Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Durbanville

For one person, living is cheaper in Durbanville: $1,133 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $4,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
54

Cost of Living Index in Durbanville
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Durbanville Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Durbanville

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,133

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,527 per month in Cape Town vs $1,133 in Durbanville, rent included.

Cape Town $1,527
Durbanville $1,133

A couple spends around $2,417 per month in Cape Town vs $1,795 in Durbanville, rent included.

Cape Town $2,417
Durbanville $1,795

A family of three spends $3,306 per month in Cape Town vs $2,457 in Durbanville, rent included.

Cape Town $3,306
Durbanville $2,457

Cape Town costs about 35% more than Durbanville, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Cape Town sits 13% above the global median, while Durbanville is 16% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 198

$12.14 R 200

-1.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 706

$44.36 R 730

-3.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 101

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 38.97

$2.34 R 38.47

1.28%

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

$1.27 R 20.93

$0.92 R 15.11

38.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.43

$0.62 R 10.23

51.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.68

$2.47 R 40.57

19.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 60.7

$2.76 R 45.36

33.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.70

$1.31 R 21.55

0.76%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.83

$1.22 R 20.13

-0.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.19

$2.19 R 36.08

0.46%

Eggs

$3.10 R 51.0

$3.19 R 52.5

-2.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 144

$8.65 R 142

0.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 113

$6.59 R 108

4.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 152

$9.51 R 156

-2.63%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.02

$1.85 R 30.47

-1.08%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 32.07

$1.95 R 32.04

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.27

$1.66 R 27.29

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 35.13

$2.04 R 33.55

4.90%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 25.96

$1.50 R 24.66

5.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.25

$1.49 R 24.54

-1.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.14

$1.30 R 21.32

3.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.82

$1.17 R 19.33

-2.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 58.9

$3.43 R 56.4

4.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 99.6

$6.04 R 99.3

0.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.91

$1.38 R 22.67

0.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.84

$2.13 R 35.07

2.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 22.98

$1.78 R 29.25

-21.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 999

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.24

$0.94 R 15.39

-1.06%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.81

$0.89 R 14.64

1.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 81.6

$5.09 R 83.7

-2.55%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.33

$1.58 R 26.00

-2.53%

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

$35.4K R 581.8K

$34.8K R 572.2K

1.67%

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

$33.4K R 549.0K

$33.4K R 549.3K

-0.06%

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

$117 R 1,926

$116 R 1,916

0.52%

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

$25.71 R 423

$26.41 R 434

-2.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 648

$40.07 R 659

-1.65%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 849

$27.32 R 449

88.91%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 187

$10.41 R 171

9.03%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$9.00 R 148

-1.22%

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

$308 R 5,061

$306 R 5,029

0.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 133.9K

$8,314 R 136.8K

-2.07%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 944

$58.1 R 956

-1.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 522

$32.93 R 542

-3.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,908

$117 R 1,923

-0.80%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,657

$102 R 1,681

-1.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.2K

$386 R 6,356

170.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.0K

$363 R 5,965

84.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.6K

$744 R 12.2K

150.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.1K

$724 R 11.9K

94.28%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.6K

$762 R 12.5K

216.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.8K

$680 R 11.2K

130.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.8K

$1,039 R 17.1K

56.80%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Durbanville: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Durbanville

$363 32% 45.8% $307

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Durbanville

$222 19.6% 0.5% $1.2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Durbanville

$183 16.2% 0.4% $0.8

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Durbanville

$168 14.8% 3.7% $6.4

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Durbanville

$140 12.3% 1.4% $1.9

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Durbanville

$13 * 1.1% 82.6% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Durbanville

$45 4% 34.7% $24

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,047 in Cape Town versus $386 in Durbanville. 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 57% higher in Cape Town. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Cape Town versus $44 in Durbanville. Groceries tell a different story – $223 in Cape Town vs $222 in Durbanville – so Durbanville wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇿🇦 Durbanville

🕒 Local time

22:28 10:28 PM

Same time as Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

40,000

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.08 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.08 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Cape Town Durbanville 24 km

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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 Durbanville: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 35% more than Durbanville, 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 $2,291 per month in Cape Town and $1,699 in Durbanville. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Durbanville, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $386 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,527 in Cape Town and $1,133 in Durbanville. That makes Durbanville about 26% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $308 per month in Cape Town and $306 in Durbanville. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,527 in Cape Town and $1,133 in Durbanville. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Cape Town has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,133 in Durbanville to $1,527 in Cape Town. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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