Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Arendal

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $2,857 in Arendal, rent and utilities included – about $16,000 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
136

Cost of Living Index in Arendal
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Arendal Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Arendal

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,857

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,527 in Cape Town versus $2,857 in Arendal.

Cape Town $1,527
Arendal $2,857

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,417 in Cape Town versus $4,058 in Arendal.

Cape Town $2,417
Arendal $4,058

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,306 in Cape Town versus $5,260 in Arendal.

Cape Town $3,306
Arendal $5,260

Living in Cape Town costs roughly 47% less than in Arendal, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Cape Town 13% above, Arendal 111% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 198

$20.17 NOK 188

-40.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 707

$65.9 NOK 613

-34.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 101

$16.01 NOK 149

-61.59%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 39.04

$5.55 NOK 51.6

-57.30%

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

$1.27 R 20.96

$3.70 NOK 34.46

-65.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.46

$3.29 NOK 30.62

-71.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.77

$11.83 NOK 110

-74.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 60.8

$10.52 NOK 97.9

-64.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.73

$2.44 NOK 22.73

-45.90%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.87

$3.43 NOK 31.94

-64.72%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.26

$3.68 NOK 34.25

-40.22%

Eggs

$3.10 R 51.1

$4.78 NOK 44.50

-35.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 144

$14.83 NOK 138

-41.13%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 114

$14.99 NOK 139

-54.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 153

$33.78 NOK 314

-72.59%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.08

$3.62 NOK 33.66

-49.45%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 32.12

$2.73 NOK 25.44

-28.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.32

$3.51 NOK 32.62

-52.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 35.19

$5.03 NOK 46.81

-57.46%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 26.01

$2.57 NOK 23.87

-38.52%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.29

$3.18 NOK 29.59

-53.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.18

$2.80 NOK 26.07

-51.79%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.85

$2.35 NOK 21.84

-51.49%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 59.0

$17.92 NOK 167

-80.02%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 99.7

$15.03 NOK 140

-59.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.95

$3.71 NOK 34.54

-62.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.90

$4.69 NOK 43.58

-53.52%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 23.02

$9.54 NOK 88.7

-85.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$124 NOK 1,156

-51.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.26

$6.45 NOK 60.0

-85.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.83

$1.75 NOK 16.32

-48.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 81.7

$105 NOK 977

-95.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.37

$2.28 NOK 21.20

-32.46%

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

$35.4K R 582.8K

$49.3K NOK 458.7K

-28.29%

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

$33.4K R 549.9K

$43.2K NOK 401.5K

-22.68%

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

$117 R 1,929

$265 NOK 2,462

-55.77%

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

$25.71 R 424

$34.13 NOK 317

-24.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 649

$80.1 NOK 745

-50.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 850

$43.62 NOK 406

18.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 187

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$22.70 NOK 211

-60.84%

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

$308 R 5,069

$329 NOK 3,061

-6.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 134.2K

$11.8K NOK 109.7K

-30.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 946

$127 NOK 1,179

-54.72%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 523

$62.6 NOK 582

-49.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,911

$129 NOK 1,196

-9.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,660

$203 NOK 1,884

-50.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.2K

$1,153 NOK 10.7K

-9.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.0K

$1,094 NOK 10.2K

-38.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.7K

$1,618 NOK 15.0K

14.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.2K

$1,532 NOK 14.2K

-8.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.7K

$4,329 NOK 40.3K

-44.32%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.9K

$3,254 NOK 30.3K

-51.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.9K

$4,160 NOK 38.7K

-60.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

4.68

132.69%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Arendal: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Arendal

$1.1K 38.3% 63.5% $425

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Arendal

$499 17.5% 123% $275

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Arendal

$379 13.3% 108% $197

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Arendal

$384 13.5% 121% $210

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Arendal

$234 8.2% 70.2% $97

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Arendal

$178 6.2% 148% $106

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Arendal

$89 3.1% 28.3% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,047 in Cape Town and $1,153 in Arendal. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Arendal pays about 2.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $43 in Cape Town vs $66 in Arendal for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $223 vs $499 per month, with Cape Town cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇳🇴 Arendal

🕒 Local time

10:48 10:48 AM

09:48 9:48 AM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

46,406

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

100 NOK = 10.75 USD

100 NOK = 9.57 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.51 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 9.3 NOK (1 NOK = 0.108 USD). 1 EUR = 10.45 NOK (100 NOK = 9.57 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Arendal 10,310 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Arendal

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 Arendal: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,527 in Cape Town and $2,857 in Arendal, so Cape Town is about 47% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 61% lower in Cape Town. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,047 in Cape Town versus $1,153 in Arendal. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $308 in Cape Town versus $329 in Arendal. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 123% higher in Arendal. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Cape Town is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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 Cape Town gentler on the wallet – expenses run 47% less than in Arendal. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.