Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bellville and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Bellville: $1,101 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $5,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

54

Cost of Living Index in Bellville
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Bellville Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Bellville

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,101

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,101 in Bellville versus $1,527 in Cape Town.

Bellville $1,101
Cape Town $1,527

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,704 in Bellville versus $2,417 in Cape Town.

Bellville $1,704
Cape Town $2,417

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,307 in Bellville versus $3,306 in Cape Town.

Bellville $2,307
Cape Town $3,306

Living in Bellville costs roughly 28% less than in Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Bellville is 19% below, Cape Town is 13% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.16 R 202

$12.01 R 199

1.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.21 R 402

$42.92 R 712

-43.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.17 R 102

$6.15 R 102

0.33%

Cappuccino

$1.88 R 31.12

$2.37 R 39.30

-20.68%

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

$1.32 R 21.93

$1.27 R 21.11

3.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.93 R 15.47

$0.94 R 15.56

-1.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.24 R 37.19

$2.96 R 49.10

-24.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.53 R 58.6

$3.69 R 61.2

-4.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.89

$1.32 R 21.88

White Bread (500g)

$1.22 R 20.24

$1.21 R 20.00

0.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.13 R 35.37

$2.20 R 36.50

-3.18%

Eggs

$3.18 R 52.7

$3.10 R 51.5

2.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.84 R 147

$8.73 R 145

1.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.70 R 111

$6.89 R 114

-2.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 154

$9.26 R 154

0.43%

Apples (1kg)

$1.92 R 31.85

$1.83 R 30.28

4.92%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 R 32.67

$1.95 R 32.34

1.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.73 R 28.75

$1.66 R 27.50

4.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.05 R 34.00

$2.14 R 35.43

-4.21%

Potato (1kg)

$1.55 R 25.78

$1.58 R 26.19

-1.90%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.45

$1.47 R 24.46

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.60

$1.35 R 22.33

-3.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 R 19.78

$1.14 R 18.98

4.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.54 R 58.8

$3.58 R 59.4

-1.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.16 R 102

$6.05 R 100

1.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.34 R 22.29

$1.39 R 23.10

-3.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.12 R 35.16

$2.18 R 36.15

-2.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.61 R 26.73

$1.40 R 23.17

15.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,008

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.86 R 14.31

$0.93 R 15.37

-7.53%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 R 14.12

$0.90 R 14.93

-5.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.85 R 80.5

$4.96 R 82.3

-2.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.61 R 26.70

$1.54 R 25.55

4.55%

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

$34.6K R 573.5K

$35.4K R 586.7K

-2.26%

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

$33.1K R 549.9K

$33.4K R 553.7K

-0.68%

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

$119 R 1,971

$117 R 1,942

1.49%

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

$25.71 R 427

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.82 R 677

$39.41 R 654

3.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.14 R 566

$51.6 R 856

-33.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.66 R 193

$11.35 R 188

2.73%

Cinema Ticket

$9.26 R 154

$8.89 R 147

4.16%

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

$299 R 4,966

$308 R 5,104

-2.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,126 R 134.8K

$8,141 R 135.1K

-0.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 953

$57.4 R 952

0.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.43 R 538

$31.75 R 527

2.14%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$119 R 1,975

$116 R 1,924

2.65%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,683

$101 R 1,671

0.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$445 R 7,375

$1,047 R 17.4K

-57.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$322 R 5,349

$669 R 11.1K

-51.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$811 R 13.5K

$1,861 R 30.9K

-56.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$661 R 11.0K

$1,407 R 23.3K

-53.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$789 R 13.1K

$2,410 R 40.0K

-67.26%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$709 R 11.8K

$1,570 R 26.0K

-54.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 27.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

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

Last update for Bellville: October 31, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bellville

$322 29.3%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 108% $347

Groceries & Markets

Bellville

$224 20.3%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 0.1% $0.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bellville

$185 16.8%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 1.7% $3.2

Eating Out

Bellville

$166 15%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 5.1% $8.4

Clothing & Footwear

Bellville

$140 12.7%

Cape Town

$138 9% 1.4% $2

Sport & Entertainment

Bellville

$53 4.8%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 31.7% $17

Getting Around

Bellville

$12 * 1.1%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 521% $60

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $445 in Bellville and $1,047 in Cape Town. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $24 in Bellville vs $43 in Cape Town. Groceries flip the comparison at $224 vs $223, with Cape Town cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Bellville

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

22:46 10:46 PM

Same time as Bellville

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

112,507

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.03 USD

100 ZAR = 5.35 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.03 USD

100 ZAR = 5.35 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Bellville Cape Town 21 km

From you

Bellville
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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

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

Bellville wins on cost – living expenses run 28% lower than in Cape Town. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Bellville the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,651 in Bellville and $2,291 in Cape Town to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $445 in Bellville versus $1,047 in Cape Town. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,101 per month in Bellville versus $1,527 in Cape Town – Bellville is about 28% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Dining out is cheaper in Bellville – a meal for two runs $24 versus $43 in Cape Town. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Bellville is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both work as nomad bases, but Bellville delivers better value at $1,101 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Bellville hard to pass up.