Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Addis Ababa

For one person, living is cheaper in Addis Ababa: $1,287 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $3,400 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
63

Cost of Living Index in Addis Ababa
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Addis Ababa Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Addis Ababa

🇪🇹 Ethiopia

$1,287

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cape Town and in Addis Ababa

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 Addis Ababa actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,568 in Cape Town versus $1,287 in Addis Ababa.

Cape Town $1,568
Addis Ababa $1,287

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,438 in Cape Town versus $1,891 in Addis Ababa.

Cape Town $2,438
Addis Ababa $1,891

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,307 in Cape Town versus $2,495 in Addis Ababa.

Cape Town $3,307
Addis Ababa $2,495

Living in Cape Town is roughly 22% more expensive than in Addis Ababa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cape Town is 17% above, Addis Ababa is 4% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.78 R 194

$4.09 ETB 658

188.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.55 R 768

$42.95 ETB 6,901

8.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.96 R 98.4

$6.60 ETB 1,061

-9.70%

Cappuccino

$2.47 R 40.80

$0.89 ETB 142

177.53%

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

$1.33 R 21.91

$0.59 ETB 94.2

125.42%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 R 16.99

$0.64 ETB 103

60.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.01 R 49.72

$0.81 ETB 131

271.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 R 60.4

$2.31 ETB 372

58.44%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 R 22.96

$1.07 ETB 171

29.91%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 R 19.60

$1.17 ETB 188

1.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.11 R 34.84

$2.17 ETB 349

-2.76%

Eggs

$3.01 R 49.58

$1.75 ETB 281

72.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.96 R 148

$7.35 ETB 1,181

21.90%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.65 R 110

$10.16 ETB 1,632

-34.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.29 R 153

$9.15 ETB 1,470

1.53%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.13

$5.31 ETB 853

-65.54%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 R 31.31

$0.68 ETB 110

179.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.75 R 28.83

$2.16 ETB 347

-18.98%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.09 R 34.41

$0.65 ETB 105

221.54%

Potato (1kg)

$1.55 R 25.64

$0.49 ETB 79.3

216.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.49 R 24.53

$1.04 ETB 167

43.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$0.69 ETB 111

88.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 R 19.19

$0.58 ETB 92.5

100.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.71 R 61.2

$7.83 ETB 1,258

-52.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.06 R 100

$5.77 ETB 927

5.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.85

$0.68 ETB 109

104.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 R 36.32

$1.28 ETB 206

71.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.51 R 24.98

$0.49 ETB 78.1

208.16%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.0 R 1,006

$21.23 ETB 3,411

187.14%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.63 R 10.33

$1.33 ETB 214

-52.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 R 25.29

$0.27 ETB 43.19

466.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.81 R 79.4

$2.04 ETB 327

135.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 R 26.08

$0.90 ETB 144

75.56%

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

$35.5K R 585.7K

$55.7K ETB 8.9M

-36.26%

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

$31.7K R 523.8K

$56.7K ETB 9.1M

-43.99%

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

$116 R 1,920

$204 ETB 32.9K

-43.08%

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

$28.37 R 468

$7.20 ETB 1,156

294.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.69 R 671

$208 ETB 33.5K

-80.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.85 R 806

$43.98 ETB 7,066

11.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.13 R 184

$36.11 ETB 5,803

-69.18%

Cinema Ticket

$8.83 R 146

$3.74 ETB 600

136.10%

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

$261 R 4,314

$137 ETB 22.0K

90.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,702 R 110.6K

$30.1K ETB 4.8M

-77.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.4 R 914

$33.12 ETB 5,322

67.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.27 R 532

$71.5 ETB 11.5K

-54.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 R 1,939

$79.2 ETB 12.7K

48.41%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 R 1,766

$83.9 ETB 13.5K

27.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,015 R 16.7K

$694 ETB 111.6K

46.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$715 R 11.8K

$390 ETB 62.7K

83.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,801 R 29.7K

$2,309 ETB 371.0K

-21.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,330 R 22.0K

$782 ETB 125.6K

70.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,331 R 38.5K

$1,918 ETB 308.2K

21.53%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,513 R 25.0K

$991 ETB 159.2K

52.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,636 R 27.0K

$205 ETB 32.9K

698.10%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

18.5

-40.70%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Last update for Addis Ababa: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$715 45.3%

Addis Ababa

$390 30.1% 45.5% $325

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$222 14.1%

Addis Ababa

$212 16.3% 4.9% $11

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$185 11.7%

Addis Ababa

$420 32.4% 127% $235

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11%

Addis Ababa

$77 5.9% 55.8% $97

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$141 8.9%

Addis Ababa

$120 9.3% 14.2% $20

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.8%

Addis Ababa

$26 2% 65.7% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Addis Ababa

$51 4% 22.6% $15

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,015 in Cape Town and $694 in Addis Ababa. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cape Town pays 698% 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 $43.00 in Addis Ababa for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $222 vs $212 per month, with Addis Ababa cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇪🇹 Addis Ababa

🕒 Local time

08:32 8:32 AM

09:32 9:32 AM

1 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

3,500,000 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Ethiopian Birr ETB Br

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1,000 ETB = 6.22 USD

1,000 ETB = 5.55 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ETB, 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 = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Ethiopian Birr exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 161 ETB (1,000 ETB = 6.22 USD). 1 EUR = 180 ETB (1,000 ETB = 5.55 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Addis Ababa 5,240 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Addis Ababa

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 Addis Ababa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town and Addis Ababa differ by about 22% in total monthly costs ($1,568 vs $1,287 including rent). Addis Ababa is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 698% 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 $694 in Addis Ababa. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,568 per month in Cape Town versus $1,287 in Addis Ababa – a 22% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Addis Ababa runs roughly 187% less than in Cape Town. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,287 in Addis Ababa versus $1,568 in Cape Town, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Addis Ababa but tight or insufficient in Cape Town. The gap between the two cities makes Addis Ababa the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Addis Ababa gentler on the wallet – expenses run 22% less than in Cape Town. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.