Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Durban

For one person, living is cheaper in Durban: $1,150 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 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
56

Cost of Living Index in Durban
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Durban Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Durban

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,150

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,586 per month in Cape Town vs $1,150 in Durban, rent included.

Cape Town $1,586
Durban $1,150

A couple spends around $2,425 per month in Cape Town vs $1,777 in Durban, rent included.

Cape Town $2,425
Durban $1,777

A family of three spends $3,263 per month in Cape Town vs $2,404 in Durban, rent included.

Cape Town $3,263
Durban $2,404

Cape Town costs about 38% more than Durban, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Durban is 15% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$7.84 R 129

54.85%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$38.75 R 638

17.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$5.87 R 96.7

0.17%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$2.63 R 43.30

-4.94%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$1.08 R 17.85

17.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$0.89 R 14.72

10.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 R 49.33

$2.37 R 38.99

26.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 R 61.4

$2.62 R 43.10

41.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.40

$1.23 R 20.33

5.69%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$0.99 R 16.23

26.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$1.50 R 24.71

48.67%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$2.34 R 38.58

32.91%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$8.10 R 133

11.85%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$5.09 R 83.8

35.95%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$7.48 R 123

24.33%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$1.93 R 31.78

-4.66%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$1.90 R 31.36

3.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$1.91 R 31.42

-12.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$1.64 R 27.09

32.32%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$1.49 R 24.61

5.37%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$1.40 R 23.11

5.71%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$1.17 R 19.33

11.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$1.14 R 18.84

-0.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$3.64 R 60.0

-1.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.15 R 101

$4.75 R 78.2

29.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.66

$1.41 R 23.27

-2.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 R 35.20

$1.85 R 30.45

15.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R 24.65

$1.80 R 29.63

-16.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$21.77 R 359

179.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.59 R 9.71

$0.40 R 6.60

47.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

$0.76 R 12.47

97.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

$7.53 R 124

-32.14%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.50

$1.55 R 25.52

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

$36.2K R 596.5K

$35.0K R 577.2K

3.34%

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

$31.3K R 515.5K

-0.13%

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

$114 R 1,883

$148 R 2,435

-22.65%

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

$28.91 R 476

$35.20 R 580

-17.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$38.95 R 642

2.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

$31.79 R 524

54.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

$9.10 R 150

20.77%

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$7.32 R 121

25.00%

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

$259 R 4,264

$312 R 5,143

-17.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

$7,555 R 124.5K

-10.07%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

$55.0 R 905

2.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

$30.90 R 509

4.89%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

$100 R 1,648

20.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

$84.3 R 1,389

28.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

$463 R 7,621

120.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

$398 R 6,555

80.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

$818 R 13.5K

123.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

$789 R 13.0K

68.13%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

$878 R 14.5K

172.41%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.4K

$580 R 9,557

165.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

$1,271 R 20.9K

28.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

11.78

-6.88%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Last update for Durban: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Durban

$398 34.6% 44.5% $319

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

Durban

$193 16.7% 14.4% $32

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

Durban

$222 19.3% 21.3% $39

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

Durban

$137 11.9% 22.3% $39

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Durban

$122 10.6% 14.8% $21

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

Durban

$33 2.9% 55.7% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Durban

$46 4% 31% $21

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,021 in Cape Town versus $463 in Durban. 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 29% 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 $39.00 in Durban. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $225 vs $193 – making Durban the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇿🇦 Durban

🕒 Local time

06:12 6:12 AM

Same time as Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

3,442,361

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Durban 1,270 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Durban

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 Durban: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 38% more than Durban, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. 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 $1,726 in Durban. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Durban, 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 $1,150 in Durban. That's a gap of about 38%.

Public transport costs about 179% less in Durban. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Durban, where all-in costs run around $1,150, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Durban 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. Durban costs $1,150 versus $1,586 in Cape Town. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Durban. 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.