Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barreiro and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,586 a month against $1,672 in Barreiro, rent and utilities included – about $1,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Barreiro
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Barreiro Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Barreiro

🇵🇹 Portugal

$1,672

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,672 per month in Barreiro vs $1,586 in Cape Town, rent included.

Barreiro $1,672
Cape Town $1,586

A couple spends around $2,346 per month in Barreiro vs $2,425 in Cape Town, rent included.

Barreiro $2,346
Cape Town $2,425

A family of three spends $3,019 per month in Barreiro vs $3,263 in Cape Town, rent included.

Barreiro $3,019
Cape Town $3,263

Barreiro costs about 5% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Barreiro and Cape Town sit above the global median – Barreiro by 24%, Cape Town by 17%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.77 €14.03

$12.14 R 200

29.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.47 €39.56

$45.34 R 747

-1.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.68 €8.61

$5.88 R 96.9

64.63%

Cappuccino

$2.46 €2.19

$2.50 R 41.18

-1.60%

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

$2.14 €1.91

$1.27 R 20.94

68.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 €1.94

$0.98 R 16.14

122.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.32 €2.96

$2.99 R 49.33

11.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.27 €2.91

$3.72 R 61.4

-12.10%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.04 €0.93

$1.30 R 21.40

-20.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 €1.30

$1.25 R 20.68

16.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.63 €1.45

$2.23 R 36.76

-26.91%

Eggs

$3.30 €2.93

$3.11 R 51.2

6.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.12 €8.11

$9.06 R 149

0.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.99 €7.11

$6.92 R 114

15.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.17 €13.49

$9.30 R 153

63.12%

Apples (1kg)

$2.76 €2.46

$1.84 R 30.25

50.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.32 €1.17

$1.96 R 32.29

-32.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.04 €1.82

$1.67 R 27.45

22.16%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.48 €1.31

$2.17 R 35.70

-31.80%

Potato (1kg)

$1.61 €1.43

$1.57 R 25.81

2.55%

Onion (1kg)

$1.64 €1.46

$1.48 R 24.45

10.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.69 €1.50

$1.30 R 21.41

30.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.68 €0.60

$1.13 R 18.60

-39.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.78 €5.14

$3.60 R 59.3

60.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.19 €5.50

$6.15 R 101

0.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 €1.12

$1.38 R 22.66

-8.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.10 €0.98

$2.14 R 35.20

-48.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.42 €1.27

$1.50 R 24.65

-5.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.31 €39.41

$60.8 R 1,001

-27.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.29 €2.03

$0.59 R 9.71

288.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.76 €0.68

$1.50 R 24.65

-49.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.02 €15.14

$5.11 R 84.2

233.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 €1.82

$1.55 R 25.50

31.61%

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

$34.2K €30.4K

$36.2K R 596.5K

-5.66%

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

$37.7K €33.5K

$31.2K R 514.8K

20.65%

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

$110 €97.7

$114 R 1,883

-3.95%

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

$21.19 €18.85

$28.91 R 476

-26.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.54 €31.62

$39.73 R 654

-10.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.97 €32.89

$49.01 R 808

-24.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.55 €12.05

$10.99 R 181

23.29%

Cinema Ticket

$8.88 €7.90

$9.15 R 151

-2.95%

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

$604 €538

$259 R 4,264

133.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.1K €9,914

$6,794 R 111.9K

64.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$77.7 €69.1

$56.2 R 926

38.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.19 €33.08

$32.41 R 534

14.75%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.9 €75.5

$121 R 1,987

-29.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$105 €93.2

$108 R 1,781

-3.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$958 €852

$1,021 R 16.8K

-6.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 €706

$717 R 11.8K

10.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,473 €1,311

$1,824 R 30.1K

-19.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,044 €929

$1,327 R 21.9K

-21.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,877 €3,449

$2,391 R 39.4K

62.15%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,745 €2,442

$1,542 R 25.4K

78.04%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$910 €810

$1,639 R 27.0K

-44.44%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.67

10.97

-66.55%

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

Last update for Barreiro: 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

Barreiro

$794 47.5%

Cape Town

$717 45.2% 9.7% $77

Groceries & Markets

Barreiro

$239 14.3%

Cape Town

$225 14.2% 5.8% $14

Eating Out

Barreiro

$225 13.5%

Cape Town

$176 11.1% 21.8% $49

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barreiro

$167 10%

Cape Town

$183 11.5% 9.9% $16

Clothing & Footwear

Barreiro

$137 8.2%

Cape Town

$143 9% 4.2% $5.8

Getting Around

Barreiro

$56 3.4%

Cape Town

$75 4.7% 33.3% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Barreiro

$55 3.3%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 23% $13

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $958 in Barreiro 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 80% higher in Cape Town, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44.00 in Barreiro versus $45.00 in Cape Town. Groceries tell a different story – $239 in Barreiro vs $225 in Cape Town – so Cape Town wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Barreiro

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

10:42 10:42 AM

11:42 11:42 AM

1 h ahead of Barreiro

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

78,359

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ZAR = 6.07 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 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

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Between locations

Barreiro Cape Town 8,550 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Barreiro
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $1,672 in Barreiro, $1,586 in Cape Town – roughly 5% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,508 per month in Barreiro 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 $1,672 in Barreiro and $1,586 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 5%.

Public transport costs about 37% less in Cape Town. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Cape Town, where all-in costs run around $1,586, than in Barreiro at $1,672. In Cape Town it covers expenses comfortably, while in Barreiro 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 $1,672 in Barreiro. 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, Barreiro makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.