Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Brazil and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Brazil: $855 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Brazil
Cape Town, South Africa
🇧🇷 Brazil
$855
/mo nomad
Cape Town
🇿🇦 South Africa
$1,527
/mo nomad
🙂 Solo nomad: Brazil is 27.8% cheaper than Cape Town without rent, and 44% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Brazil is 26.4% cheaper than Cape Town without rent, and 43.4% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Brazil
Cape Town
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$6.50 R$35.65
$12.01 R 198
-45.88%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$30.90 R$170
$42.92 R 707
-28.01%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$7.25 R$39.80
$6.15 R 101
17.89%
Cappuccino
$1.99 R$10.93
$2.37 R 39.04
-16.03%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.14 R$6.25
$1.27 R 20.96
-10.24%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.73 R$3.98
$0.94 R 15.46
-22.34%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.81 R$9.91
$2.96 R 48.77
-38.85%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.82 R$15.48
$3.69 R 60.8
-23.58%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Brazil
Cape Town
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$0.98 R$5.39
$1.32 R 21.73
-25.76%
White Bread (500g)
$1.63 R$8.92
$1.21 R 19.87
34.71%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.22 R$6.71
$2.20 R 36.26
-44.55%
Eggs
$2.15 R$11.81
$3.10 R 51.1
-30.65%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.84 R$48.50
$8.73 R 144
1.26%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$4.09 R$22.42
$6.89 R 114
-40.64%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$7.98 R$43.77
$9.26 R 153
-13.82%
Apples (1kg)
$2.16 R$11.85
$1.83 R 30.08
18.03%
Banana (1kg)
$1.30 R$7.14
$1.95 R 32.12
-33.33%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.16 R$6.36
$1.66 R 27.32
-30.12%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.46 R$8.03
$2.14 R 35.19
-31.78%
Potato (1kg)
$1.10 R$6.03
$1.58 R 26.01
-30.38%
Onion (1kg)
$1.02 R$5.58
$1.47 R 24.29
-30.61%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.74 R$4.05
$1.35 R 22.18
-45.19%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.72 R$3.97
$1.14 R 18.85
-36.84%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.27 R$12.45
$3.58 R 59.0
-36.59%
Wine (Bottle)
$7.20 R$39.48
$6.05 R 99.7
19.01%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.24 R$6.78
$1.39 R 22.95
-10.79%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.26 R$12.38
$2.18 R 35.90
3.67%
🚌 Getting Around
Brazil
Cape Town
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.93 R$5.10
$1.40 R 23.02
-33.57%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$44.48 R$244
$60.8 R 1,001
-26.78%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.21 R$6.64
$0.93 R 15.26
30.11%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.76 R$4.15
$0.90 R 14.83
-15.56%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$7.56 R$41.49
$4.96 R 81.7
52.42%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.21 R$6.61
$1.54 R 25.37
-21.43%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.7K R$119.1K
$35.4K R 582.8K
-38.63%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$30.9K R$169.6K
$33.4K R 549.9K
-7.36%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Brazil
Cape Town
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$78.0 R$428
$117 R 1,929
-33.40%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$11.96 R$65.6
$25.71 R 424
-53.48%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$19.21 R$105
$39.41 R 649
-51.26%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Brazil
Cape Town
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$24.14 R$132
$51.6 R 850
-53.23%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$25.23 R$138
$11.35 R 187
122.29%
Cinema Ticket
$7.37 R$40.43
$8.89 R 146
-17.10%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Brazil
Cape Town
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$319 R$1,752
$308 R 5,069
3.81%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$12.7K R$69.8K
$8,141 R 134.2K
56.24%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Brazil
Cape Town
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$48.80 R$268
$57.4 R 946
-14.95%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$44.66 R$245
$31.75 R 523
40.66%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$84.6 R$464
$116 R 1,911
-27.04%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$64.9 R$356
$101 R 1,660
-35.58%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Brazil
Cape Town
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$366 R$2,009
$1,047 R 17.2K
-65.02%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$241 R$1,325
$669 R 11.0K
-63.91%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$704 R$3,864
$1,861 R 30.7K
-62.15%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$482 R$2,645
$1,407 R 23.2K
-65.74%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$1,805 R$9,903
$2,410 R 39.7K
-25.12%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,258 R$6,902
$1,570 R 25.9K
-19.86%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Brazil
Cape Town
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$528 R$2,900
$1,630 R 26.9K
-67.58%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.14
10.89
2.30%

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

Last update for Brazil: 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
Brazil
$241
Cape Town
$669 177% $428
Groceries & Markets
Brazil
$183
Cape Town
$223 21.9% $40
Eating Out
Brazil
$120
Cape Town
$174 45.3% $54
Clothing & Footwear
Brazil
$109
Cape Town
$138 25.9% $28
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Brazil
$109
Cape Town
$182 66.9% $73
Getting Around
Brazil
$53
Cape Town
$72 34.9% $19
Sport & Entertainment
Brazil
$39
Cape Town
$69 78.5% $31
Good to know
🇧🇷 Brazil
🇿🇦 Cape Town
🕒 Local time
22:35 10:35 PM
03:35 3:35 AM
5 h ahead of Brazil
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
203,062,512
3,740,026 Capital
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 5.49 BRL (1 BRL = 0.182 USD). 1 EUR = 6.16 BRL (1 BRL = 0.162 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Brazil Cape Town 6,870 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Brazil
  • 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

Brazil vs other spots: cost of living compared

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