Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Eslov

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $1,768 in Eslov, rent and utilities included – about $2,900 less a year. The total is higher in Eslov despite lower rent and utilities.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
82

Cost of Living Index in Eslov
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Eslov Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Eslov

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,768

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,527 per month in Cape Town vs $1,768 in Eslov, rent included.

Cape Town $1,527
Eslov $1,768

A couple spends around $2,417 per month in Cape Town vs $2,754 in Eslov, rent included.

Cape Town $2,417
Eslov $2,754

A family of three spends $3,306 per month in Cape Town vs $3,740 in Eslov, rent included.

Cape Town $3,306
Eslov $3,740

Cape Town is about 14% cheaper than Eslov, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Cape Town and Eslov sit above the global median – Cape Town by 13%, Eslov by 31%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 197

$13.12 SEK 128

-8.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 703

$91.0 SEK 889

-52.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 101

$12.28 SEK 120

-49.92%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 38.81

$4.69 SEK 45.79

-49.47%

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

$1.27 R 20.84

$2.76 SEK 26.98

-53.99%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.37

$2.17 SEK 21.21

-56.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.48

$7.24 SEK 70.8

-59.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 60.5

$7.32 SEK 71.5

-49.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.61

$1.65 SEK 16.12

-20.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.75

$2.59 SEK 25.28

-53.28%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.05

$3.62 SEK 35.36

-39.23%

Eggs

$3.10 R 50.8

$3.95 SEK 38.64

-21.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 143

$12.45 SEK 122

-29.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 113

$11.48 SEK 112

-39.98%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 152

$17.51 SEK 171

-47.12%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 29.90

$3.14 SEK 30.66

-41.72%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 31.94

$2.50 SEK 24.39

-22.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.16

$2.86 SEK 27.95

-41.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 34.99

$4.82 SEK 47.06

-55.60%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 25.86

$1.78 SEK 17.38

-11.24%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.15

$1.42 SEK 13.87

3.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.05

$2.08 SEK 20.37

-35.10%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.75

$1.55 SEK 15.10

-26.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 58.6

$7.94 SEK 77.6

-54.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 99.2

$11.40 SEK 111

-46.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.82

$1.89 SEK 18.42

-26.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.69

$2.28 SEK 22.23

-4.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 22.88

$3.38 SEK 33.02

-58.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 995

$71.4 SEK 697

-14.88%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.18

$5.22 SEK 51.0

-82.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.75

$1.09 SEK 10.66

-17.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 81.3

$43.00 SEK 420

-88.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.23

$1.86 SEK 18.16

-17.20%

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

$35.4K R 579.4K

$33.2K SEK 324.7K

6.44%

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

$33.4K R 546.7K

$34.2K SEK 334.5K

-2.51%

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

$117 R 1,918

$79.3 SEK 775

47.55%

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

$25.71 R 421

$20.29 SEK 198

26.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 646

$34.84 SEK 340

13.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 846

$32.69 SEK 319

57.88%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 186

$23.55 SEK 230

-51.80%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$15.34 SEK 150

-42.05%

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

$308 R 5,040

$158 SEK 1,549

94.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 133.4K

$4,368 SEK 42.7K

86.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 940

$89.2 SEK 872

-35.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 520

$50.3 SEK 491

-36.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,900

$104 SEK 1,013

11.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,650

$124 SEK 1,212

-18.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.1K

$726 SEK 7,093

44.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.0K

$683 SEK 6,675

-2.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.5K

$1,207 SEK 11.8K

54.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.1K

$1,059 SEK 10.4K

32.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.5K

$3,756 SEK 36.7K

-35.84%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.7K

$3,167 SEK 30.9K

-50.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

3.03

259.41%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Eslov: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Eslov

$683 38.7% 2.1% $14

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Eslov

$358 20.2% 60.4% $135

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Eslov

$134 7.6% 26.2% $48

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Eslov

$269 15.2% 54.4% $95

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Eslov

$165 9.3% 20% $28

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Eslov

$96 5.4% 33.2% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Eslov

$63 3.6% 8.7% $6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,047 in Cape Town versus $726 in Eslov. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Cape Town versus $91 in Eslov. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $223 vs $358 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇸🇪 Eslov

🕒 Local time

03:42 3:42 AM

02:42 2:42 AM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

17,748

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.1 USD

100 ZAR = 5.44 EUR

100 SEK = 10.23 USD

100 SEK = 9.12 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SEK, USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.38 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.1 USD). 1 EUR = 18.39 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.44 EUR).

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 9.77 SEK (1 SEK = 0.102 USD). 1 EUR = 10.97 SEK (100 SEK = 9.12 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Eslov 9,990 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Eslov

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 Eslov: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Eslov costs about 16% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. 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 $2,652 in Eslov. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Eslov, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $726 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,527 in Cape Town and $1,768 in Eslov. That makes Cape Town about 14% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 15% less in Cape Town. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,527 in Cape Town and $1,768 in Eslov. 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 $1,527 in Cape Town to $1,768 in Eslov. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.