Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and AL Kharj

For one person, living is cheaper in AL Kharj: $957 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $7,500 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
47

Cost of Living Index in AL Kharj
Learn more

AL Kharj Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

AL Kharj

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$957

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cape Town and in AL Kharj

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

A single person spends $1,586 per month in Cape Town vs $957 in AL Kharj, rent included.

Cape Town $1,586
AL Kharj $957

A couple spends around $2,425 per month in Cape Town vs $1,464 in AL Kharj, rent included.

Cape Town $2,425
AL Kharj $1,464

A family of three spends $3,263 per month in Cape Town vs $1,971 in AL Kharj, rent included.

Cape Town $3,263
AL Kharj $1,971

Cape Town costs about 66% more than AL Kharj, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while AL Kharj is 29% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$4.74 SAR 17.77

156.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$26.64 SAR 100.0

70.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$8.05 SAR 30.22

-26.96%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.10 SAR 7.87

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.32 SAR 4.95

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$3.08 SAR 11.54

-18.83%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$0.88 SAR 3.31

44.32%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$0.13 SAR 0.48

653.85%

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

$1.44 SAR 5.39

-9.72%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$0.28 SAR 1.06

346.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$2.35 SAR 8.82

-5.11%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$2.17 SAR 8.16

43.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$10.49 SAR 39.36

-13.63%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$5.15 SAR 19.33

34.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$13.51 SAR 50.7

-31.16%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$1.77 SAR 6.66

3.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$1.30 SAR 4.88

50.77%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$1.21 SAR 4.54

38.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$1.36 SAR 5.11

59.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$1.03 SAR 3.88

52.43%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$1.04 SAR 3.89

42.31%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$0.52 SAR 1.94

150.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$0.53 SAR 2.01

113.21%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$2.12 SAR 7.94

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.10 SAR 4.12

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.38 SAR 8.94

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$6.55 SAR 24.56

-45.04%

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

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$23.40 SAR 87.8

159.62%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.59 R 9.71

$2.69 SAR 10.10

-78.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

$0.51 SAR 1.92

194.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

$13.11 SAR 49.21

-61.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.50

$0.64 SAR 2.40

142.19%

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

$36.2K R 596.5K

$34.6K SAR 129.8K

4.68%

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

$22.8K SAR 85.7K

36.76%

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

$114 R 1,883

$107 SAR 402

6.77%

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

$28.91 R 476

$26.65 SAR 100

8.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$51.6 SAR 194

-22.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

$71.9 SAR 270

-31.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

$40.47 SAR 152

-72.84%

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$13.11 SAR 49.21

-30.21%

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

$259 R 4,264

$286 SAR 1,074

-9.56%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

$3,763 SAR 14.1K

80.54%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

$58.7 SAR 220

-4.28%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

$54.3 SAR 204

-40.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

$47.41 SAR 178

154.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

$80.2 SAR 301

34.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

$700 SAR 2,626

45.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

$259 SAR 972

176.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

$596 SAR 2,236

206.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

$456 SAR 1,711

191.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

$2,790 SAR 10.5K

-41.26%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

5.54

98.01%

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 Kharj: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

AL Kharj

$259 27.1% 63.9% $458

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

AL Kharj

$175 18.3% 22.2% $50

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

AL Kharj

$185 19.4% 1.3% $2.3

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

AL Kharj

$103 10.8% 41.5% $73

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

AL Kharj

$108 11.3% 24.2% $35

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

AL Kharj

$29 * 3% 61.7% $46

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

AL Kharj

$98 10.3% 45.7% $31

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,021 in Cape Town versus $700 in AL Kharj. 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 70% higher in AL Kharj, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $45.00 in Cape Town versus $27.00 in AL Kharj. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $225 vs $175 – making AL Kharj the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇸🇦 AL Kharj

🕒 Local time

14:41 2:41 PM

15:41 3:41 PM

1 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

425,300

💱 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 18, 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 18, 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 Kharj 7,140 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
AL Kharj

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 Kharj: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,586 in Cape Town, $957 in AL Kharj – roughly 66% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,379 per month in Cape Town and $1,436 in AL Kharj. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Kindergarten costs $259 per month in Cape Town and $286 in AL Kharj. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 28% more in Cape Town, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in AL Kharj, where all-in costs run around $957, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In AL Kharj it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cape Town it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Cape Town has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $957 in AL Kharj to $1,586 in Cape Town. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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 AL Kharj. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Cape Town makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.