Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Biel and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $2,882 in Biel, rent and utilities included – about $16,300 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

137

Cost of Living Index in Biel
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Biel Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Biel

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$2,882

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,882 per month in Biel vs $1,527 in Cape Town, rent included.

Biel $2,882
Cape Town $1,527

A couple spends around $4,522 per month in Biel vs $2,417 in Cape Town, rent included.

Biel $4,522
Cape Town $2,417

A family of three spends $6,163 per month in Biel vs $3,306 in Cape Town, rent included.

Biel $6,163
Cape Town $3,306

Biel costs about 89% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Biel and Cape Town sit above the global median – Biel by 113%, Cape Town by 13%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$30.14 CHF 24.65

$12.01 R 197

150.96%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$108 CHF 88.2

$42.92 R 703

151.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$18.51 CHF 15.14

$6.15 R 101

200.98%

Cappuccino

$6.17 CHF 5.04

$2.37 R 38.81

160.34%

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

$4.95 CHF 4.05

$1.27 R 20.84

289.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.08 CHF 3.34

$0.94 R 15.37

334.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.82 CHF 6.39

$2.96 R 48.48

164.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.83 CHF 3.95

$3.69 R 60.5

30.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.09 CHF 1.71

$1.32 R 21.61

58.33%

White Bread (500g)

$4.03 CHF 3.30

$1.21 R 19.75

233.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.24 CHF 2.65

$2.20 R 36.05

47.27%

Eggs

$7.57 CHF 6.19

$3.10 R 50.8

144.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$22.23 CHF 18.18

$8.73 R 143

154.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$28.41 CHF 23.23

$6.89 R 113

312.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$39.40 CHF 32.22

$9.26 R 152

325.49%

Apples (1kg)

$3.13 CHF 2.56

$1.83 R 29.90

71.04%

Banana (1kg)

$2.05 CHF 1.68

$1.95 R 31.94

5.13%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.57 CHF 2.10

$1.66 R 27.16

54.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.12 CHF 2.55

$2.14 R 34.99

45.79%

Potato (1kg)

$1.50 CHF 1.23

$1.58 R 25.86

-5.06%

Onion (1kg)

$1.86 CHF 1.52

$1.47 R 24.15

26.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.06 CHF 1.69

$1.35 R 22.05

52.59%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.12 CHF 0.91

$1.14 R 18.75

-1.75%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.85 CHF 8.88

$3.58 R 58.6

203.07%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.47 CHF 12.65

$6.05 R 99.2

155.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 CHF 0.78

$1.39 R 22.82

-30.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 CHF 1.53

$2.18 R 35.69

-14.22%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$5.00 CHF 4.09

$1.40 R 22.88

257.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$95.7 CHF 78.3

$60.8 R 995

57.53%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.81 CHF 6.39

$0.93 R 15.18

739.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.72 CHF 3.86

$0.90 R 14.75

424.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$85.1 CHF 69.6

$4.96 R 81.3

1616.53%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.34 CHF 1.91

$1.54 R 25.23

51.95%

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

$39.3K CHF 32.1K

$35.4K R 579.4K

11.15%

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

$35.5K CHF 29.1K

$33.4K R 546.7K

6.50%

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

$136 CHF 111

$117 R 1,918

16.03%

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

$36.33 CHF 29.72

$25.71 R 421

41.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.8 CHF 43.16

$39.41 R 646

33.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$78.2 CHF 64.0

$51.6 R 846

51.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 186

Cinema Ticket

$22.31 CHF 18.24

$8.89 R 146

150.96%

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

$2,738 CHF 2,240

$308 R 5,040

790.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$41.7K CHF 34.1K

$8,141 R 133.4K

412.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$109 CHF 89.2

$57.4 R 940

90.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.63 CHF 33.23

$31.75 R 520

27.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$139 CHF 113

$116 R 1,900

19.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$215 CHF 176

$101 R 1,650

113.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,279 CHF 1,046

$1,047 R 17.1K

22.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,150 CHF 941

$669 R 11.0K

71.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,325 CHF 1,901

$1,861 R 30.5K

24.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,065 CHF 1,689

$1,407 R 23.1K

46.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$9,897 CHF 8,095

$2,410 R 39.5K

310.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,910 CHF 6,470

$1,570 R 25.7K

403.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,757 CHF 4,709

$1,630 R 26.7K

253.26%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

1.68

10.89

-84.57%

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

Last update for Biel: 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

Biel

$1.2K 39.9%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 41.8% $481

Groceries & Markets

Biel

$555 19.2%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 59.7% $331

Eating Out

Biel

$456 15.8%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 61.8% $282

Clothing & Footwear

Biel

$226 7.9%

Cape Town

$138 9% 39.2% $89

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Biel

$225 7.8%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 19% $43

Getting Around

Biel

$147 5.1%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 51.2% $75

Sport & Entertainment

Biel

$123 4.3%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 43.5% $53

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,279 in Biel versus $1,047 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 in Biel are about 3.5 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $108 in Biel versus $43 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $555 vs $223 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Biel

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

00:06 12:06 AM

01:06 1:06 AM

1 h ahead of Biel

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

56,378

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.22 USD

1 CHF = 1.09 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.1 USD

100 ZAR = 5.44 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 0.818 CHF (1 CHF = 1.22 USD). 1 EUR = 0.918 CHF (1 CHF = 1.09 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 16.38 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.1 USD). 1 EUR = 18.39 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.44 EUR).

USD to CHF in detail →

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Between locations

Biel Cape Town 9,080 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Biel
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

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

Yes – Biel is pricier by about 89%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,323 per month in Biel and $2,291 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: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,047 there versus $1,279 in Biel.

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

Kindergarten costs $2,738 per month in Biel and $308 in Cape Town. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $2,882 in Biel and $1,527 in Cape Town. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

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.

If budget matters most, go with Cape Town. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Biel makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.