Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cairo and Mossel Bay

For one person, living is cheaper in Cairo: $647 a month against $1,103 in Mossel Bay, rent and utilities included – about $5,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

32

Cost of Living Index in Cairo
Learn more

Cairo Living Index
53

Cost of Living Index in Mossel Bay
Learn more

Mossel Bay Living Index

Jump to prices

Cairo

🇪🇬 Egypt

$647

/mo nomad

Mossel Bay

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,103

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cairo and in Mossel Bay

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 Mossel Bay actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $647 per month in Cairo vs $1,103 in Mossel Bay, rent included.

Cairo $647
Mossel Bay $1,103

A couple spends around $1,035 per month in Cairo vs $1,738 in Mossel Bay, rent included.

Cairo $1,035
Mossel Bay $1,738

A family of three spends $1,423 per month in Cairo vs $2,374 in Mossel Bay, rent included.

Cairo $1,423
Mossel Bay $2,374

Cairo is about 41% cheaper than Mossel Bay, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Cairo and Mossel Bay are more affordable than the global median – Cairo 52% lower, Mossel Bay 18% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.64 E£248

$14.78 R 244

-68.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$28.12 E£1,501

$47.61 R 784

-40.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.03 E£322

$8.76 R 144

-31.16%

Cappuccino

$1.72 E£92.1

$2.60 R 42.86

-33.85%

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

$0.36 E£19.38

$1.33 R 21.90

-72.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.12 E£6.41

$0.95 R 15.68

-87.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.51 E£80.4

$2.44 R 40.23

-38.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.32 E£124

$2.94 R 48.42

-21.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.92 E£48.92

$1.12 R 18.39

-17.86%

White Bread (500g)

$0.73 E£38.92

$1.08 R 17.83

-32.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.74 E£39.64

$2.61 R 43.02

-71.65%

Eggs

$1.19 E£63.7

$3.09 R 50.8

-61.49%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.33 E£231

$9.41 R 155

-53.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.03 E£269

$5.05 R 83.1

-0.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.28 E£496

$8.11 R 134

14.43%

Apples (1kg)

$1.77 E£94.4

$1.93 R 31.86

-8.29%

Banana (1kg)

$0.73 E£39.03

$1.32 R 21.82

-44.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.55 E£29.51

$1.81 R 29.81

-69.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.50 E£26.91

$2.04 R 33.64

-75.49%

Potato (1kg)

$0.42 E£22.42

$1.48 R 24.45

-71.62%

Onion (1kg)

$0.41 E£21.81

$1.67 R 27.53

-75.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.33 E£17.51

$1.22 R 20.15

-72.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.21 E£11.20

$1.23 R 20.20

-82.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.98 E£106

$3.58 R 59.0

-44.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.81 E£417

$4.93 R 81.2

58.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 E£84.7

$2.13 R 35.10

-25.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 E£112

$1.95 R 32.09

7.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.35 E£18.83

$1.42 R 23.39

-75.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.69 E£464

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.39 E£21.02

$0.55 R 9.09

-29.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.22 E£11.57

$0.92 R 15.22

-76.09%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.51 E£80.5

$10.94 R 180

-86.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.43 E£22.88

$1.45 R 23.89

-70.34%

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

$32.7K E£1.7M

$29.3K R 482.2K

11.73%

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

$27.2K E£1.5M

$27.8K R 457.3K

-1.90%

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

$27.27 E£1,456

$109 R 1,797

-74.99%

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

$8.58 E£458

$18.50 R 305

-53.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.99 E£747

$42.39 R 698

-67.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.69 E£1,585

$21.17 R 349

40.25%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.25 E£387

$10.96 R 181

-33.85%

Cinema Ticket

$4.86 E£260

$7.13 R 117

-31.84%

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

$121 E£6,438

$224 R 3,687

-46.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,560 E£190.1K

$5,534 R 91.2K

-35.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$40.28 E£2,151

$48.68 R 802

-17.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.53 E£2,645

$20.49 R 338

141.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$115 E£6,137

$99.6 R 1,641

15.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.0 E£3,206

$68.0 R 1,120

-11.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$222 E£11.9K

$505 R 8,319

-56.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$195 E£10.4K

$368 R 6,066

-47.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$550 E£29.3K

$1,031 R 17.0K

-46.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$346 E£18.5K

$707 R 11.6K

-51.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$800 E£42.7K

$599 R 9,866

33.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$525 E£28.0K

$607 R 9,998

-13.51%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$200 E£10.7K

$1,471 R 24.2K

-86.42%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

16.21

11.75

37.96%

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

Last update for Cairo: October 11, 2026

Last update for Mossel Bay: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cairo

$195 30.2%

Mossel Bay

$368 33.4% 88.8% $173

Groceries & Markets

Cairo

$142 21.9%

Mossel Bay

$209 19% 47.7% $68

Clothing & Footwear

Cairo

$119 18.4%

Mossel Bay

$107 9.7% 10.6% $13

Eating Out

Cairo

$90 13.9%

Mossel Bay

$203 18.4% 125% $113

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cairo

$50 7.7%

Mossel Bay

$170 15.4% 241% $120

Sport & Entertainment

Cairo

$39 6.1%

Mossel Bay

$35 3.2% 10.1% $4

Getting Around

Cairo

$12 1.8%

Mossel Bay

$11 * 1% 6.3% $0.7

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $222 in Cairo versus $505 in Mossel Bay. 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 637% higher in Mossel Bay, 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 $28.00 in Cairo versus $48.00 in Mossel Bay. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $142 vs $209 – making Cairo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇪🇬 Cairo

🇿🇦 Mossel Bay

🕒 Local time

11:17 11:17 AM

10:17 10:17 AM

1 h behind Cairo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,120,350 Capital

60,000

💱 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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cairo Mossel Bay 7,210 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Cairo
Mossel Bay

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 Mossel Bay: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Mossel Bay is pricier by about 71%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $970 per month in Cairo and $1,655 in Mossel Bay. 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.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $647 in Cairo and $1,103 in Mossel Bay. That's a gap of about 71%.

Kindergarten costs $121 per month in Cairo and $224 in Mossel Bay. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Cairo, where all-in costs run around $647, than in Mossel Bay at $1,103. In Cairo it covers expenses comfortably, while in Mossel Bay 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.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Cairo. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Mossel Bay makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.