Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Dahab

For one person, living is cheaper in Dahab: $453 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $13,600 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
23

Cost of Living Index in Dahab
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Dahab Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Dahab

🇪🇬 Egypt

$453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,586 per month in Cape Town vs $453 in Dahab, rent included.

Cape Town $1,586
Dahab $453

A couple spends around $2,425 per month in Cape Town vs $755 in Dahab, rent included.

Cape Town $2,425
Dahab $755

A family of three spends $3,263 per month in Cape Town vs $1,057 in Dahab, rent included.

Cape Town $3,263
Dahab $1,057

Cape Town costs about 250% more than Dahab, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Dahab is 66% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$3.70 E£198

228.11%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$13.14 E£702

245.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$4.64 E£248

26.72%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$1.58 E£84.3

58.23%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$0.46 E£24.50

176.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$0.27 E£14.50

262.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 R 49.33

$1.95 E£104

53.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 R 61.4

$2.34 E£125

58.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.40

$0.97 E£52.0

34.02%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$1.12 E£60.0

11.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$0.73 E£38.75

205.48%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$1.35 E£72.0

130.37%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$10.63 E£568

-14.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$3.88 E£207

78.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$10.65 E£569

-12.68%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$2.33 E£124

-21.03%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$1.45 E£77.4

35.17%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$0.63 E£33.55

165.08%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$0.59 E£31.39

267.80%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$0.55 E£29.14

185.45%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$0.59 E£31.72

150.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$0.88 E£47.16

47.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$0.20 E£10.58

465.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$1.50 E£80.0

140.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.15 R 101

$6.79 E£363

-9.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.66

$1.58 E£84.5

-12.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 R 35.20

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R 24.65

$0.21 E£11.08

614.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$7.56 E£404

703.57%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.59 R 9.71

$0.77 E£41.30

-23.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.50

$0.43 E£23.13

260.47%

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

$36.2K R 596.5K

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

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

$114 R 1,883

$17.85 E£953

540.45%

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

$28.91 R 476

$6.84 E£365

322.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$17.89 E£955

122.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

$15.01 E£801

226.52%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

$9.54 E£509

15.20%

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$4.80 E£257

90.63%

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

$259 R 4,264

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

$187 E£9,988

445.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

$129 E£6,868

457.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

$529 E£28.2K

245.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

$316 E£16.9K

320.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

$131 E£6,973

1154.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Last update for Dahab: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Dahab

$129 28.4% 82.1% $588

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

Dahab

$169 * 37.2% 25.1% $56

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

Dahab

$43 9.4% 76.7% $140

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

Dahab

$80 17.6% 54.7% $96

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Dahab

- * 0% 100%

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

Dahab

$9.2 * 2% 87.8% $66

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Dahab

$25 5.4% 63.4% $43

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,021 in Cape Town versus $187 in Dahab. 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 1155% 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 $45.00 in Cape Town versus $13.00 in Dahab. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $225 vs $169 – making Dahab the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇪🇬 Dahab

🕒 Local time

10:42 10:42 AM

11:42 11:42 AM

1 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

12,000

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

100 EGP = 1.87 USD

100 EGP = 1.67 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 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 53.4 EGP (100 EGP = 1.87 USD). 1 EUR = 60.03 EGP (100 EGP = 1.67 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Dahab 7,150 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Dahab

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 Dahab: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 250% more than Dahab, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from clothing. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,379 per month in Cape Town and $680 in Dahab. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,586 in Cape Town and $453 in Dahab. That's a gap of about 250%.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $45.00 in Cape Town and $13.00 in Dahab. 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 Dahab, where all-in costs run around $453, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Dahab it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cape Town it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Dahab costs $453 versus $1,586 in Cape Town. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Dahab. 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.