Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Bristol

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,568 a month against $2,891 in Bristol, rent and utilities included – about $15,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
Learn more

Cape Town Living Index
138

Cost of Living Index in Bristol
Learn more

Bristol Living Index

Jump to prices

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Bristol

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,891

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,568 in Cape Town versus $2,891 in Bristol.

Cape Town $1,568
Bristol $2,891

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,438 in Cape Town versus $4,132 in Bristol.

Cape Town $2,438
Bristol $4,132

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,307 in Cape Town versus $5,373 in Bristol.

Cape Town $3,307
Bristol $5,373

Living in Cape Town costs roughly 46% less than in Bristol, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Cape Town 17% above, Bristol 116% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.78 R 194

$21.56 £16.29

-45.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.55 R 768

$113 £85.1

-58.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.96 R 98.4

$10.42 £7.87

-42.80%

Cappuccino

$2.47 R 40.80

$5.03 £3.80

-50.89%

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

$1.33 R 21.91

$2.61 £1.97

-49.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 R 16.99

$1.83 £1.39

-43.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.01 R 49.72

$7.76 £5.86

-61.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 R 60.4

$6.72 £5.08

-45.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 R 22.96

$1.55 £1.17

-10.32%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 R 19.60

$1.66 £1.25

-28.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.11 R 34.84

$2.00 £1.51

5.50%

Eggs

$3.01 R 49.58

$4.25 £3.21

-29.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.96 R 148

$8.46 £6.39

5.91%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.65 R 110

$9.72 £7.35

-31.58%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.29 R 153

$12.75 £9.64

-27.14%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.13

$3.19 £2.41

-42.63%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 R 31.31

$1.72 £1.30

10.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.75 R 28.83

$2.68 £2.02

-34.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.09 R 34.41

$4.00 £3.03

-47.75%

Potato (1kg)

$1.55 R 25.64

$2.08 £1.57

-25.48%

Onion (1kg)

$1.49 R 24.53

$1.45 £1.09

2.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$1.22 £0.92

6.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 R 19.19

$2.01 £1.52

-42.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.71 R 61.2

$22.96 £17.35

-83.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.06 R 100

$10.76 £8.13

-43.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.85

$2.78 £2.10

-50.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 R 36.32

$3.51 £2.65

-37.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.51 R 24.98

$3.34 £2.53

-54.79%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.0 R 1,006

$119 £89.8

-48.67%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.63 R 10.33

$3.36 £2.54

-81.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 R 25.29

$1.63 £1.23

-6.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.81 R 79.4

$26.73 £20.20

-82.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 R 26.08

$2.15 £1.62

-26.51%

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

$35.5K R 585.7K

$37.7K £28.5K

-5.75%

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

$31.7K R 523.8K

$41.1K £31.1K

-22.75%

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

$116 R 1,920

$317 £240

-63.32%

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

$28.37 R 468

$17.38 £13.13

63.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.69 R 671

$38.91 £29.40

4.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.85 R 806

$49.01 £37.03

-0.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.13 R 184

$11.69 £8.83

-4.79%

Cinema Ticket

$8.83 R 146

$14.11 £10.66

-37.42%

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

$261 R 4,314

$2,237 £1,690

-88.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,702 R 110.6K

$25.0K £18.9K

-73.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.4 R 914

$100 £75.7

-44.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.27 R 532

$47.31 £35.75

-31.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 R 1,939

$105 £79.1

12.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 R 1,766

$97.5 £73.7

9.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,015 R 16.7K

$1,894 £1,431

-46.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$715 R 11.8K

$1,471 £1,112

-51.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,801 R 29.7K

$3,100 £2,343

-41.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,330 R 22.0K

$2,300 £1,738

-42.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,331 R 38.5K

$6,784 £5,126

-65.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,513 R 25.0K

$5,111 £3,862

-70.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,636 R 27.0K

$3,803 £2,874

-56.97%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

4.87

125.26%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Last update for Bristol: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$715 45.3%

Bristol

$1.5K 51.4% 106% $756

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$222 14.1%

Bristol

$307 10.7% 38% $84

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$185 11.7%

Bristol

$374 13% 101% $188

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11%

Bristol

$334 11.7% 92.4% $160

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$141 8.9%

Bristol

$157 5.5% 12% $17

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.8%

Bristol

$144 5% 90.8% $68

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Bristol

$77 2.7% 16.1% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,015 in Cape Town and $1,894 in Bristol. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bristol pays 132% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $47.00 in Cape Town vs $113 in Bristol for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $222 vs $307 per month, with Cape Town cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇬🇧 Bristol

🕒 Local time

12:11 12:11 PM

11:11 11:11 AM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

463,400

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 16.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.06 USD). 1 EUR = 18.49 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.847 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Bristol 9,710 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Bristol

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 Bristol: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town and Bristol differ by about 84% in total monthly costs ($1,568 vs $2,891 including rent). Cape Town is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 132% lower in Bristol. 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: $1,015 in Cape Town versus $1,894 in Bristol. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 38% higher in Bristol. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Cape Town – a meal for two runs $47.00 versus $113 in Bristol. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,568 in Cape Town versus $2,891 in Bristol, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Cape Town but tight or insufficient in Bristol. The gap between the two cities makes Cape Town 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.

Safety-wise, Cape Town and Bristol are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Cape Town gentler on the wallet – expenses run 84% less than in Bristol. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.