Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Apatity

For one person, living is cheaper in Apatity: $1,070 a month against $1,599 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $6,300 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
51

Cost of Living Index in Apatity
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Apatity Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,599

/mo nomad

Apatity

🇷🇺 Russia

$1,070

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,599 per month in Cape Town vs $1,070 in Apatity, rent included.

Cape Town $1,599
Apatity $1,070

A couple spends around $2,460 per month in Cape Town vs $1,672 in Apatity, rent included.

Cape Town $2,460
Apatity $1,672

A family of three spends $3,320 per month in Cape Town vs $2,275 in Apatity, rent included.

Cape Town $3,320
Apatity $2,275

Cape Town costs about 49% more than Apatity, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Cape Town sits 18% above the global median, while Apatity is 21% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.07 R 199

$12.81 ₽1,069

-5.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.65 R 769

$33.57 ₽2,801

38.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.20 R 102

$6.93 ₽578

-10.53%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.13

$2.72 ₽227

-8.09%

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

$1.35 R 22.28

$1.07 ₽89.0

26.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.00 R 16.47

$0.57 ₽47.60

75.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.06 R 50.4

$1.69 ₽141

81.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 R 60.5

$3.41 ₽285

7.62%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.45

$1.05 ₽87.8

23.81%

White Bread (500g)

$1.27 R 20.89

$0.66 ₽54.8

92.42%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.68

$1.23 ₽103

76.42%

Eggs

$3.09 R 50.9

$1.73 ₽145

78.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.98 R 148

$12.08 ₽1,008

-25.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.99 R 115

$6.03 ₽503

15.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.67 R 159

$12.86 ₽1,073

-24.81%

Apples (1kg)

$1.87 R 30.78

$1.82 ₽152

2.75%

Banana (1kg)

$1.93 R 31.72

$1.67 ₽140

15.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.77 R 29.13

$1.61 ₽134

9.94%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 R 35.86

$3.04 ₽254

-28.29%

Potato (1kg)

$1.52 R 25.07

$0.84 ₽69.8

80.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.56 R 25.63

$0.64 ₽53.8

143.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.32 R 21.74

$1.25 ₽104

5.60%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 R 18.97

$0.68 ₽56.7

69.12%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.72 R 61.4

$2.84 ₽237

30.99%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.01 R 99.0

$8.52 ₽711

-29.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.34 R 22.13

$0.98 ₽81.6

36.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.13 R 35.11

$1.93 ₽161

10.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.55 R 25.53

$0.59 ₽48.86

162.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.3 R 1,010

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.60 R 9.85

$2.25 ₽188

-73.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.54 R 25.36

$0.34 ₽28.42

352.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.01 R 82.5

$5.41 ₽452

-7.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.60 R 26.33

$0.82 ₽68.8

95.12%

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

$35.4K R 583.4K

$56.8K ₽4.7M

-37.70%

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

$34.7K R 570.9K

$41.0K ₽3.4M

-15.40%

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

$119 R 1,955

$134 ₽11.2K

-11.38%

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

$29.42 R 485

$7.14 ₽596

312.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.81 R 656

$9.70 ₽810

310.41%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.8 R 836

$33.93 ₽2,832

49.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.93 R 180

$27.18 ₽2,269

-59.79%

Cinema Ticket

$8.99 R 148

$7.27 ₽607

23.66%

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

$261 R 4,303

$401 ₽33.5K

-34.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,966 R 114.8K

$5,935 ₽495.3K

17.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.1 R 925

$90.8 ₽7,578

-38.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.26 R 548

$45.47 ₽3,795

-26.85%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,999

$114 ₽9,533

6.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,779

$100 ₽8,361

7.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,028 R 16.9K

$417 ₽34.8K

146.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$720 R 11.9K

$312 ₽26.0K

130.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,835 R 30.2K

$982 ₽81.9K

86.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,360 R 22.4K

$587 ₽49.0K

131.78%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,407 R 39.6K

$1,948 ₽162.6K

23.56%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,504 R 24.8K

$1,630 ₽136.0K

-7.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,649 R 27.2K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

27.67

-60.35%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 20, 2026

Last update for Apatity: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$720 45%

Apatity

$312 29.1% 56.7% $408

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$226 14.2%

Apatity

$217 20.3% 3.9% $8.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$188 11.8%

Apatity

$151 14.1% 19.8% $37

Eating Out

Cape Town

$177 11.1%

Apatity

$178 16.6% 0.3% $0.5

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Apatity

$158 14.8% 10% $14

Getting Around

Cape Town

$76 4.7%

Apatity

$6.3 * 0.6% 91.7% $69

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.3%

Apatity

$48 4.5% 29.5% $20

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,028 in Cape Town versus $417 in Apatity. 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 $47.00 in Cape Town versus $34.00 in Apatity. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $226 vs $217 – making Apatity the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇷🇺 Apatity

🕒 Local time

21:55 9:55 PM

22:55 10:55 PM

1 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

48,748

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Russian Ruble RUB ₽

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

100 RUB = 1.2 USD

100 RUB = 1.07 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 83.46 RUB (100 RUB = 1.2 USD). 1 EUR = 93.83 RUB (100 RUB = 1.07 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Apatity 11,360 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Apatity

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 Apatity: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Cape Town is pricier by about 49%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,398 per month in Cape Town and $1,605 in Apatity. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,599 in Cape Town and $1,070 in Apatity. That's a gap of about 49%.

Kindergarten costs $261 per month in Cape Town and $401 in Apatity. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Apatity, where all-in costs run around $1,070, than in Cape Town at $1,599. In Apatity it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cape Town it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Apatity – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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 Apatity. 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.