Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cairo and St Francis Bay

For one person, living is cheaper in Cairo: $647 a month against $1,022 in St Francis Bay, rent and utilities included – about $4,500 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
50

Cost of Living Index in St Francis Bay
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St Francis Bay Living Index

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Cairo

🇪🇬 Egypt

$647

/mo nomad

St Francis Bay

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,022

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cairo and in St Francis 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 St Francis Bay actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $647 per month in Cairo vs $1,022 in St Francis Bay, rent included.

Cairo $647
St Francis Bay $1,022

A couple spends around $1,035 per month in Cairo vs $1,650 in St Francis Bay, rent included.

Cairo $1,035
St Francis Bay $1,650

A family of three spends $1,423 per month in Cairo vs $2,278 in St Francis Bay, rent included.

Cairo $1,423
St Francis Bay $2,278

Cairo is about 37% cheaper than St Francis Bay, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Cairo and St Francis Bay are more affordable than the global median – Cairo 52% lower, St Francis Bay 24% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.64 E£248

$10.85 R 179

-57.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$28.12 E£1,501

$42.05 R 693

-33.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.03 E£322

$3.65 R 60.2

65.21%

Cappuccino

$1.72 E£92.1

$2.14 R 35.18

-19.63%

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

$0.36 E£19.38

$1.02 R 16.76

-64.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.12 E£6.41

$0.73 R 11.98

-83.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.51 E£80.4

$2.13 R 35.13

-29.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.32 E£124

$1.84 R 30.36

26.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.92 E£48.92

$0.86 R 14.25

6.98%

White Bread (500g)

$0.73 E£38.92

$1.01 R 16.58

-27.72%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.74 E£39.64

$1.43 R 23.56

-48.25%

Eggs

$1.19 E£63.7

$2.66 R 43.89

-55.26%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.33 E£231

$7.39 R 122

-41.41%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.03 E£269

$5.33 R 87.9

-5.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.28 E£496

$8.26 R 136

12.35%

Apples (1kg)

$1.77 E£94.4

$2.08 R 34.25

-14.90%

Banana (1kg)

$0.73 E£39.03

$1.46 R 24.04

-50.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.55 E£29.51

$1.67 R 27.59

-67.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.50 E£26.91

$1.79 R 29.48

-72.07%

Potato (1kg)

$0.42 E£22.42

$1.65 R 27.26

-74.55%

Onion (1kg)

$0.41 E£21.81

$1.38 R 22.70

-70.29%

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

$0.98 R 16.17

-78.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.98 E£106

$3.18 R 52.4

-37.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.81 E£417

$4.80 R 79.1

62.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 E£84.7

$1.26 R 20.73

26.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 E£112

$1.73 R 28.44

20.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.35 E£18.83

$1.48 R 24.34

-76.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.69 E£464

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.39 E£21.02

$0.57 R 9.45

-31.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.22 E£11.57

$0.49 R 8.13

-55.10%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.51 E£80.5

$8.19 R 135

-81.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.43 E£22.88

$1.36 R 22.46

-68.38%

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

$32.7K E£1.7M

$20.3K R 334.8K

60.93%

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

$27.2K E£1.5M

$33.7K R 554.7K

-19.12%

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

$27.27 E£1,456

$60.0 R 988

-54.53%

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

$8.58 E£458

$34.08 R 562

-74.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.99 E£747

$41.40 R 682

-66.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.69 E£1,585

$31.46 R 518

-5.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.25 E£387

$10.79 R 178

-32.81%

Cinema Ticket

$4.86 E£260

$9.04 R 149

-46.24%

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

$121 E£6,438

$180 R 2,961

-32.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,560 E£190.1K

$6,149 R 101.3K

-42.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$40.28 E£2,151

$71.5 R 1,178

-43.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.53 E£2,645

$37.62 R 620

31.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$115 E£6,137

$110 R 1,812

4.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.0 E£3,206

$97.9 R 1,613

-38.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$222 E£11.9K

$398 R 6,561

-44.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$195 E£10.4K

$353 R 5,823

-44.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$550 E£29.3K

$716 R 11.8K

-23.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$346 E£18.5K

$715 R 11.8K

-51.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$800 E£42.7K

$870 R 14.3K

-8.11%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$525 E£28.0K

$665 R 11.0K

-21.07%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$200 E£10.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

16.21

11.94

35.76%

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

Last update for Cairo: October 11, 2026

Last update for St Francis Bay: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cairo

$195 30.2%

St Francis Bay

$353 34.6% 81.2% $158

Groceries & Markets

Cairo

$142 21.9%

St Francis Bay

$187 18.3% 32.1% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Cairo

$119 18.4%

St Francis Bay

$143 14% 19.7% $24

Eating Out

Cairo

$90 13.9%

St Francis Bay

$145 14.2% 60.7% $55

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cairo

$50 7.7%

St Francis Bay

$135 13.3% 172% $86

Sport & Entertainment

Cairo

$39 6.1%

St Francis Bay

$50 4.9% 25.7% $10

Getting Around

Cairo

$12 1.8%

St Francis Bay

$9 * 0.9% 22.7% $2.6

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 $398 in St Francis Bay. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $28.00 in Cairo versus $42.00 in St Francis Bay. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $142 vs $187 – making Cairo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇪🇬 Cairo

🇿🇦 St Francis Bay

🕒 Local time

15:32 3:32 PM

14:32 2:32 PM

1 h behind Cairo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,120,350 Capital

5,910

💱 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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Between locations

Cairo St Francis Bay 7,170 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Cairo
St Francis 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 St Francis Bay: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – St Francis Bay is pricier by about 58%, 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 $1,533 in St Francis 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 $1,022 in St Francis Bay. That's a gap of about 58%.

Kindergarten costs $121 per month in Cairo and $180 in St Francis 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 St Francis Bay at $1,022. In Cairo it covers expenses comfortably, while in St Francis 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, St Francis Bay makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.