Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bloemfontein and Cairo

For one person, living is cheaper in Cairo: $647 a month against $1,069 in Bloemfontein, rent and utilities included – about $5,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

52

Cost of Living Index in Bloemfontein
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Bloemfontein Living Index
32

Cost of Living Index in Cairo
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Cairo Living Index

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Bloemfontein

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,069

/mo nomad

Cairo

🇪🇬 Egypt

$647

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bloemfontein and in Cairo

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Bloemfontein and in Cairo actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,069 per month in Bloemfontein vs $647 in Cairo, rent included.

Bloemfontein $1,069
Cairo $647

A couple spends around $1,687 per month in Bloemfontein vs $1,035 in Cairo, rent included.

Bloemfontein $1,687
Cairo $1,035

A family of three spends $2,305 per month in Bloemfontein vs $1,423 in Cairo, rent included.

Bloemfontein $2,305
Cairo $1,423

Bloemfontein costs about 65% more than Cairo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Bloemfontein and Cairo are more affordable than the global median – Bloemfontein 21% lower, Cairo 52% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.91 R 196

$4.64 E£248

156.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$41.16 R 678

$28.12 E£1,501

46.37%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.41 R 122

$6.03 E£322

22.89%

Cappuccino

$2.08 R 34.20

$1.72 E£92.1

20.93%

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

$1.40 R 23.11

$0.36 E£19.38

288.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.09 R 17.93

$0.12 E£6.41

808.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.54 R 41.78

$1.51 E£80.4

68.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.73 R 45.06

$2.32 E£124

17.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.05 R 17.27

$0.92 E£48.92

14.13%

White Bread (500g)

$1.07 R 17.59

$0.73 E£38.92

46.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.13 R 35.12

$0.74 E£39.64

187.84%

Eggs

$2.16 R 35.63

$1.19 E£63.7

81.51%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.53 R 124

$4.33 E£231

73.90%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.07 R 83.5

$5.03 E£269

0.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.91 R 130

$9.28 E£496

-14.76%

Apples (1kg)

$1.89 R 31.11

$1.77 E£94.4

6.78%

Banana (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.84

$0.73 E£39.03

115.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.79 R 29.45

$0.55 E£29.51

225.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.56 R 25.63

$0.50 E£26.91

212.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.60 R 26.39

$0.42 E£22.42

280.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.85 R 30.51

$0.41 E£21.81

351.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 R 18.45

$0.33 E£17.51

239.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 R 15.91

$0.21 E£11.20

361.90%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.54 R 41.89

$1.98 E£106

28.28%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.91 R 80.9

$7.81 E£417

-37.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.81 R 29.81

$1.59 E£84.7

13.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.90

$2.09 E£112

-33.49%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.93 R 15.35

$0.35 E£18.83

165.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.1 R 1,253

$8.69 E£464

775.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.07 R 17.56

$0.39 E£21.02

174.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.22 E£11.57

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.51 E£80.5

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 R 23.12

$0.43 E£22.88

225.58%

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

$36.4K R 599.9K

$32.7K E£1.7M

11.36%

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

$28.5K R 469.8K

$27.2K E£1.5M

4.73%

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

$77.8 R 1,281

$27.27 E£1,456

185.19%

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

$32.29 R 532

$8.58 E£458

276.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.69 R 522

$13.99 E£747

126.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.34 R 533

$29.69 E£1,585

8.93%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.25 E£387

Cinema Ticket

$4.72 R 77.8

$4.86 E£260

-2.88%

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

$200 R 3,296

$121 E£6,438

65.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,560 E£190.1K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$60.9 R 1,003

$40.28 E£2,151

51.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.06 R 709

$49.53 E£2,645

-13.06%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 R 2,220

$115 E£6,137

17.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$111 R 1,826

$60.0 E£3,206

84.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$312 R 5,139

$222 E£11.9K

40.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$286 R 4,717

$195 E£10.4K

46.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$513 R 8,459

$550 E£29.3K

-6.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$543 R 8,954

$346 E£18.5K

57.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$487 R 8,031

$800 E£42.7K

-39.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$620 R 10.2K

$525 E£28.0K

18.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,287 R 21.2K

$200 E£10.7K

544.44%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.13

16.21

-25.17%

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

Last update for Bloemfontein: October 11, 2026

Last update for Cairo: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bloemfontein

$286 26.8%

Cairo

$195 30.2% 31.9% $91

Groceries & Markets

Bloemfontein

$190 17.8%

Cairo

$142 21.9% 25.4% $48

Eating Out

Bloemfontein

$171 16%

Cairo

$90 13.9% 47.2% $81

Clothing & Footwear

Bloemfontein

$157 14.7%

Cairo

$119 18.4% 24.2% $38

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bloemfontein

$142 13.3%

Cairo

$50 7.7% 64.8% $92

Getting Around

Bloemfontein

$81 * 7.6%

Cairo

$12 1.8% 85.7% $69

Sport & Entertainment

Bloemfontein

$42 3.9%

Cairo

$39 6.1% 5.7% $2.4

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $312 in Bloemfontein versus $222 in Cairo. 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 544% higher in Bloemfontein, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $41.00 in Bloemfontein versus $28.00 in Cairo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $190 vs $142 – making Cairo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Bloemfontein

🇪🇬 Cairo

🕒 Local time

14:12 2:12 PM

15:12 3:12 PM

1 h ahead of Bloemfontein

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

370,000 Capital

9,120,350 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

100 EGP = 1.87 USD

100 EGP = 1.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 53.4 EGP (100 EGP = 1.87 USD). 1 EUR = 60.03 EGP (100 EGP = 1.67 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

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Between locations

Bloemfontein Cairo 6,600 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Bloemfontein
Cairo

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

Bloemfontein vs Cairo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bloemfontein costs about 65% more than Cairo, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,603 per month in Bloemfontein and $970 in Cairo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cairo, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Groceries cost about 34% more in Bloemfontein, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $41.00 in Bloemfontein and $28.00 in Cairo. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Cairo, where all-in costs run around $647, than in Bloemfontein at $1,069. In Cairo it covers expenses comfortably, while in Bloemfontein it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Cairo – 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 Cairo. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Bloemfontein makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.