Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Baghdad and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Baghdad: $1,148 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $5,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

55

Cost of Living Index in Baghdad
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Baghdad Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

Jump to prices

Baghdad

🇮🇶 Iraq

$1,148

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,148 in Baghdad versus $1,568 in Cape Town.

Baghdad $1,148
Cape Town $1,568

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,702 in Baghdad versus $2,438 in Cape Town.

Baghdad $1,702
Cape Town $2,438

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,256 in Baghdad versus $3,307 in Cape Town.

Baghdad $2,256
Cape Town $3,307

Living in Baghdad costs roughly 27% less than in Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Baghdad is 14% below, Cape Town is 17% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.87 IQD 7,354

$11.78 R 194

-58.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.91 IQD 52.7K

$46.55 R 768

-25.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 IQD 11.4K

$5.96 R 98.4

26.17%

Cappuccino

$3.19 IQD 4,827

$2.47 R 40.80

29.15%

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

$0.36 IQD 548

$1.33 R 21.91

-72.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.25 IQD 379

$1.03 R 16.99

-75.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.83 IQD 5,788

$3.01 R 49.72

27.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.90 IQD 5,892

$3.66 R 60.4

6.56%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.03 IQD 1,563

$1.39 R 22.96

-25.90%

White Bread (500g)

$0.85 IQD 1,284

$1.19 R 19.60

-28.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 IQD 2,308

$2.11 R 34.84

-27.49%

Eggs

$1.92 IQD 2,901

$3.01 R 49.58

-36.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.95 IQD 5,965

$8.96 R 148

-55.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.60 IQD 6,954

$6.65 R 110

-30.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.07 IQD 21.3K

$9.29 R 153

51.45%

Apples (1kg)

$1.14 IQD 1,722

$1.83 R 30.13

-37.70%

Banana (1kg)

$1.09 IQD 1,647

$1.90 R 31.31

-42.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.04 IQD 1,567

$1.75 R 28.83

-40.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.74 IQD 1,125

$2.09 R 34.41

-64.59%

Potato (1kg)

$0.68 IQD 1,034

$1.55 R 25.64

-56.13%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 IQD 970

$1.49 R 24.53

-57.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.66 IQD 1,003

$1.30 R 21.41

-49.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.68 IQD 1,020

$1.16 R 19.19

-41.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.93 IQD 2,922

$3.71 R 61.2

-47.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.58 IQD 20.5K

$6.06 R 100

124.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 IQD 3,219

$1.39 R 22.85

53.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 IQD 3,296

$2.20 R 36.32

-0.91%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 IQD 1,030

$1.51 R 24.98

-54.97%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$23.19 IQD 35.0K

$61.0 R 1,006

-61.96%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.25 IQD 3,402

$0.63 R 10.33

257.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 IQD 2,373

$1.53 R 25.29

2.61%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.68 IQD 11.6K

$4.81 R 79.4

59.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.68 IQD 1,030

$1.58 R 26.08

-56.96%

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

$19.1K IQD 28.8M

$35.5K R 585.7K

-46.26%

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

$19.4K IQD 29.3M

$31.7K R 523.8K

-38.92%

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

$218 IQD 330.0K

$116 R 1,920

87.67%

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

$19.65 IQD 29.7K

$28.37 R 468

-30.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.88 IQD 64.8K

$40.69 R 671

5.38%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$47.30 IQD 71.5K

$48.85 R 806

-3.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.47 IQD 32.4K

$11.13 R 184

92.90%

Cinema Ticket

$10.64 IQD 16.1K

$8.83 R 146

20.50%

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

$168 IQD 253.1K

$261 R 4,314

-35.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,430 IQD 5.2M

$6,702 R 110.6K

-48.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$28.72 IQD 43.4K

$55.4 R 914

-48.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.11 IQD 48.5K

$32.27 R 532

-0.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.4 IQD 103.3K

$118 R 1,939

-41.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$49.01 IQD 74.1K

$107 R 1,766

-54.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$577 IQD 871.8K

$1,015 R 16.7K

-43.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$361 IQD 545.2K

$715 R 11.8K

-49.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 IQD 1.5M

$1,801 R 29.7K

-44.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 IQD 1.0M

$1,330 R 22.0K

-49.75%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,647 IQD 7.0M

$2,331 R 38.5K

99.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,569 IQD 2.4M

$1,513 R 25.0K

3.67%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$593 IQD 895.6K

$1,636 R 27.0K

-63.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.12

10.97

-62.44%

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

Last update for Baghdad: October 5, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Baghdad

$361 31.6%

Cape Town

$715 45.3% 98.3% $355

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Baghdad

$281 24.6%

Cape Town

$185 11.7% 34% $95

Groceries & Markets

Baghdad

$186 16.3%

Cape Town

$222 14.1% 19.5% $36

Eating Out

Baghdad

$129 11.3%

Cape Town

$174 11% 34.4% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Baghdad

$80 7%

Cape Town

$141 8.9% 75.2% $60

Sport & Entertainment

Baghdad

$69 6%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 3% $2.1

Getting Around

Baghdad

$36 3.2%

Cape Town

$75 4.8% 109% $39

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $577 in Baghdad and $1,015 in Cape Town. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cape Town pays 176% 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: $35.00 in Baghdad vs $47.00 in Cape Town for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $186 vs $222 per month, with Baghdad cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇶 Baghdad

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

06:29 6:29 AM

05:29 5:29 AM

1 h behind Baghdad

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

7,216,040 Capital

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.9 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to IQD – Iraqi Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇶 Iraqi Dinar (ع.د)

Iraqi Dinar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,511 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,695 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.9 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 16.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.06 USD). 1 EUR = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to IQD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Baghdad Cape Town 7,950 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Baghdad
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

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

Baghdad wins on cost – living expenses run 37% lower than in Cape Town. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Baghdad the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 176% lower in Cape Town. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $577 in Baghdad versus $1,015 in Cape Town. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Baghdad runs roughly 163% less than in Cape Town. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $168 in Baghdad versus $261 in Cape Town. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,148 in Baghdad versus $1,568 in Cape Town, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Baghdad but tight or insufficient in Cape Town. The gap between the two cities makes Baghdad the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Baghdad delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,148 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Baghdad hard to pass up.

Expats usually find Baghdad gentler on the wallet – expenses run 37% less than in Cape Town. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.