Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Brussels

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $2,602 in Brussels, rent and utilities included – about $12,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
Learn more

Cape Town Living Index
125

Cost of Living Index in Brussels
Learn more

Brussels Living Index

Jump to prices

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Brussels

🇧🇪 Belgium

$2,602

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,527 in Cape Town versus $2,602 in Brussels.

Cape Town $1,527
Brussels $2,602

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,417 in Cape Town versus $3,932 in Brussels.

Cape Town $2,417
Brussels $3,932

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,306 in Cape Town versus $5,262 in Brussels.

Cape Town $3,306
Brussels $5,262

Living in Cape Town costs roughly 41% less than in Brussels, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Cape Town 13% above, Brussels 92% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 198

$22.69 €20.21

-47.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 707

$89.6 €79.8

-52.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 101

$15.03 €13.38

-59.08%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 39.04

$4.60 €4.09

-48.48%

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

$1.27 R 20.96

$3.71 €3.30

-65.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.46

$3.13 €2.79

-69.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.77

$6.05 €5.39

-51.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 60.8

$5.46 €4.86

-32.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.73

$1.34 €1.19

-1.49%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.87

$2.78 €2.48

-56.47%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.26

$2.70 €2.40

-18.52%

Eggs

$3.10 R 51.1

$5.30 €4.72

-41.51%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 144

$17.33 €15.43

-49.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 114

$13.28 €11.83

-48.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 153

$22.09 €19.67

-58.08%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.08

$3.01 €2.68

-39.20%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 32.12

$2.47 €2.20

-21.05%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.32

$2.78 €2.48

-40.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 35.19

$4.25 €3.79

-49.65%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 26.01

$2.48 €2.21

-36.29%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.29

$2.23 €1.99

-34.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.18

$1.84 €1.64

-26.63%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.85

$1.29 €1.15

-11.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 59.0

$13.17 €11.73

-72.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 99.7

$10.02 €8.92

-39.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.95

$2.63 €2.35

-47.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.90

$2.98 €2.65

-26.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 23.02

$2.72 €2.43

-48.53%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$62.7 €55.8

-3.08%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.26

$2.90 €2.58

-67.93%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.83

$2.61 €2.33

-65.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 81.7

$40.46 €36.03

-87.74%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.37

$2.17 €1.93

-29.03%

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

$35.4K R 582.8K

$36.0K €32.1K

-1.87%

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

$33.4K R 549.9K

$35.7K €31.8K

-6.51%

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

$117 R 1,929

$296 €264

-60.47%

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

$25.71 R 424

$20.97 €18.67

22.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 649

$52.2 €46.49

-24.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 850

$32.81 €29.21

57.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 187

$27.86 €24.81

-59.26%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$16.07 €14.31

-44.68%

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

$308 R 5,069

$1,623 €1,445

-81.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 134.2K

$30.9K €27.6K

-73.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 946

$106 €94.2

-45.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 523

$46.71 €41.59

-32.03%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,911

$115 €102

1.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,660

$146 €130

-31.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.2K

$1,359 €1,210

-23.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.0K

$1,148 €1,022

-41.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.7K

$2,561 €2,280

-27.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.2K

$2,039 €1,816

-30.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.7K

$5,047 €4,494

-52.25%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.9K

$3,701 €3,295

-57.59%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.9K

$3,373 €3,003

-51.68%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

3.71

193.53%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Brussels: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Brussels

$1.1K 44.1% 71.6% $479

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Brussels

$394 15.1% 76.5% $171

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Brussels

$369 14.2% 103% $187

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Brussels

$350 13.5% 101% $176

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Brussels

$186 7.2% 35.2% $48

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Brussels

$90 3.4% 24.8% $18

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Brussels

$65 2.5% 6.4% $4.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,047 in Cape Town and $1,359 in Brussels. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Brussels pays about 2.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $43 in Cape Town vs $90 in Brussels for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $223 vs $394 per month, with Cape Town cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇧🇪 Brussels

🕒 Local time

08:36 8:36 AM

07:36 7:36 AM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

188,137 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 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 = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 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 Brussels 9,530 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Brussels

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 Brussels: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town wins on cost – living expenses run 41% lower than in Brussels. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Cape Town the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 52% 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 $1,359 in Brussels. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 76% higher in Brussels. 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 $43 versus $90 in Brussels. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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 41% less than in Brussels. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.