Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cairo and Bellville

For one person, living is cheaper in Cairo: $647 a month against $1,146 in Bellville, rent and utilities included – about $6,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

32

Cost of Living Index in Cairo
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Cairo Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Bellville
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Bellville Living Index

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Cairo

🇪🇬 Egypt

$647

/mo nomad

Bellville

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,146

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cairo and in Bellville

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $647 in Cairo versus $1,146 in Bellville.

Cairo $647
Bellville $1,146

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,035 in Cairo versus $1,762 in Bellville.

Cairo $1,035
Bellville $1,762

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,423 in Cairo versus $2,378 in Bellville.

Cairo $1,423
Bellville $2,378

Living in Cairo costs roughly 44% less than in Bellville, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Cairo 52% lower, Bellville 15% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.64 E£248

$12.01 R 198

-61.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$28.12 E£1,501

$24.41 R 402

15.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.03 E£322

$6.08 R 100

-0.82%

Cappuccino

$1.72 E£92.1

$1.90 R 31.30

-9.47%

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

$0.36 E£19.38

$1.26 R 20.82

-71.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.12 E£6.41

$1.01 R 16.62

-88.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.51 E£80.4

$2.27 R 37.46

-33.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.32 E£124

$3.64 R 59.9

-36.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.92 E£48.92

$1.34 R 22.05

-31.34%

White Bread (500g)

$0.73 E£38.92

$1.20 R 19.83

-39.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.74 E£39.64

$2.17 R 35.74

-65.90%

Eggs

$1.19 E£63.7

$2.95 R 48.66

-59.66%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.33 E£231

$8.63 R 142

-49.83%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.03 E£269

$6.80 R 112

-26.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.28 E£496

$9.68 R 159

-4.13%

Apples (1kg)

$1.77 E£94.4

$1.92 R 31.67

-7.81%

Banana (1kg)

$0.73 E£39.03

$1.96 R 32.36

-62.76%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.55 E£29.51

$1.73 R 28.51

-68.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.50 E£26.91

$2.12 R 35.00

-76.42%

Potato (1kg)

$0.42 E£22.42

$1.50 R 24.65

-72.00%

Onion (1kg)

$0.41 E£21.81

$1.48 R 24.42

-72.30%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.33 E£17.51

$1.30 R 21.40

-74.62%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.21 E£11.20

$1.17 R 19.31

-82.05%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.98 E£106

$3.53 R 58.2

-43.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.81 E£417

$5.95 R 98.0

31.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 E£84.7

$1.38 R 22.72

15.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 E£112

$2.11 R 34.81

-0.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.35 E£18.83

$1.48 R 24.38

-76.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.69 E£464

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.39 E£21.02

$0.61 R 10.13

-36.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.22 E£11.57

$1.46 R 24.04

-84.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.51 E£80.5

$5.07 R 83.6

-70.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.43 E£22.88

$1.51 R 24.88

-71.52%

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

$32.7K E£1.7M

$34.9K R 574.4K

-6.21%

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

$27.2K E£1.5M

$31.8K R 523.7K

-14.35%

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

$27.27 E£1,456

$118 R 1,943

-76.88%

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

$8.58 E£458

$28.41 R 468

-69.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.99 E£747

$39.33 R 648

-64.43%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.69 E£1,585

$31.81 R 524

-6.66%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.25 E£387

$10.55 R 174

-31.28%

Cinema Ticket

$4.86 E£260

$9.26 R 153

-47.52%

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

$121 E£6,438

$266 R 4,375

-54.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,560 E£190.1K

$6,822 R 112.4K

-47.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$40.28 E£2,151

$56.0 R 922

-28.05%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.53 E£2,645

$32.60 R 537

51.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$115 E£6,137

$121 R 1,989

-4.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.0 E£3,206

$105 R 1,726

-42.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$222 E£11.9K

$388 R 6,400

-42.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$195 E£10.4K

$366 R 6,031

-46.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$550 E£29.3K

$733 R 12.1K

-25.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$346 E£18.5K

$728 R 12.0K

-52.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$800 E£42.7K

$884 R 14.6K

-9.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$525 E£28.0K

$664 R 10.9K

-20.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$200 E£10.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

16.21

10.97

47.77%

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

Last update for Cairo: October 11, 2026

Last update for Bellville: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cairo

$195 30.2%

Bellville

$366 32% 87.7% $171

Groceries & Markets

Cairo

$142 21.9%

Bellville

$223 19.5% 57.6% $82

Clothing & Footwear

Cairo

$119 18.4%

Bellville

$141 12.3% 18.6% $22

Eating Out

Cairo

$90 13.9%

Bellville

$165 14.4% 83.1% $75

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cairo

$50 7.7%

Bellville

$186 16.2% 273% $136

Sport & Entertainment

Cairo

$39 6.1%

Bellville

$50 4.4% 27.7% $11

Getting Around

Cairo

$12 1.8%

Bellville

$14 * 1.2% 19.4% $2.3

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $222 in Cairo and $388 in Bellville. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $28.00 in Cairo vs $24.00 in Bellville. Groceries flip the comparison at $142 vs $223, with Cairo cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇬 Cairo

🇿🇦 Bellville

🕒 Local time

15:23 3:23 PM

14:23 2:23 PM

1 h behind Cairo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,120,350 Capital

112,507

💱 Currency

Egyptian Pound EGP £

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 EGP = 1.87 USD

100 EGP = 1.67 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to EGP – Egyptian Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇬 Egyptian Pound (£)

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).

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).

USD to EGP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cairo Bellville 7,230 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Cairo
Bellville

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

Cairo vs Bellville: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cairo wins on cost – living expenses run 77% lower than in Bellville. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Cairo the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $970 in Cairo and $1,718 in Bellville to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $222 in Cairo versus $388 in Bellville. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 58% higher in Bellville. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $647 per month in Cairo versus $1,146 in Bellville – a 77% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $647 in Cairo versus $1,146 in Bellville, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cairo but tight or insufficient in Bellville. The gap between the two cities makes Cairo the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Cairo delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $647 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Cairo hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Cairo and Bellville are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Cairo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 77% less than in Bellville. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.