Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Abidjan

For one person, living is cheaper in Abidjan: $1,222 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $4,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Abidjan
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Abidjan Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Abidjan

🇨🇮 Ivory Coast

$1,222

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,568 in Cape Town versus $1,222 in Abidjan.

Cape Town $1,568
Abidjan $1,222

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,438 in Cape Town versus $2,090 in Abidjan.

Cape Town $2,438
Abidjan $2,090

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,307 in Cape Town versus $2,957 in Abidjan.

Cape Town $3,307
Abidjan $2,957

Living in Cape Town is roughly 28% more expensive than in Abidjan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cape Town is 17% above, Abidjan is 9% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.78 R 194

$2.59 F CFA 1,513

354.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.55 R 768

$67.8 F CFA 39.7K

-31.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.96 R 98.4

$10.46 F CFA 6,119

-43.02%

Cappuccino

$2.47 R 40.80

$1.85 F CFA 1,080

33.51%

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

$1.33 R 21.91

$0.72 F CFA 419

84.72%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 R 16.99

$0.76 F CFA 447

35.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.01 R 49.72

$1.04 F CFA 610

189.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 R 60.4

$1.66 F CFA 971

120.48%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 R 22.96

$2.10 F CFA 1,230

-33.81%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 R 19.60

$0.49 F CFA 289

142.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.11 R 34.84

$1.14 F CFA 667

85.09%

Eggs

$3.01 R 49.58

$2.29 F CFA 1,340

31.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.96 R 148

$25.21 F CFA 14.8K

-64.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.65 R 110

$5.73 F CFA 3,351

16.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.29 R 153

$6.00 F CFA 3,511

54.83%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.13

$3.91 F CFA 2,287

-53.20%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 R 31.31

$1.04 F CFA 608

82.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.75 R 28.83

$2.09 F CFA 1,222

-16.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.09 R 34.41

$2.39 F CFA 1,397

-12.55%

Potato (1kg)

$1.55 R 25.64

$1.76 F CFA 1,032

-11.93%

Onion (1kg)

$1.49 R 24.53

$1.59 F CFA 932

-6.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$0.59 F CFA 345

120.34%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 R 19.19

$0.86 F CFA 502

34.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.71 R 61.2

$1.75 F CFA 1,022

112.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.06 R 100

$5.22 F CFA 3,052

16.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.85

$1.06 F CFA 618

31.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 R 36.32

$1.16 F CFA 679

89.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.51 R 24.98

$0.92 F CFA 536

64.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.0 R 1,006

$42.81 F CFA 25.0K

42.40%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.63 R 10.33

$1.67 F CFA 977

-62.28%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 R 25.29

$1.72 F CFA 1,008

-11.05%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.81 R 79.4

$25.89 F CFA 15.1K

-81.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 R 26.08

$1.51 F CFA 884

4.64%

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

$35.5K R 585.7K

$28.1K F CFA 16.5M

26.14%

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

$31.7K R 523.8K

$27.0K F CFA 15.8M

17.43%

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

$116 R 1,920

$163 F CFA 95.5K

-28.67%

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

$28.37 R 468

$24.63 F CFA 14.4K

15.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.69 R 671

$35.38 F CFA 20.7K

15.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.85 R 806

$70.0 F CFA 41.0K

-30.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.13 R 184

$21.29 F CFA 12.5K

-47.72%

Cinema Ticket

$8.83 R 146

$8.65 F CFA 5,062

2.08%

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

$261 R 4,314

$367 F CFA 214.8K

-28.77%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,702 R 110.6K

$4,608 F CFA 2.7M

45.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.4 R 914

$91.0 F CFA 53.2K

-39.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.27 R 532

$36.71 F CFA 21.5K

-12.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 R 1,939

$76.2 F CFA 44.6K

54.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 R 1,766

$137 F CFA 80.3K

-22.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,015 R 16.7K

$679 F CFA 397.3K

49.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$715 R 11.8K

$342 F CFA 200.2K

109.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,801 R 29.7K

$2,604 F CFA 1.5M

-30.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,330 R 22.0K

$1,010 F CFA 590.9K

31.73%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,331 R 38.5K

$2,189 F CFA 1.3M

6.49%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,513 R 25.0K

$675 F CFA 395.2K

124.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,636 R 27.0K

$215 F CFA 126.1K

659.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

15.75

-30.35%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Last update for Abidjan: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$715 45.3%

Abidjan

$342 28.6% 52.2% $373

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$222 14.1%

Abidjan

$247 20.6% 11.2% $25

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$185 11.7%

Abidjan

$223 18.6% 20.3% $38

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11%

Abidjan

$89 7.4% 48.9% $85

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$141 8.9%

Abidjan

$154 12.8% 9.3% $13

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.8%

Abidjan

$57 4.7% 24.6% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Abidjan

$87 7.3% 31.3% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,015 in Cape Town and $679 in Abidjan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cape Town pays 659% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $47.00 in Cape Town vs $68.0 in Abidjan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $222 vs $247 per month, with Cape Town cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇨🇮 Abidjan

🕒 Local time

12:08 12:08 PM

10:08 10:08 AM

2 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

7,567,409

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

West African CFA Franc XOF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

1,000 XOF = 1.71 USD

1,000 XOF = 1.53 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

XOF, USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 16.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.06 USD). 1 EUR = 18.49 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

West African CFA Franc exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 585 XOF (1,000 XOF = 1.71 USD). 1 EUR = 656 XOF (1,000 XOF = 1.53 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Abidjan 4,960 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Abidjan

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

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

Abidjan is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, transport, and utilities. The 28% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 659% higher in Cape Town, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,015 in Cape Town versus $679 in Abidjan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Abidjan – a meal for two runs $68.0 versus $47.00 in Cape Town. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,568 per month in Cape Town versus $1,222 in Abidjan – a 28% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,222 in Abidjan versus $1,568 in Cape Town, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Abidjan but tight or insufficient in Cape Town. The gap between the two cities makes Abidjan the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Abidjan is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Cape Town, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Abidjan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 28% less than in Cape Town. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.