Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Cairo

For one person, living is cheaper in Cairo: $643 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $11,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
31

Cost of Living Index in Cairo
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Cairo Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Cairo

🇪🇬 Egypt

$643

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,568 per month in Cape Town vs $643 in Cairo, rent included.

Cape Town $1,568
Cairo $643

A couple spends around $2,438 per month in Cape Town vs $1,037 in Cairo, rent included.

Cape Town $2,438
Cairo $1,037

A family of three spends $3,307 per month in Cape Town vs $1,431 in Cairo, rent included.

Cape Town $3,307
Cairo $1,431

Cape Town costs about 144% more than Cairo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Cairo is 52% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.78 R 195

$4.69 E£245

151.17%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.55 R 772

$28.49 E£1,491

63.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.96 R 98.9

$6.03 E£316

-1.16%

Cappuccino

$2.47 R 41.01

$1.81 E£94.8

36.46%

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

$1.33 R 22.03

$0.35 E£18.18

280.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 R 17.08

$0.15 E£7.95

586.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.01 R 49.98

$1.45 E£76.0

107.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 R 60.8

$2.24 E£117

63.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 R 23.08

$0.97 E£50.7

43.30%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 R 19.70

$0.73 E£37.97

63.01%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.11 R 35.02

$0.77 E£40.25

174.03%

Eggs

$3.01 R 49.84

$1.17 E£61.2

157.26%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.96 R 149

$4.32 E£226

107.41%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.65 R 110

$5.07 E£265

31.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.29 R 154

$8.92 E£467

4.15%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.28

$1.83 E£95.8

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 R 31.47

$0.75 E£39.08

153.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.75 R 28.98

$0.57 E£29.78

207.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.09 R 34.59

$0.51 E£26.63

309.80%

Potato (1kg)

$1.55 R 25.78

$0.38 E£20.06

307.89%

Onion (1kg)

$1.49 R 24.65

$0.42 E£21.89

254.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.53

$0.35 E£18.43

271.43%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 R 19.29

$0.24 E£12.57

383.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.71 R 61.5

$1.99 E£104

86.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.06 R 101

$7.48 E£391

-18.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.97

$1.52 E£79.4

-8.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 R 36.51

$2.13 E£112

3.29%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.51 R 25.11

$0.33 E£17.10

357.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.0 R 1,011

$8.66 E£453

603.93%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.63 R 10.38

$0.37 E£19.27

70.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 R 25.42

$0.20 E£10.65

665.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.81 R 79.8

$1.49 E£77.8

222.82%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 R 26.22

$0.46 E£23.95

243.48%

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

$35.5K R 588.7K

$32.6K E£1.7M

8.80%

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

$31.7K R 526.6K

$28.4K E£1.5M

11.82%

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

$116 R 1,930

$27.54 E£1,441

322.59%

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

$28.37 R 471

$8.27 E£433

243.05%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.69 R 675

$14.05 E£735

189.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.85 R 810

$28.27 E£1,480

72.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.13 R 185

$6.70 E£350

66.12%

Cinema Ticket

$8.83 R 146

$4.40 E£230

100.68%

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

$261 R 4,336

$121 E£6,357

115.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,702 R 111.2K

$3,619 E£189.4K

85.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.4 R 919

$40.16 E£2,102

37.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.27 R 535

$49.61 E£2,596

-34.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 R 1,949

$115 E£6,034

1.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 R 1,775

$60.6 E£3,170

76.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,015 R 16.8K

$220 E£11.5K

361.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$715 R 11.9K

$194 E£10.2K

268.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,801 R 29.9K

$514 E£26.9K

250.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,330 R 22.1K

$334 E£17.5K

298.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,331 R 38.7K

$806 E£42.2K

189.08%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,513 R 25.1K

$513 E£26.9K

194.81%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,636 R 27.1K

$200 E£10.5K

717.27%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

16.21

-32.33%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Last update for Cairo: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$715 45.3%

Cairo

$194 30.1% 72.9% $521

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$222 14.1%

Cairo

$141 21.9% 36.5% $81

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$185 11.7%

Cairo

$50 7.7% 73.1% $136

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11%

Cairo

$91 14.1% 47.5% $83

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$141 8.9%

Cairo

$120 18.6% 14.9% $21

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.8%

Cairo

$11 1.8% 84.9% $64

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Cairo

$37 5.8% 44.3% $29

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,015 in Cape Town versus $220 in Cairo. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 717% higher in Cape Town, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47.00 in Cape Town versus $28.00 in Cairo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $222 vs $141 – making Cairo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇪🇬 Cairo

🕒 Local time

03:39 3:39 AM

04:39 4:39 AM

1 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

9,120,350 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.03 USD

100 ZAR = 5.38 EUR

100 EGP = 1.91 USD

100 EGP = 1.7 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, 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 = 16.59 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.03 USD). 1 EUR = 18.6 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.38 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 52.33 EGP (100 EGP = 1.91 USD). 1 EUR = 58.69 EGP (100 EGP = 1.7 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Cairo 7,240 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Cairo

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 Cairo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Cape Town is pricier by about 144%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,352 per month in Cape Town and $965 in Cairo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cairo, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Groceries cost about 57% more in Cape Town, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47.00 in Cape Town and $28.00 in Cairo. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Cairo, where all-in costs run around $643, than in Cape Town at $1,568. In Cairo it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cape Town it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Cairo – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Cairo. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Cape Town makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.