Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cambridge and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,568 a month against $3,193 in Cambridge, rent and utilities included – about $19,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

155

Cost of Living Index in Cambridge
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Cambridge Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Cambridge

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,193

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cambridge and in Cape Town

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

A single person spends $3,193 per month in Cambridge vs $1,568 in Cape Town, rent included.

Cambridge $3,193
Cape Town $1,568

A couple spends around $4,497 per month in Cambridge vs $2,438 in Cape Town, rent included.

Cambridge $4,497
Cape Town $2,438

A family of three spends $5,801 per month in Cambridge vs $3,307 in Cape Town, rent included.

Cambridge $5,801
Cape Town $3,307

Cambridge costs about 104% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Cambridge and Cape Town sit above the global median – Cambridge by 138%, Cape Town by 17%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.44 £16.20

$11.78 R 194

82.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$89.5 £67.6

$46.55 R 768

92.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.39 £7.85

$5.96 R 98.4

74.33%

Cappuccino

$4.65 £3.51

$2.47 R 40.80

88.26%

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

$2.82 £2.13

$1.33 R 21.91

112.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 £1.43

$1.03 R 16.99

83.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.64 £5.77

$3.01 R 49.72

153.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.53 £4.93

$3.66 R 60.4

78.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 £1.19

$1.39 R 22.96

12.95%

White Bread (500g)

$1.81 £1.37

$1.19 R 19.60

52.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.48 £1.88

$2.11 R 34.84

17.54%

Eggs

$4.56 £3.44

$3.01 R 49.58

51.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.59 £7.25

$8.96 R 148

7.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 £6.99

$6.65 R 110

39.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.41 £11.65

$9.29 R 153

65.88%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 £2.20

$1.83 R 30.13

58.47%

Banana (1kg)

$1.72 £1.30

$1.90 R 31.31

-9.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.66 £2.77

$1.75 R 28.83

109.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.43 £2.59

$2.09 R 34.41

64.11%

Potato (1kg)

$1.75 £1.33

$1.55 R 25.64

12.90%

Onion (1kg)

$1.84 £1.39

$1.49 R 24.53

23.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 £0.98

$1.30 R 21.41

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 £1.48

$1.16 R 19.19

68.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.60 £17.07

$3.71 R 61.2

509.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.17 £8.44

$6.06 R 100

84.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.28 £2.48

$1.39 R 22.85

135.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.12 £3.11

$2.20 R 36.32

87.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.89 £2.94

$1.51 R 24.98

157.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$93.4 £70.6

$61.0 R 1,006

53.20%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$8.05 £6.09

$0.63 R 10.33

1177.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.57 £1.94

$1.53 R 25.29

67.97%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$50.3 £38.03

$4.81 R 79.4

946.36%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.09 £1.58

$1.58 R 26.08

32.28%

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

$38.2K £28.9K

$35.5K R 585.7K

7.68%

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

$40.8K £30.8K

$31.7K R 523.8K

28.50%

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

$336 £254

$116 R 1,920

188.74%

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

$18.66 £14.10

$28.37 R 468

-34.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.12 £31.83

$40.69 R 671

3.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.6 £48.79

$48.85 R 806

32.16%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.61 £15.57

$11.13 R 184

85.18%

Cinema Ticket

$17.06 £12.89

$8.83 R 146

93.20%

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

$2,538 £1,918

$261 R 4,314

870.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.2K £26.6K

$6,702 R 110.6K

424.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.2 £66.6

$55.4 R 914

59.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.02 £35.54

$32.27 R 532

45.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.3 £70.5

$118 R 1,939

-20.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$129 £97.2

$107 R 1,766

20.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,080 £1,572

$1,015 R 16.7K

104.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,717 £1,297

$715 R 11.8K

139.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,168 £2,394

$1,801 R 29.7K

75.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,686 £2,030

$1,330 R 22.0K

101.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$9,021 £6,817

$2,331 R 38.5K

287.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,852 £4,422

$1,513 R 25.0K

286.75%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,402 £3,327

$1,636 R 27.0K

169.07%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.04

10.97

-54.06%

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

Last update for Cambridge: October 4, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cambridge

$1.7K 54.4%

Cape Town

$715 45.3% 58.3% $1K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cambridge

$397 12.6%

Cape Town

$185 11.7% 53.3% $211

Eating Out

Cambridge

$329 10.4%

Cape Town

$174 11% 47.1% $155

Groceries & Markets

Cambridge

$325 10.3%

Cape Town

$222 14.1% 31.5% $102

Clothing & Footwear

Cambridge

$161 5.1%

Cape Town

$141 8.9% 12.6% $20

Getting Around

Cambridge

$130 4.1%

Cape Town

$75 4.8% 42% $55

Sport & Entertainment

Cambridge

$99 3.1%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 32.6% $32

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,080 in Cambridge versus $1,015 in Cape Town. 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 169% higher in Cambridge, 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 $89.0 in Cambridge versus $47.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $325 vs $222 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Cambridge

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

04:14 4:14 AM

05:14 5:14 AM

1 h ahead of Cambridge

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

145,818

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 16.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.06 USD). 1 EUR = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cambridge Cape Town 9,740 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cambridge
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

Cambridge vs Cape Town: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Cambridge is pricier by about 104%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,790 per month in Cambridge and $2,352 in Cape Town. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

A mid-range dinner for two costs $89.0 in Cambridge and $47.00 in Cape Town. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $3,193 in Cambridge and $1,568 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 104%.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Cape Town, where all-in costs run around $1,568, than in Cambridge at $3,193. In Cape Town it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cambridge it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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