Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barnsley and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,586 a month against $1,888 in Barnsley, rent and utilities included – about $3,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

91

Cost of Living Index in Barnsley
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Barnsley Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Barnsley

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$1,888

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,888 per month in Barnsley vs $1,586 in Cape Town, rent included.

Barnsley $1,888
Cape Town $1,586

A couple spends around $2,833 per month in Barnsley vs $2,425 in Cape Town, rent included.

Barnsley $2,833
Cape Town $2,425

A family of three spends $3,778 per month in Barnsley vs $3,263 in Cape Town, rent included.

Barnsley $3,778
Cape Town $3,263

Barnsley costs about 19% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Barnsley and Cape Town sit above the global median – Barnsley by 40%, Cape Town by 17%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.07 £18.06

$12.14 R 200

98.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$82.4 £61.8

$45.34 R 747

81.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.65 £7.99

$5.88 R 96.9

81.12%

Cappuccino

$4.85 £3.64

$2.50 R 41.18

94.00%

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

$2.38 £1.79

$1.27 R 20.94

87.40%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 £1.22

$0.98 R 16.14

66.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.04 £4.53

$2.99 R 49.33

102.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.43 £4.83

$3.72 R 61.4

72.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 £1.24

$1.30 R 21.40

26.92%

White Bread (500g)

$1.92 £1.44

$1.25 R 20.68

53.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.97 £1.48

$2.23 R 36.76

-11.66%

Eggs

$4.01 £3.01

$3.11 R 51.2

28.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.78 £6.58

$9.06 R 149

-3.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.59 £6.45

$6.92 R 114

24.13%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.16 £10.63

$9.30 R 153

52.26%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 £2.20

$1.84 R 30.25

59.24%

Banana (1kg)

$1.92 £1.44

$1.96 R 32.29

-2.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.60 £1.95

$1.67 R 27.45

55.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.97 £2.23

$2.17 R 35.70

36.87%

Potato (1kg)

$1.90 £1.42

$1.57 R 25.81

21.02%

Onion (1kg)

$1.57 £1.18

$1.48 R 24.45

6.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 £1.09

$1.30 R 21.41

11.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.40 £1.05

$1.13 R 18.60

23.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.00 £17.26

$3.60 R 59.3

538.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.29 £8.47

$6.15 R 101

83.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.26 £2.45

$1.38 R 22.66

136.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.17 £2.38

$2.14 R 35.20

48.13%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.66 £2.00

$1.50 R 24.65

77.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.30 £3.98

$0.59 R 9.71

798.31%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 £1.02

$1.50 R 24.65

-9.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.40 £14.55

$5.11 R 84.2

279.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.99 £1.50

$1.55 R 25.50

28.39%

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

$38.8K £29.1K

$36.2K R 596.5K

7.27%

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

$40.7K £30.5K

$31.2K R 514.8K

30.22%

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

$279 £210

$114 R 1,883

144.37%

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

$20.47 £15.36

$28.91 R 476

-29.19%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.62 £31.97

$39.73 R 654

7.27%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.7 £50.0

$49.01 R 808

36.03%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

Cinema Ticket

$12.38 £9.29

$9.15 R 151

35.30%

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

$1,468 £1,101

$259 R 4,264

467.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.3K £12.2K

$6,794 R 111.9K

139.93%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.8 £44.84

$56.2 R 926

6.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.99 £30.76

$32.41 R 534

26.47%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.9 £68.9

$121 R 1,987

-23.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.4 £58.8

$108 R 1,781

-27.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$900 £675

$1,021 R 16.8K

-11.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$668 £501

$717 R 11.8K

-6.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,364 £1,023

$1,824 R 30.1K

-25.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,112 £834

$1,327 R 21.9K

-16.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,967 £2,226

$1,639 R 27.0K

81.09%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.61

10.97

-48.86%

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

Last update for Barnsley: 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

Barnsley

$668 35.4%

Cape Town

$717 45.2% 7.3% $49

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barnsley

$342 18.1%

Cape Town

$183 11.5% 46.6% $159

Eating Out

Barnsley

$342 18.1%

Cape Town

$176 11.1% 48.5% $166

Groceries & Markets

Barnsley

$300 15.9%

Cape Town

$225 14.2% 24.9% $75

Clothing & Footwear

Barnsley

$122 6.5%

Cape Town

$143 9% 17.1% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Barnsley

$91 4.8%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 26.4% $24

Getting Around

Barnsley

$23 * 1.2%

Cape Town

$75 4.7% 228% $52

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $900 in Barnsley 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 81% higher in Barnsley, 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 $82.0 in Barnsley versus $45.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $300 vs $225 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Barnsley

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

22:47 10:47 PM

23:47 11:47 PM

1 h ahead of Barnsley

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

245,199

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Barnsley Cape Town 9,920 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Barnsley
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

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

Yes – Barnsley is pricier by about 19%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,832 per month in Barnsley 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.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,888 in Barnsley and $1,586 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 19%.

Kindergarten costs $1,468 per month in Barnsley and $259 in Cape Town. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Cape Town, where all-in costs run around $1,586, than in Barnsley at $1,888. In Cape Town it covers expenses comfortably, while in Barnsley it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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.

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, Barnsley makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.