Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Brazil

For one person, living is cheaper in Brazil: $855 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Cape Town, South Africa
Brazil
Cape Town
🇿🇦 South Africa
$1,527
/mo nomad
🇧🇷 Brazil
$855
/mo nomad
😐 Solo nomad: Cape Town is 38.4% more expensive than Brazil without rent, and 78.7% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Cape Town is 35.9% more expensive than Brazil without rent, and 76.7% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Cape Town
Brazil
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$12.01 R 198
$6.50 R$35.65
84.77%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.92 R 707
$30.90 R$170
38.90%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$6.15 R 101
$7.25 R$39.80
-15.17%
Cappuccino
$2.37 R 39.04
$1.99 R$10.93
19.10%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.27 R 20.96
$1.14 R$6.25
11.40%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.94 R 15.46
$0.73 R$3.98
28.77%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.96 R 48.77
$1.81 R$9.91
63.54%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.69 R 60.8
$2.82 R$15.48
30.85%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Cape Town
Brazil
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.32 R 21.73
$0.98 R$5.39
34.69%
White Bread (500g)
$1.21 R 19.87
$1.63 R$8.92
-25.77%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.20 R 36.26
$1.22 R$6.71
80.33%
Eggs
$3.10 R 51.1
$2.15 R$11.81
44.19%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.73 R 144
$8.84 R$48.50
-1.24%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.89 R 114
$4.09 R$22.42
68.46%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$9.26 R 153
$7.98 R$43.77
16.04%
Apples (1kg)
$1.83 R 30.08
$2.16 R$11.85
-15.28%
Banana (1kg)
$1.95 R 32.12
$1.30 R$7.14
50.00%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.66 R 27.32
$1.16 R$6.36
43.10%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.14 R 35.19
$1.46 R$8.03
46.58%
Potato (1kg)
$1.58 R 26.01
$1.10 R$6.03
43.64%
Onion (1kg)
$1.47 R 24.29
$1.02 R$5.58
44.12%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.35 R 22.18
$0.74 R$4.05
82.43%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.14 R 18.85
$0.72 R$3.97
58.33%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.58 R 59.0
$2.27 R$12.45
57.71%
Wine (Bottle)
$6.05 R 99.7
$7.20 R$39.48
-15.97%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.39 R 22.95
$1.24 R$6.78
12.10%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.18 R 35.90
$2.26 R$12.38
-3.54%
🚌 Getting Around
Cape Town
Brazil
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.40 R 23.02
$0.93 R$5.10
50.54%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$60.8 R 1,001
$44.48 R$244
36.58%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.93 R 15.26
$1.21 R$6.64
-23.14%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.90 R 14.83
$0.76 R$4.15
18.42%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$4.96 R 81.7
$7.56 R$41.49
-34.39%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.54 R 25.37
$1.21 R$6.61
27.27%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$35.4K R 582.8K
$21.7K R$119.1K
62.95%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$33.4K R 549.9K
$30.9K R$169.6K
7.95%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cape Town
Brazil
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$117 R 1,929
$78.0 R$428
50.15%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$25.71 R 424
$11.96 R$65.6
114.97%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$39.41 R 649
$19.21 R$105
105.15%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Cape Town
Brazil
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$51.6 R 850
$24.14 R$132
113.79%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$11.35 R 187
$25.23 R$138
-55.01%
Cinema Ticket
$8.89 R 146
$7.37 R$40.43
20.62%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Cape Town
Brazil
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$308 R 5,069
$319 R$1,752
-3.67%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$8,141 R 134.2K
$12.7K R$69.8K
-35.99%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Cape Town
Brazil
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$57.4 R 946
$48.80 R$268
17.58%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$31.75 R 523
$44.66 R$245
-28.91%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$116 R 1,911
$84.6 R$464
37.05%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$101 R 1,660
$64.9 R$356
55.23%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Cape Town
Brazil
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,047 R 17.2K
$366 R$2,009
185.91%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$669 R 11.0K
$241 R$1,325
177.09%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,861 R 30.7K
$704 R$3,864
164.22%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,407 R 23.2K
$482 R$2,645
191.93%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,410 R 39.7K
$1,805 R$9,903
33.54%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,570 R 25.9K
$1,258 R$6,902
24.77%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Cape Town
Brazil
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,630 R 26.9K
$528 R$2,900
208.42%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
10.89
11.14
-2.24%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Brazil: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Cape Town
$669
Brazil
$241 63.9% $428
Groceries & Markets
Cape Town
$223
Brazil
$183 18% $40
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cape Town
$182
Brazil
$109 40.1% $73
Eating Out
Cape Town
$174
Brazil
$120 31.2% $54
Clothing & Footwear
Cape Town
$138
Brazil
$109 20.6% $28
Getting Around
Cape Town
$72
Brazil
$53 25.9% $19
Sport & Entertainment
Cape Town
$69
Brazil
$39 44% $31
Good to know
🇿🇦 Cape Town
🇧🇷 Brazil
🕒 Local time
03:35 3:35 AM
22:35 10:35 PM
5 h behind Cape Town
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
3,740,026 Capital
203,062,512
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

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

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 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).

On the map
Between locations
  • Cape Town Brazil 6,870 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Cape Town
  • Brazil

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 other spots: cost of living compared

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