Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Al-hawiyah

For one person, living is cheaper in Al-hawiyah: $1,081 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
53

Cost of Living Index in Al-hawiyah
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Al-hawiyah Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Al-hawiyah

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,081

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cape Town and in Al-hawiyah

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 Al-hawiyah actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,586 in Cape Town versus $1,081 in Al-hawiyah.

Cape Town $1,586
Al-hawiyah $1,081

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,425 in Cape Town versus $1,603 in Al-hawiyah.

Cape Town $2,425
Al-hawiyah $1,603

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,263 in Cape Town versus $2,125 in Al-hawiyah.

Cape Town $3,263
Al-hawiyah $2,125

Living in Cape Town is roughly 47% more expensive than in Al-hawiyah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cape Town is 17% above, Al-hawiyah is 20% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$4.44 SAR 16.67

173.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$26.52 SAR 99.5

70.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$6.91 SAR 25.93

-14.91%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.58 SAR 5.91

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.50 SAR 5.64

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$2.63 SAR 9.88

-4.94%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$0.70 SAR 2.63

81.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$0.25 SAR 0.94

292.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 R 49.33

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 R 61.4

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.40

$1.83 SAR 6.85

-28.96%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$0.96 SAR 3.60

30.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$2.20 SAR 8.25

1.36%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$2.68 SAR 10.04

16.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$5.85 SAR 21.94

54.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$11.70 SAR 43.90

-40.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$13.12 SAR 49.22

-29.12%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$2.04 SAR 7.64

-9.80%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$1.58 SAR 5.92

24.05%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$1.83 SAR 6.88

-8.74%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$1.49 SAR 5.60

45.64%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$1.30 SAR 4.87

20.77%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$1.50 SAR 5.63

-1.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$1.09 SAR 4.09

19.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$0.74 SAR 2.77

52.70%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$2.99 SAR 11.21

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.10 SAR 7.87

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.57 SAR 5.88

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$8.00 SAR 30.02

-55.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.15 R 101

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.66

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 R 35.20

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R 24.65

$1.10 SAR 4.13

36.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$36.82 SAR 138

64.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.59 R 9.71

$2.44 SAR 9.15

-75.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

$2.69 SAR 10.10

-44.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

$13.24 SAR 49.67

-61.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.50

$0.59 SAR 2.23

162.71%

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

$36.2K R 596.5K

$43.9K SAR 164.7K

-17.48%

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

$21.5K SAR 80.8K

45.07%

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

$114 R 1,883

$67.1 SAR 252

70.40%

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

$28.91 R 476

$35.32 SAR 133

-18.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$62.5 SAR 235

-36.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

$80.6 SAR 302

-39.16%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$15.09 SAR 56.6

-39.36%

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

$259 R 4,264

$423 SAR 1,586

-38.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

$7,864 SAR 29.5K

-13.61%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

$13.09 SAR 49.11

329.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

$55.8 SAR 209

-41.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

$40.45 SAR 152

198.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

$52.5 SAR 197

106.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

$576 SAR 2,162

77.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

$366 SAR 1,375

95.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

$826 SAR 3,098

120.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

$577 SAR 2,166

129.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

$2,404 SAR 9,023

-0.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.4K

$1,375 SAR 5,158

12.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

5.25

108.95%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Last update for Al-hawiyah: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Al-hawiyah

$366 33.9% 48.9% $350

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

Al-hawiyah

$217 20.1% 3.4% $7.6

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

Al-hawiyah

$165 15.3% 9.8% $18

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

Al-hawiyah

$92 8.5% 48% $84

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Al-hawiyah

$73 6.7% 49% $70

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

Al-hawiyah

$57 5.3% 23.7% $18

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Al-hawiyah

$111 10.2% 64.5% $43

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,021 in Cape Town and $576 in Al-hawiyah. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $45.00 in Cape Town vs $27.00 in Al-hawiyah for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $225 vs $217 per month, with Al-hawiyah cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇸🇦 Al-hawiyah

🕒 Local time

03:37 3:37 AM

04:37 4:37 AM

1 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

148,151

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.22 SAR (1 SAR = 0.237 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Al-hawiyah 6,590 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Al-hawiyah

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 Al-hawiyah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town and Al-hawiyah differ by about 47% in total monthly costs ($1,586 vs $1,081 including rent). Al-hawiyah is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $2,379 in Cape Town and $1,621 in Al-hawiyah to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,021 in Cape Town versus $576 in Al-hawiyah. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Al-hawiyah – a meal for two runs $27.00 versus $45.00 in Cape Town. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,586 per month in Cape Town versus $1,081 in Al-hawiyah – a 47% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,081 in Al-hawiyah versus $1,586 in Cape Town, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Al-hawiyah but tight or insufficient in Cape Town. The gap between the two cities makes Al-hawiyah 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 Al-hawiyah gentler on the wallet – expenses run 47% less than in Cape Town. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.