Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Dubasari

For one person, living is cheaper in Dubasari: $646 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $11,300 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
31

Cost of Living Index in Dubasari
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Dubasari Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Dubasari

🇲🇩 Moldova

$646

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,586 per month in Cape Town vs $646 in Dubasari, rent included.

Cape Town $1,586
Dubasari $646

A couple spends around $2,425 per month in Cape Town vs $959 in Dubasari, rent included.

Cape Town $2,425
Dubasari $959

A family of three spends $3,263 per month in Cape Town vs $1,272 in Dubasari, rent included.

Cape Town $3,263
Dubasari $1,272

Cape Town costs about 145% more than Dubasari, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$8.36 MDL 148

45.22%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$29.57 MDL 525

53.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$10.56 MDL 187

-44.32%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$1.68 MDL 29.84

48.81%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$1.09 MDL 19.40

16.51%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$0.64 MDL 11.37

53.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 R 49.33

$1.93 MDL 34.35

54.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 R 61.4

$2.22 MDL 39.45

67.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.40

$1.21 MDL 21.55

7.44%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$0.46 MDL 8.23

171.74%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$1.60 MDL 28.40

39.37%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$2.16 MDL 38.38

43.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$6.74 MDL 120

34.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$4.71 MDL 83.6

46.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$6.22 MDL 110

49.52%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$1.03 MDL 18.22

78.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$2.20 MDL 39.09

-10.91%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$1.87 MDL 33.17

-10.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$2.30 MDL 40.92

-5.65%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$0.77 MDL 13.71

103.90%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$0.48 MDL 8.53

208.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$0.46 MDL 8.22

182.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$0.58 MDL 10.29

94.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$3.45 MDL 61.3

4.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.15 R 101

$4.40 MDL 78.2

39.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.66

$1.38 MDL 24.47

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 R 35.20

$1.93 MDL 34.30

10.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R 24.65

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.59 R 9.71

$2.85 MDL 50.6

-79.30%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

$0.24 MDL 4.24

525.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

$5.44 MDL 96.5

-6.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.50

$1.62 MDL 28.79

-4.32%

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

$36.2K R 596.5K

$33.1K MDL 587.9K

9.38%

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

$24.6K MDL 436.8K

27.04%

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

$114 R 1,883

$225 MDL 4,001

-49.25%

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

$28.91 R 476

$7.97 MDL 142

262.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$11.03 MDL 196

260.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

$11.29 MDL 201

334.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$7.71 MDL 137

18.68%

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

$259 R 4,264

$110 MDL 1,952

135.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

$5,271 MDL 93.6K

28.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

$45.35 MDL 805

23.88%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

$56.4 MDL 1,001

113.94%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

$50.4 MDL 895

114.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

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

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

37.13%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Last update for Dubasari: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Dubasari

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

Dubasari

$163 25.3% 27.4% $62

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

Dubasari

$244 37.8% 33.5% $61

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

Dubasari

$140 21.6% 20.7% $36

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Dubasari

$68 * 10.6% 52.1% $74

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

Dubasari

$4 * 0.6% 94.6% $71

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Dubasari

$27 4.1% 60.3% $41

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $45.00 in Cape Town versus $30.00 in Dubasari. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $225 vs $163 – making Dubasari the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇲🇩 Dubasari

🕒 Local time

07:06 7:06 AM

08:06 8:06 AM

1 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

23,254

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Moldovan Leu MDL L

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

100 MDL = 5.63 USD

100 MDL = 5.01 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MDL, 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).

Moldovan Leu exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 17.76 MDL (100 MDL = 5.63 USD). 1 EUR = 19.97 MDL (100 MDL = 5.01 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Dubasari 9,090 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Dubasari

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 Dubasari: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 145% more than Dubasari, 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 $970 in Dubasari. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,586 in Cape Town and $646 in Dubasari. That's a gap of about 145%.

Kindergarten costs $259 per month in Cape Town and $110 in Dubasari. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Dubasari, where all-in costs run around $646, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Dubasari 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. Dubasari costs $646 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 Dubasari. 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.