Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Brest, France

Name: Brest
Address: Brest, FR

For one person, living is cheaper in Brest: $1,398 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $1,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cape Town outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
67

Cost of Living Index in Brest
Learn more

Brest Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Brest

🇫🇷 France

$1,398

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,527 in Cape Town versus $1,398 in Brest.

Cape Town $1,527
Brest $1,398

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,417 in Cape Town versus $2,170 in Brest.

Cape Town $2,417
Brest $2,170

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,306 in Cape Town versus $2,943 in Brest.

Cape Town $3,306
Brest $2,943

Living in Cape Town is roughly 9% more expensive than in Brest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Cape Town 13% above, Brest 3% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 198

$15.84 €14.10

-24.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 707

$45.57 €40.57

-5.82%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 101

$11.15 €9.93

-44.84%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 39.04

$2.97 €2.65

-20.20%

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

$1.27 R 20.96

$3.04 €2.70

-58.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.46

$2.13 €1.90

-55.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.77

$6.59 €5.87

-55.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 60.8

$5.44 €4.84

-32.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.73

$1.14 €1.02

15.79%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.87

$1.55 €1.38

-21.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.26

$2.46 €2.19

-10.57%

Eggs

$3.10 R 51.1

$3.49 €3.11

-11.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 144

$18.77 €16.71

-53.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 114

$10.17 €9.06

-32.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 153

$14.44 €12.86

-35.87%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.08

$3.06 €2.73

-40.20%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 32.12

$1.98 €1.77

-1.52%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.32

$2.61 €2.32

-36.40%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 35.19

$2.94 €2.62

-27.21%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 26.01

$1.72 €1.53

-8.14%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.29

$2.08 €1.85

-29.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.18

$1.40 €1.24

-3.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.85

$0.34 €0.30

235.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 59.0

$13.59 €12.10

-73.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 99.7

$6.54 €5.83

-7.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.95

$2.66 €2.37

-47.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.90

$2.82 €2.51

-22.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 23.02

$1.85 €1.65

-24.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$40.68 €36.22

49.34%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.26

$8.27 €7.36

-88.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.83

$3.09 €2.75

-70.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 81.7

$30.57 €27.22

-83.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.37

$2.03 €1.81

-24.14%

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

$35.4K R 582.8K

$36.1K €32.2K

-2.10%

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

$33.4K R 549.9K

$34.7K €30.9K

-3.84%

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

$117 R 1,929

$143 €127

-18.23%

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

$25.71 R 424

$28.17 €25.08

-8.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 649

$30.54 €27.20

29.04%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 850

$35.98 €32.04

43.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 187

$15.25 €13.58

-25.57%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$13.56 €12.08

-34.44%

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

$308 R 5,069

$223 €199

37.98%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 134.2K

$11.3K €10.1K

-28.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 946

$69.0 €61.4

-16.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 523

$29.75 €26.49

6.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,911

$77.1 €68.7

50.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,660

$69.7 €62.0

44.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.2K

$510 €454

105.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.0K

$386 €343

73.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.7K

$892 €794

108.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.2K

$718 €640

95.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.7K

$2,739 €2,438

-11.99%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.9K

$2,498 €2,224

-37.16%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.9K

$2,603 €2,318

-37.39%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

3.82

185.08%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Brest: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Brest

$386 27.6% 42.3% $283

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Brest

$305 21.8% 36.4% $81

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Brest

$202 14.4% 10.8% $20

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Brest

$260 18.6% 49.6% $86

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Brest

$110 7.9% 19.7% $27

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Brest

$72 5.1% 0% $0

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Brest

$63 4.5% 9.1% $6.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,047 in Cape Town and $510 in Brest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Brest pays 60% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $43 in Cape Town vs $46 in Brest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $223 vs $305 per month, with Cape Town cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇫🇷 Brest

🕒 Local time

11:31 11:31 AM

10:31 10:31 AM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

139,619

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD 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).

Euro exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.89 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Brest 9,430 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Brest

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 Brest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Brest wins on cost – living expenses run 8% lower than in Cape Town. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Brest the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 37% 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 $510 in Brest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Cape Town – a meal for two runs $43 versus $46 in Brest. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,527 per month in Cape Town versus $1,398 in Brest – Brest is about 8% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Brest 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.