Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Barreiras

For one person, living is cheaper in Barreiras: $829 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
39

Cost of Living Index in Barreiras
Learn more

Barreiras Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Barreiras

🇧🇷 Brazil

$829

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,527 in Cape Town versus $829 in Barreiras.

Cape Town $1,527
Barreiras $829

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,417 in Cape Town versus $1,316 in Barreiras.

Cape Town $2,417
Barreiras $1,316

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,306 in Cape Town versus $1,803 in Barreiras.

Cape Town $3,306
Barreiras $1,803

Living in Cape Town is roughly 84% more expensive than in Barreiras, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cape Town is 13% above, Barreiras is 39% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 198

$5.60 R$30.75

114.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 707

$29.98 R$165

43.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 101

$7.35 R$40.33

-16.33%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 39.04

$1.90 R$10.44

24.74%

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

$1.27 R 20.96

$1.26 R$6.89

0.79%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.46

$0.74 R$4.06

27.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.77

$1.90 R$10.43

55.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 60.8

$2.82 R$15.47

30.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.73

$1.01 R$5.54

30.69%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.87

$1.59 R$8.72

-23.90%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.26

$1.21 R$6.62

81.82%

Eggs

$3.10 R 51.1

$2.09 R$11.45

48.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 144

$8.82 R$48.39

-1.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 114

$4.14 R$22.71

66.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 153

$7.98 R$43.81

16.04%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.08

$2.14 R$11.73

-14.49%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 32.12

$1.24 R$6.79

57.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.32

$1.12 R$6.14

48.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 35.19

$1.47 R$8.06

45.58%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 26.01

$1.17 R$6.44

35.04%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.29

$1.04 R$5.69

41.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.18

$0.77 R$4.21

75.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.85

$0.77 R$4.21

48.05%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 59.0

$2.38 R$13.04

50.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 99.7

$7.34 R$40.25

-17.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.95

$1.18 R$6.46

17.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.90

$1.94 R$10.67

12.37%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 23.02

$0.95 R$5.19

47.37%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$41.14 R$226

47.67%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.26

$1.18 R$6.45

-21.19%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.83

$0.81 R$4.43

11.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 81.7

$7.58 R$41.57

-34.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.37

$1.22 R$6.71

26.23%

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

$35.4K R 582.8K

$21.8K R$119.7K

62.18%

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

$33.4K R 549.9K

$31.6K R$173.3K

5.69%

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

$117 R 1,929

$71.6 R$393

63.62%

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

$25.71 R 424

$11.56 R$63.4

122.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 649

$19.43 R$107

102.83%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 850

$24.02 R$132

114.86%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 187

$26.08 R$143

-56.48%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$6.95 R$38.13

27.91%

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

$308 R 5,069

$259 R$1,423

18.64%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 134.2K

$6,653 R$36.5K

22.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 946

$51.0 R$280

12.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 523

$47.31 R$260

-32.89%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,911

$83.3 R$457

39.21%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,660

$67.3 R$369

49.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.2K

$331 R$1,817

216.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.0K

$231 R$1,270

189.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.7K

$629 R$3,449

196.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.2K

$444 R$2,437

216.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.7K

$1,572 R$8,628

53.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.9K

$1,128 R$6,187

39.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

-1.00%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Barreiras: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Barreiras

$231 27.9% 65.4% $438

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Barreiras

$183 22% 18.2% $41

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Barreiras

$103 12.4% 43.7% $80

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Barreiras

$113 13.6% 35.2% $61

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Barreiras

$112 13.5% 18.6% $26

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Barreiras

$50 6% 30.1% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Barreiras

$38 4.6% 45.4% $31

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,047 in Cape Town and $331 in Barreiras. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $43 in Cape Town vs $30 in Barreiras for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $223 vs $183 per month, with Barreiras cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇧🇷 Barreiras

🕒 Local time

11:47 11:47 AM

06:47 6:47 AM

5 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

159,734

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1 BRL = 0.182 USD

1 BRL = 0.162 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, 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).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 5.49 BRL (1 BRL = 0.182 USD). 1 EUR = 6.16 BRL (1 BRL = 0.162 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Barreiras 6,810 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Barreiras

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 Barreiras: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barreiras is about 46% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $2,291 in Cape Town and $1,244 in Barreiras to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,047 in Cape Town versus $331 in Barreiras. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $308 in Cape Town versus $259 in Barreiras. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 22% higher in Cape Town. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $829 in Barreiras versus $1,527 in Cape Town, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Barreiras but tight or insufficient in Cape Town. The gap between the two cities makes Barreiras the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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 Barreiras gentler on the wallet – expenses run 46% less than in Cape Town. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.