Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Belo Horizonte and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Belo Horizonte: $953 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $6,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Belo Horizonte
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Belo Horizonte Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Belo Horizonte

🇧🇷 Brazil

$953

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $953 in Belo Horizonte versus $1,527 in Cape Town.

Belo Horizonte $953
Cape Town $1,527

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,502 in Belo Horizonte versus $2,417 in Cape Town.

Belo Horizonte $1,502
Cape Town $2,417

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,051 in Belo Horizonte versus $3,306 in Cape Town.

Belo Horizonte $2,051
Cape Town $3,306

Living in Belo Horizonte costs roughly 38% less than in Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Belo Horizonte is 30% below, Cape Town is 13% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.48 R$30.18

$12.01 R 199

-54.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.71 R$180

$42.92 R 709

-23.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.36 R$46.04

$6.15 R 102

35.93%

Cappuccino

$2.17 R$11.92

$2.37 R 39.16

-8.44%

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

$1.27 R$7.00

$1.27 R 21.03

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.71 R$3.89

$0.94 R 15.50

-24.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.00 R$11.02

$2.96 R 48.92

-32.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.41 R$18.77

$3.69 R 61.0

-7.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.89 R$4.88

$1.32 R 21.80

-32.58%

White Bread (500g)

$1.69 R$9.30

$1.21 R 19.93

39.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.87 R$10.31

$2.20 R 36.37

-15.00%

Eggs

$2.06 R$11.35

$3.10 R 51.3

-33.55%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.07 R$49.90

$8.73 R 144

3.89%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.11 R$22.60

$6.89 R 114

-40.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.97 R$38.34

$9.26 R 153

-24.73%

Apples (1kg)

$1.87 R$10.31

$1.83 R 30.17

2.19%

Banana (1kg)

$1.16 R$6.36

$1.95 R 32.22

-40.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.15 R$6.32

$1.66 R 27.40

-30.72%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.45 R$7.98

$2.14 R 35.30

-32.24%

Potato (1kg)

$1.01 R$5.58

$1.58 R 26.09

-36.08%

Onion (1kg)

$0.99 R$5.43

$1.47 R 24.37

-32.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.74 R$4.09

$1.35 R 22.25

-45.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.80 R$4.40

$1.14 R 18.91

-29.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.36 R$13.01

$3.58 R 59.1

-34.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.46 R$41.05

$6.05 R 100

23.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 R$7.22

$1.39 R 23.02

-5.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 R$13.99

$2.18 R 36.01

16.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 R$6.18

$1.40 R 23.09

-20.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$63.7 R$351

$60.8 R 1,004

4.87%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.92 R$5.09

$0.93 R 15.31

-1.08%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.77 R$4.25

$0.90 R 14.88

-14.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.81 R$31.96

$4.96 R 82.0

17.14%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.17 R$6.42

$1.54 R 25.45

-24.03%

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

$21.7K R$119.6K

$35.4K R 584.6K

-38.55%

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

$31.2K R$171.7K

$33.4K R 551.6K

-6.53%

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

$72.0 R$396

$117 R 1,935

-38.48%

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

$9.93 R$54.7

$25.71 R 425

-61.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.26 R$106

$39.41 R 651

-51.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.56 R$146

$51.6 R 853

-48.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$40.42 R$222

$11.35 R 188

256.12%

Cinema Ticket

$7.56 R$41.63

$8.89 R 147

-14.96%

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

$421 R$2,317

$308 R 5,085

36.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.6K R$74.8K

$8,141 R 134.6K

66.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.9 R$313

$57.4 R 948

-0.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.14 R$243

$31.75 R 525

39.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.4 R$503

$116 R 1,917

-21.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$66.0 R$363

$101 R 1,665

-34.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$553 R$3,046

$1,047 R 17.3K

-47.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$318 R$1,752

$669 R 11.1K

-52.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$838 R$4,615

$1,861 R 30.8K

-54.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$597 R$3,288

$1,407 R 23.3K

-57.55%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,269 R$12.5K

$2,410 R 39.8K

-5.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,162 R$6,393

$1,570 R 25.9K

-25.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$682 R$3,751

$1,630 R 26.9K

-58.18%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.17

10.89

2.57%

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

Last update for Belo Horizonte: November 2, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Belo Horizonte

$318 33.4%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 110% $351

Groceries & Markets

Belo Horizonte

$182 19.2%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 22.4% $41

Eating Out

Belo Horizonte

$120 12.6%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 45.4% $54

Clothing & Footwear

Belo Horizonte

$116 12.2%

Cape Town

$138 9% 18.3% $21

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Belo Horizonte

$101 10.6%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 80% $81

Getting Around

Belo Horizonte

$73 7.7%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 1.7% $1.2

Sport & Entertainment

Belo Horizonte

$42 4.4%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 66.4% $28

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $553 in Belo Horizonte and $1,047 in Cape Town. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cape Town pays about 2.4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $33 in Belo Horizonte vs $43 in Cape Town for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $182 vs $223 per month, with Belo Horizonte cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Belo Horizonte

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

12:17 12:17 PM

17:17 5:17 PM

5 h ahead of Belo Horizonte

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,315,560

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.182 USD

1 BRL = 0.162 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.05 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 5.5 BRL (1 BRL = 0.182 USD). 1 EUR = 6.18 BRL (1 BRL = 0.162 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.53 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.05 USD). 1 EUR = 18.56 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Belo Horizonte Cape Town 6,280 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Belo Horizonte
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

Belo Horizonte vs Cape Town: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $953 in Belo Horizonte and $1,527 in Cape Town, so Belo Horizonte is about 38% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 58% lower in Belo Horizonte. 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: $553 in Belo Horizonte versus $1,047 in Cape Town. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $421 in Belo Horizonte versus $308 in Cape Town. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 22% higher in Cape Town. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $953 in Belo Horizonte versus $1,527 in Cape Town, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Belo Horizonte but tight or insufficient in Cape Town. The gap between the two cities makes Belo Horizonte the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

It comes down to priorities – Belo Horizonte wins on affordability, Cape Town on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.