Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Biarritz and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $2,092 in Biarritz, rent and utilities included – about $6,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

101

Cost of Living Index in Biarritz
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Biarritz Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Biarritz

🇫🇷 France

$2,092

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,092 in Biarritz versus $1,527 in Cape Town.

Biarritz $2,092
Cape Town $1,527

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,409 in Biarritz versus $2,417 in Cape Town.

Biarritz $3,409
Cape Town $2,417

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,727 in Biarritz versus $3,306 in Cape Town.

Biarritz $4,727
Cape Town $3,306

Living in Biarritz is roughly 37% more expensive than in Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Biarritz 55% above, Cape Town 13% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.30 €18.16

$12.01 R 199

69.03%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.6 €71.2

$42.92 R 709

85.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.84 €12.39

$6.15 R 102

125.04%

Cappuccino

$3.60 €3.22

$2.37 R 39.16

51.90%

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

$2.85 €2.55

$1.27 R 21.03

124.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.43 €1.28

$0.94 R 15.50

52.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.96 €7.12

$2.96 R 48.92

168.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.58 €5.89

$3.69 R 61.0

78.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.18 €1.06

$1.32 R 21.80

-10.61%

White Bread (500g)

$1.95 €1.75

$1.21 R 19.93

61.16%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$2.20 R 36.37

Eggs

$3.51 €3.14

$3.10 R 51.3

13.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.56 €12.13

$8.73 R 144

55.33%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$16.32 €14.60

$6.89 R 114

136.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$24.18 €21.64

$9.26 R 153

161.12%

Apples (1kg)

$3.25 €2.91

$1.83 R 30.17

77.60%

Banana (1kg)

$2.19 €1.96

$1.95 R 32.22

12.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.30 €2.95

$1.66 R 27.40

98.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.30 €3.84

$2.14 R 35.30

100.93%

Potato (1kg)

$2.27 €2.03

$1.58 R 26.09

43.67%

Onion (1kg)

$2.60 €2.32

$1.47 R 24.37

76.87%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.35 R 22.25

1.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 €0.48

$1.14 R 18.91

-53.51%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.95 €11.59

$3.58 R 59.1

261.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.96 €8.91

$6.05 R 100

64.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.82 €3.42

$1.39 R 23.02

174.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.41 €3.05

$2.18 R 36.01

56.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.63 €1.46

$1.40 R 23.09

16.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$43.33 €38.77

$60.8 R 1,004

-28.67%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.26 €2.92

$0.93 R 15.31

250.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.24 €1.11

$0.90 R 14.88

37.78%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$42.93 €38.42

$4.96 R 82.0

765.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.01 €1.80

$1.54 R 25.45

30.52%

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

$35.1K €31.4K

$35.4K R 584.6K

-0.67%

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

$35.5K €31.8K

$33.4K R 551.6K

6.35%

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

$222 €199

$117 R 1,935

89.94%

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

$15.23 €13.63

$25.71 R 425

-40.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.11 €27.83

$39.41 R 651

-21.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$73.3 €65.6

$51.6 R 853

41.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.52 €21.05

$11.35 R 188

107.22%

Cinema Ticket

$9.95 €8.90

$8.89 R 147

11.92%

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

$785 €702

$308 R 5,085

155.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.4K €11.1K

$8,141 R 134.6K

51.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$117 €104

$57.4 R 948

103.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.11 €40.37

$31.75 R 525

42.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 €96.8

$116 R 1,917

-6.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$145 €130

$101 R 1,665

44.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$907 €811

$1,047 R 17.3K

-13.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$784 €701

$669 R 11.1K

17.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,122 €1,899

$1,861 R 30.8K

14.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,764 €1,579

$1,407 R 23.3K

25.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$10.2K €9,121

$2,410 R 39.8K

322.94%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,789 €6,970

$1,570 R 25.9K

396.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,238 €2,003

$1,630 R 26.9K

37.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.7

10.89

-66.02%

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

Last update for Biarritz: 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

Biarritz

$784 37.5%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 14.6% $115

Groceries & Markets

Biarritz

$383 18.3%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 41.7% $159

Eating Out

Biarritz

$317 15.2%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 45.1% $143

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Biarritz

$269 12.9%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 32.2% $87

Clothing & Footwear

Biarritz

$187 8.9%

Cape Town

$138 9% 26.3% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Biarritz

$93 4.5%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 25.5% $24

Getting Around

Biarritz

$59 2.8%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 21% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $907 in Biarritz and $1,047 in Cape Town. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Biarritz pays 37% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $80 in Biarritz vs $43 in Cape Town for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $383 vs $223 per month, with Cape Town cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇫🇷 Biarritz

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

16:19 4:19 PM

17:19 5:19 PM

1 h ahead of Biarritz

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

25,764

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ZAR = 6.05 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.895 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

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 EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Biarritz Cape Town 8,840 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Biarritz
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

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,092 in Biarritz and $1,527 in Cape Town, so Cape Town is about 27% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 37% higher in Biarritz, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $907 in Biarritz versus $1,047 in Cape Town. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 71% higher in Biarritz. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Cape Town – a meal for two runs $43 versus $80 in Biarritz. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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

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 – Cape Town wins on affordability, Biarritz on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.