Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Alexandria

For one person, living is cheaper in Alexandria: $859 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $8,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
Learn more

Cape Town Living Index
42

Cost of Living Index in Alexandria
Learn more

Alexandria Living Index

Jump to prices

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Alexandria

🇷🇴 Romania

$859

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,586 in Cape Town versus $859 in Alexandria.

Cape Town $1,586
Alexandria $859

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,425 in Cape Town versus $1,320 in Alexandria.

Cape Town $2,425
Alexandria $1,320

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,263 in Cape Town versus $1,781 in Alexandria.

Cape Town $3,263
Alexandria $1,781

Living in Cape Town is roughly 85% more expensive than in Alexandria, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cape Town is 17% above, Alexandria is 36% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$8.30 RON 39.26

46.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$30.10 RON 142

50.63%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$7.24 RON 34.24

-18.78%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$1.62 RON 7.68

54.32%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$1.76 RON 8.34

-27.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$1.49 RON 7.03

-34.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 R 49.33

$2.11 RON 9.99

41.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 R 61.4

$2.46 RON 11.66

51.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.40

$1.39 RON 6.56

-6.47%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$0.80 RON 3.78

56.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$1.10 RON 5.21

102.73%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$2.16 RON 10.23

43.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$4.98 RON 23.57

81.93%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$4.30 RON 20.35

60.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$7.67 RON 36.31

21.25%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$0.88 RON 4.16

109.09%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$1.18 RON 5.57

66.10%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$0.98 RON 4.61

70.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$0.98 RON 4.62

121.43%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$0.70 RON 3.33

124.29%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$0.61 RON 2.87

142.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$0.72 RON 3.40

80.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$0.86 RON 4.06

31.40%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$5.43 RON 25.69

-33.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.15 R 101

$5.15 RON 24.38

19.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.66

$0.92 RON 4.34

50.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 R 35.20

$1.08 RON 5.10

98.15%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R 24.65

$0.60 RON 2.86

150.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$42.28 RON 200

43.68%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.59 R 9.71

$0.44 RON 2.07

34.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

$0.40 RON 1.91

275.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

$5.49 RON 25.97

-6.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.50

$1.72 RON 8.14

-9.88%

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

$36.2K R 596.5K

$16.1K RON 76.2K

124.84%

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

$23.1K RON 109.4K

35.15%

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

$114 R 1,883

$115 RON 545

-0.76%

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

$28.91 R 476

$5.18 RON 24.53

458.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$7.60 RON 35.96

422.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

$58.6 RON 277

-16.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

$24.59 RON 116

-55.31%

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$6.36 RON 30.10

43.87%

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

$259 R 4,264

$308 RON 1,459

-16.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

$6,663 RON 31.5K

1.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

$51.7 RON 245

8.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

$22.37 RON 106

44.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

$63.2 RON 299

90.76%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

$64.0 RON 303

68.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

$319 RON 1,511

219.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

$238 RON 1,127

201.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

$577 RON 2,731

215.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

$419 RON 1,981

216.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

$1,235 RON 5,842

93.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.4K

$778 RON 3,679

98.28%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

$844 RON 3,995

94.07%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

6.73

63.00%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Last update for Alexandria: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Alexandria

$238 27.7% 66.8% $479

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

Alexandria

$148 17.2% 34.1% $77

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

Alexandria

$128 14.9% 30.1% $55

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

Alexandria

$136 15.8% 22.8% $40

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Alexandria

$91 10.5% 36.6% $52

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

Alexandria

$47 5.5% 37% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Alexandria

$71 8.3% 5.9% $4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,021 in Cape Town and $319 in Alexandria. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cape Town pays 94% 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: $45.00 in Cape Town vs $30.00 in Alexandria for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $225 vs $148 per month, with Alexandria cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇷🇴 Alexandria

🕒 Local time

02:54 2:54 AM

03:54 3:54 AM

1 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

45,434

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, 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).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Alexandria 8,690 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Alexandria

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 Alexandria: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Alexandria wins on cost – living expenses run 85% lower than in Cape Town. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Alexandria the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 94% 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: $1,021 in Cape Town versus $319 in Alexandria. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,586 per month in Cape Town versus $859 in Alexandria – a 85% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Alexandria runs roughly 44% less than in Cape Town. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $859 in Alexandria versus $1,586 in Cape Town, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Alexandria but tight or insufficient in Cape Town. The gap between the two cities makes Alexandria the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Alexandria delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $859 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Alexandria hard to pass up.

Expats usually find Alexandria gentler on the wallet – expenses run 85% less than in Cape Town. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.