Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Buckingham

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,586 a month against $2,219 in Buckingham, rent and utilities included – about $7,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Buckingham
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Buckingham Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Buckingham

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,219

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,586 in Cape Town versus $2,219 in Buckingham.

Cape Town $1,586
Buckingham $2,219

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,425 in Cape Town versus $3,265 in Buckingham.

Cape Town $2,425
Buckingham $3,265

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,263 in Cape Town versus $4,311 in Buckingham.

Cape Town $3,263
Buckingham $4,311

Living in Cape Town costs roughly 29% less than in Buckingham, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Cape Town 17% above, Buckingham 64% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$20.03 £15.03

-39.39%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$78.9 £59.2

-42.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$10.44 £7.83

-43.68%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$4.60 £3.45

-45.65%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$2.05 £1.54

-38.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$1.50 £1.12

-34.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 R 49.33

$5.45 £4.09

-45.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 R 61.4

$4.52 £3.39

-17.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.40

$1.51 £1.13

-13.91%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$1.77 £1.33

-29.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$2.82 £2.11

-20.92%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$4.04 £3.03

-23.02%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$9.09 £6.82

-0.33%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$7.72 £5.79

-10.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$16.42 £12.32

-43.36%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$3.29 £2.47

-44.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$1.54 £1.16

27.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$2.80 £2.10

-40.36%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$3.20 £2.40

-32.19%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$1.16 £0.87

35.34%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$1.73 £1.30

-14.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$1.29 £0.97

0.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$1.35 £1.01

-16.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$23.66 £17.75

-84.78%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.15 R 101

$10.10 £7.57

-39.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.66

$3.14 £2.36

-56.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 R 35.20

$2.28 £1.71

-6.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R 24.65

$3.38 £2.53

-55.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$94.7 £71.1

-35.87%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.59 R 9.71

$4.18 £3.14

-85.89%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

$2.69 £2.02

-44.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

$32.36 £24.28

-84.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.50

$2.04 £1.53

-24.02%

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

$36.2K R 596.5K

$38.4K £28.8K

-5.66%

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

$41.3K £31.0K

-24.31%

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

$114 R 1,883

$200 £150

-42.83%

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

$28.91 R 476

$17.46 £13.10

65.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$43.68 £32.77

-9.04%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

$45.77 £34.34

7.08%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$13.38 £10.04

-31.61%

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

$259 R 4,264

$1,464 £1,099

-82.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

$22.0K £16.5K

-69.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

$84.3 £63.2

-33.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

$31.33 £23.50

3.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

$73.7 £55.3

63.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

$97.2 £72.9

11.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

$1,462 £1,097

-30.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

$1,036 £777

-30.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

$2,105 £1,579

-13.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

$1,659 £1,244

-20.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

$5,081 £3,812

-52.94%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.4K

$3,819 £2,865

-59.63%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

$4,447 £3,336

-63.15%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

5.06

116.80%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Last update for Buckingham: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Buckingham

$1K 46.7% 44.5% $319

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

Buckingham

$297 13.4% 32.1% $72

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

Buckingham

$261 11.8% 42.7% $78

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

Buckingham

$297 13.4% 68.7% $121

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Buckingham

$129 5.8% 9.7% $14

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

Buckingham

$126 5.7% 68.3% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Buckingham

$73 3.3% 7.8% $5.2

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,021 in Cape Town and $1,462 in Buckingham. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Buckingham pays 171% 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: $45.00 in Cape Town vs $79.0 in Buckingham for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $225 vs $297 per month, with Cape Town cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇬🇧 Buckingham

🕒 Local time

11:34 11:34 AM

10:34 10:34 AM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

12,890

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 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 20, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Buckingham 9,740 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Buckingham

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 Buckingham: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town and Buckingham differ by about 40% in total monthly costs ($1,586 vs $2,219 including rent). Cape Town is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 171% lower in Buckingham. 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: $1,021 in Cape Town versus $1,462 in Buckingham. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,586 per month in Cape Town versus $2,219 in Buckingham – a 40% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Cape Town runs roughly 56% less than in Buckingham. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,586 in Cape Town versus $2,219 in Buckingham, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Cape Town but tight or insufficient in Buckingham. 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.

Expats usually find Cape Town gentler on the wallet – expenses run 40% less than in Buckingham. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.