Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Al Majma'ah

For one person, living is cheaper in Al Majma'ah: $1,267 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $3,800 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cape Town outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Al Majma'ah
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Al Majma'ah Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Al Majma'ah

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,267

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cape Town and in Al Majma'ah

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

A single person spends $1,586 per month in Cape Town vs $1,267 in Al Majma'ah, rent included.

Cape Town $1,586
Al Majma'ah $1,267

A couple spends around $2,425 per month in Cape Town vs $1,966 in Al Majma'ah, rent included.

Cape Town $2,425
Al Majma'ah $1,966

A family of three spends $3,263 per month in Cape Town vs $2,664 in Al Majma'ah, rent included.

Cape Town $3,263
Al Majma'ah $2,664

Cape Town costs about 25% more than Al Majma'ah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Al Majma'ah is 6% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$7.88 SAR 29.56

54.06%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$66.1 SAR 248

-31.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$8.24 SAR 30.92

-28.64%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.17 SAR 8.14

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.95 SAR 11.09

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$4.35 SAR 16.33

-42.53%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$0.90 SAR 3.38

41.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$0.30 SAR 1.11

226.67%

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

$1.81 SAR 6.79

-28.18%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$1.32 SAR 4.95

-5.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$2.36 SAR 8.85

-5.51%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$3.13 SAR 11.76

-0.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$10.67 SAR 40.04

-15.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$9.33 SAR 35.01

-25.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$15.07 SAR 56.5

-38.29%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$2.82 SAR 10.58

-34.75%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$1.97 SAR 7.41

-0.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$2.43 SAR 9.11

-31.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$1.72 SAR 6.47

26.16%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$1.17 SAR 4.40

34.19%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$1.26 SAR 4.74

17.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$1.69 SAR 6.34

-23.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$0.54 SAR 2.02

109.26%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$2.85 SAR 10.71

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 SAR 6.64

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.38 SAR 8.93

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$7.95 SAR 29.84

-54.72%

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

$1.06 SAR 3.96

41.51%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$37.10 SAR 139

63.75%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.59 R 9.71

$3.27 SAR 12.26

-81.96%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

$1.85 SAR 6.94

-18.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

$13.46 SAR 50.5

-62.04%

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

$34.8K SAR 130.6K

4.02%

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

$23.0K SAR 86.2K

35.99%

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

$114 R 1,883

$105 SAR 395

8.64%

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

$28.91 R 476

$29.75 SAR 112

-2.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$71.1 SAR 267

-44.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

$81.7 SAR 307

-40.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$13.61 SAR 51.1

-32.77%

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

$259 R 4,264

$530 SAR 1,988

-51.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

$10.0K SAR 37.7K

-32.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

$58.3 SAR 219

-3.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

$54.8 SAR 206

-40.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

$101 SAR 379

19.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

$102 SAR 384

5.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

$577 SAR 2,166

76.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

$371 SAR 1,391

93.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

$825 SAR 3,096

121.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

$570 SAR 2,137

132.95%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

$2,389 SAR 8,966

0.07%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.4K

$1,363 SAR 5,113

13.16%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

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 Majma'ah: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Al Majma'ah

$371 29.3% 48.3% $346

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

Al Majma'ah

$241 19% 7% $16

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

Al Majma'ah

$206 16.3% 12.6% $23

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

Al Majma'ah

$145 11.4% 17.8% $31

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Al Majma'ah

$142 11.2% 0.3% $0.4

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

Al Majma'ah

$54 4.3% 28% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Al Majma'ah

$109 8.6% 61.8% $42

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,021 in Cape Town versus $577 in Al Majma'ah. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $45.00 in Cape Town versus $66.0 in Al Majma'ah. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $225 vs $241 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇸🇦 Al Majma'ah

🕒 Local time

17:44 5:44 PM

18:44 6:44 PM

1 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

💱 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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Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Al Majma'ah 7,240 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Al Majma'ah

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 Majma'ah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 25% more than Al Majma'ah, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from leisure. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,379 per month in Cape Town and $1,901 in Al Majma'ah. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Al Majma'ah, 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 $530 in Al Majma'ah. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 7% cheaper in Cape Town – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Al Majma'ah, where all-in costs run around $1,267, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Al Majma'ah it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cape Town it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Al Majma'ah costs $1,267 versus $1,586 in Cape Town. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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 Majma'ah. 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.