Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Bushehr

For one person, living is cheaper in Bushehr: $518 a month against $1,556 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $12,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

75

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
25

Cost of Living Index in Bushehr
Learn more

Bushehr Living Index

Jump to prices

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,556

/mo nomad

Bushehr

🇮🇷 Iran

$518

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,556 in Cape Town versus $518 in Bushehr.

Cape Town $1,556
Bushehr $518

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,432 in Cape Town versus $805 in Bushehr.

Cape Town $2,432
Bushehr $805

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,307 in Cape Town versus $1,091 in Bushehr.

Cape Town $3,307
Bushehr $1,091

Living in Cape Town is roughly 200% more expensive than in Bushehr, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cape Town is 14% above, Bushehr is 62% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.09 R 202

$4.53 $4.53

166.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.34 R 739

$12.80 $12.80

246.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 102

$4.10 $4.10

50.00%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.02 $1.02

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 $1.73

Cappuccino

$2.36 R 39.30

$1.22 $1.22

93.44%

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

$1.26 R 21.06

$0.62 $0.62

103.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.00 R 16.59

$1.03 $1.03

-2.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.08 R 51.3

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.70 R 61.6

Milk (1 liter)

$1.34 R 22.41

$0.51 $0.51

162.75%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 R 19.89

$0.29 $0.29

310.34%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.10 R 35.01

$1.81 $1.81

16.02%

Eggs

$3.05 R 50.8

$0.99 $0.99

208.08%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 146

$1.46 $1.46

497.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.97 R 116

$2.94 $2.94

137.07%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.39 R 157

$9.89 $9.89

-5.06%

Apples (1kg)

$1.89 R 31.44

$0.57 $0.57

231.58%

Banana (1kg)

$1.88 R 31.32

$1.46 $1.46

28.77%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.69 R 28.08

$0.94 $0.94

79.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.04 R 34.07

$0.52 $0.52

292.31%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 26.12

$0.48 $0.48

227.08%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.65

$0.29 $0.29

410.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 R 21.36

$0.51 $0.51

150.98%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 R 19.81

$0.20 $0.20

495.00%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$0.58 $0.58

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.31 $0.31

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.53 $1.53

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.63 R 60.5

$3.08 $3.08

17.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.17 R 103

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 23.14

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 36.33

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.37 R 22.83

$0.13 $0.13

953.85%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.3 R 1,021

$9.67 $9.67

533.71%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.57 R 9.58

$0.38 $0.38

50.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 R 24.62

$0.31 $0.31

377.42%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.90 R 81.6

$3.53 $3.53

38.81%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 R 26.29

$0.09 $0.09

1655.56%

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

$34.7K R 578.4K

$60.0K $60.0K

-42.14%

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

$34.1K R 568.2K

$48.4K $48.4K

-29.54%

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

$117 R 1,948

$20.18 $20.18

479.39%

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

$28.35 R 472

$1.59 $1.59

1683.02%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.58 R 676

$3.97 $3.97

922.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.54 R 809

$19.16 $19.16

153.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.80 R 180

$13.66 $13.66

-20.94%

Cinema Ticket

$9.11 R 152

$1.94 $1.94

369.59%

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

$302 R 5,032

$50.9 $50.9

493.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,720 R 112.0K

$608 $608

1005.98%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.2 R 920

$22.67 $22.67

143.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.70 R 545

$18.74 $18.74

74.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 R 1,964

$96.2 $96.2

22.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 R 1,731

$55.5 $55.5

87.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,041 R 17.3K

$295 $295

253.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$691 R 11.5K

$208 $208

231.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,981 R 33.0K

$327 $327

505.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,388 R 23.1K

$353 $353

293.28%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,420 R 40.3K

$1,143 $1,143

111.71%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,552 R 25.9K

$531 $531

192.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,576 R 26.3K

$282 $282

458.31%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

24.3

-54.86%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 24, 2026

Last update for Bushehr: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$691 44.4%

Bushehr

$208 40.2% 69.9% $483

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$224 14.4%

Bushehr

$92 17.8% 58.7% $131

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$186 11.9%

Bushehr

$26 5% 86.1% $160

Eating Out

Cape Town

$175 11.3%

Bushehr

$70 13.5% 60.2% $106

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$139 9%

Bushehr

$87 16.8% 37.7% $52

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.8%

Bushehr

$12 2.3% 83.7% $63

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.3%

Bushehr

$23 4.5% 65.5% $44

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,041 in Cape Town and $295 in Bushehr. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cape Town pays about 5.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $44 in Cape Town vs $13 in Bushehr for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $224 vs $92 per month, with Bushehr cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇮🇷 Bushehr

🕒 Local time

04:11 4:11 AM

05:41 5:41 AM

1 h 30 min ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

223,504

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

USD USD

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

1 USD = 0.898 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 16.66 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6 USD). 1 EUR = 18.55 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR).

USD exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.898 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Bushehr 7,780 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Bushehr

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 Bushehr: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bushehr wins on cost – living expenses run 67% lower than in Cape Town. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Bushehr the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Cape Town is about 5.6 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,041 in Cape Town versus $295 in Bushehr. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Bushehr runs roughly 84% less than in Cape Town. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $302 in Cape Town versus $51 in Bushehr. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $518 in Bushehr versus $1,556 in Cape Town, a $800 budget is realistic in Bushehr but tight or insufficient in Cape Town. The gap between the two cities makes Bushehr 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 Bushehr gentler on the wallet – expenses run 67% less than in Cape Town. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.