelon
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Ashkelon Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Ashkelon

🇮🇱 Israel

$2,394

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,394 in Ashkelon versus $1,586 in Cape Town.

Ashkelon $2,394
Cape Town $1,586

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,551 in Ashkelon versus $2,425 in Cape Town.

Ashkelon $3,551
Cape Town $2,425

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,708 in Ashkelon versus $3,263 in Cape Town.

Ashkelon $4,708
Cape Town $3,263

Living in Ashkelon is roughly 51% 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: Ashkelon 77% above, Cape Town 17% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$23.07 ₪71.8

$12.14 R 200

90.03%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$81.0 ₪252

$45.34 R 747

78.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$17.60 ₪54.8

$5.88 R 96.9

199.32%

Cappuccino

$4.58 ₪14.25

$2.50 R 41.18

83.20%

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

$3.26 ₪10.15

$1.27 R 20.94

156.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.80 ₪8.71

$0.98 R 16.14

185.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$12.10 ₪37.63

$2.99 R 49.33

304.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.69 ₪23.93

$3.72 R 61.4

106.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.35 ₪7.32

$1.30 R 21.40

80.77%

White Bread (500g)

$2.68 ₪8.34

$1.25 R 20.68

114.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.01 ₪9.35

$2.23 R 36.76

34.98%

Eggs

$4.57 ₪14.21

$3.11 R 51.2

46.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$21.56 ₪67.1

$9.06 R 149

137.97%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.94 ₪40.26

$6.92 R 114

86.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$25.38 ₪79.0

$9.30 R 153

172.90%

Apples (1kg)

$4.13 ₪12.86

$1.84 R 30.25

124.46%

Banana (1kg)

$3.18 ₪9.91

$1.96 R 32.29

62.24%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.27 ₪7.05

$1.67 R 27.45

35.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.22 ₪10.03

$2.17 R 35.70

48.39%

Potato (1kg)

$1.60 ₪4.99

$1.57 R 25.81

1.91%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 ₪6.20

$1.48 R 24.45

34.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.66 ₪8.27

$1.30 R 21.41

104.62%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 ₪2.93

$1.13 R 18.60

-16.81%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.77 ₪42.84

$3.60 R 59.3

282.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.65 ₪36.23

$6.15 R 101

89.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.58 ₪8.02

$1.38 R 22.66

86.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.97 ₪6.12

$2.14 R 35.20

-7.94%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.53 ₪7.88

$1.50 R 24.65

68.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.33 ₪138

$60.8 R 1,001

-27.03%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$11.17 ₪34.76

$0.59 R 9.71

1793.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.67 ₪5.20

$1.50 R 24.65

11.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.23 ₪122

$5.11 R 84.2

667.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.64 ₪8.20

$1.55 R 25.50

70.32%

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

$57.8K ₪179.8K

$36.2K R 596.5K

59.58%

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

$56.8K ₪176.7K

$31.2K R 514.8K

81.81%

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

$214 ₪667

$114 R 1,883

87.41%

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

$11.73 ₪36.49

$28.91 R 476

-59.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.41 ₪129

$39.73 R 654

4.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.93 ₪143

$49.01 R 808

-6.28%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$32.25 ₪100

$10.99 R 181

193.45%

Cinema Ticket

$16.56 ₪51.5

$9.15 R 151

80.98%

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

$1,220 ₪3,797

$259 R 4,264

371.46%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$107 ₪334

$56.2 R 926

90.83%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$75.6 ₪235

$32.41 R 534

133.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 ₪352

$121 R 1,987

-6.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$146 ₪453

$108 R 1,781

34.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,144 ₪3,560

$1,021 R 16.8K

12.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$961 ₪2,989

$717 R 11.8K

34.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,798 ₪5,595

$1,824 R 30.1K

-1.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,470 ₪4,575

$1,327 R 21.9K

10.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,741 ₪17.9K

$2,391 R 39.4K

140.08%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,602 ₪17.4K

$1,542 R 25.4K

263.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,977 ₪9,263

$1,639 R 27.0K

81.69%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.98

10.97

-54.60%

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

Last update for Ashkelon: 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

Ashkelon

$961 40.1%

Cape Town

$717 45.2% 25.4% $244

Groceries & Markets

Ashkelon

$422 17.6%

Cape Town

$225 14.2% 46.7% $197

Eating Out

Ashkelon

$392 16.4%

Cape Town

$176 11.1% 55.1% $216

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ashkelon

$267 11.2%

Cape Town

$183 11.5% 31.6% $84

Clothing & Footwear

Ashkelon

$199 8.3%

Cape Town

$143 9% 28.1% $56

Sport & Entertainment

Ashkelon

$79 3.3%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 14.8% $12

Getting Around

Ashkelon

$74 3.1%

Cape Town

$75 4.7% 1.1% $0.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,144 in Ashkelon and $1,021 in Cape Town. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ashkelon pays 82% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $81.0 in Ashkelon vs $45.00 in Cape Town for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $422 vs $225 per month, with Cape Town cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇱 Ashkelon

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

11:39 11:39 AM

10:39 10:39 AM

1 h behind Ashkelon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

152,439

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Israeli New Shekel ILS ₪

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 ILS = 0.321 USD

1 ILS = 0.285 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to ILS – Israeli New Shekel Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇱 Israeli New Shekel (₪)

Israeli New Shekel exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 3.11 ILS (1 ILS = 0.321 USD). 1 EUR = 3.5 ILS (1 ILS = 0.285 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.55 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR).

USD to ILS in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Ashkelon Cape Town 7,490 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Ashkelon
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

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

Cape Town wins on cost – living expenses run 51% lower than in Ashkelon. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Cape Town the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 82% higher in Ashkelon, 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: $1,144 in Ashkelon versus $1,021 in Cape Town. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Cape Town – a meal for two runs $45.00 versus $81.0 in Ashkelon. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $2,394 per month in Ashkelon versus $1,586 in Cape Town – a 51% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,586 in Cape Town versus $2,394 in Ashkelon, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Cape Town but tight or insufficient in Ashkelon. The gap between the two cities makes Cape Town the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Cape Town delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,586 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Cape Town hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Ashkelon and Cape Town are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Cape Town gentler on the wallet – expenses run 51% less than in Ashkelon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.