Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Esztergom

For one person, living is cheaper in Esztergom: $1,293 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cape Town outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
Learn more

Cape Town Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Esztergom
Learn more

Esztergom Living Index

Jump to prices

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Esztergom

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,293

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,527 per month in Cape Town vs $1,293 in Esztergom, rent included.

Cape Town $1,527
Esztergom $1,293

A couple spends around $2,417 per month in Cape Town vs $1,975 in Esztergom, rent included.

Cape Town $2,417
Esztergom $1,975

A family of three spends $3,306 per month in Cape Town vs $2,657 in Esztergom, rent included.

Cape Town $3,306
Esztergom $2,657

Cape Town costs about 18% more than Esztergom, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Cape Town sits 13% above the global median, while Esztergom is 4% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 198

$12.34 Ft 3,999

-2.67%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 707

$52.1 Ft 16.9K

-17.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 101

$9.31 Ft 3,018

-33.94%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 39.04

$2.54 Ft 823

-6.69%

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

$1.27 R 20.96

$1.88 Ft 610

-32.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.46

$1.19 Ft 387

-21.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.77

$2.99 Ft 970

-1.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 60.8

$2.74 Ft 887

34.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.73

$1.21 Ft 391

9.09%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.87

$1.44 Ft 466

-15.97%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.26

$2.42 Ft 783

-9.09%

Eggs

$3.10 R 51.1

$3.07 Ft 996

0.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 144

$10.79 Ft 3,498

-19.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 114

$6.08 Ft 1,972

13.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 153

$13.39 Ft 4,340

-30.84%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.08

$2.35 Ft 760

-22.13%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 32.12

$2.04 Ft 661

-4.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.32

$2.04 Ft 660

-18.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 35.19

$3.88 Ft 1,257

-44.85%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 26.01

$1.18 Ft 383

33.90%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.29

$1.30 Ft 422

13.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.18

$1.77 Ft 573

-23.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.85

$0.49 Ft 159

132.65%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 59.0

$7.55 Ft 2,447

-52.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 99.7

$5.95 Ft 1,930

1.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.95

$1.26 Ft 408

10.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.90

$1.57 Ft 508

38.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 23.02

$1.24 Ft 402

12.90%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$26.75 Ft 8,672

127.10%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.26

$2.99 Ft 968

-68.90%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.83

$1.49 Ft 484

-39.60%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 81.7

$18.48 Ft 5,991

-73.16%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.37

$1.88 Ft 610

-18.09%

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

$35.4K R 582.8K

$32.1K Ft 10.4M

10.27%

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

$33.4K R 549.9K

$35.4K Ft 11.5M

-5.81%

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

$117 R 1,929

$150 Ft 48.6K

-21.99%

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

$25.71 R 424

$32.97 Ft 10.7K

-22.02%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 649

$26.93 Ft 8,730

46.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 850

$49.74 Ft 16.1K

3.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 187

$17.97 Ft 5,823

-36.84%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$7.64 Ft 2,477

16.36%

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

$308 R 5,069

$244 Ft 79.2K

25.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 134.2K

$7,630 Ft 2.5M

6.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 946

$86.6 Ft 28.1K

-33.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 523

$27.01 Ft 8,756

17.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,911

$96.3 Ft 31.2K

20.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,660

$106 Ft 34.3K

-4.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.2K

$528 Ft 171.1K

98.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.0K

$400 Ft 129.8K

67.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.7K

$744 Ft 241.2K

150.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.2K

$647 Ft 209.7K

117.54%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.7K

$3,191 Ft 1.0M

-24.48%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.9K

$2,443 Ft 792.0K

-35.76%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.9K

$1,158 Ft 375.5K

40.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

8.25

32.00%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Esztergom: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Esztergom

$400 31% 40.2% $269

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Esztergom

$243 18.8% 9% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Esztergom

$210 16.2% 15.2% $28

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Esztergom

$190 14.7% 9.1% $16

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Esztergom

$142 11% 3.3% $4.5

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Esztergom

$42 3.3% 41.2% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Esztergom

$65 5% 6.3% $4.4

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,047 in Cape Town versus $528 in Esztergom. 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 41% 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 $52 in Esztergom. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $223 vs $243 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇭🇺 Esztergom

🕒 Local time

13:53 1:53 PM

12:53 12:53 PM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

28,642

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, 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 = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.51 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 324 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD). 1 EUR = 364 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

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

From you

Cape Town
Esztergom

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 Esztergom: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 18% more than Esztergom, 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 $1,939 in Esztergom. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Esztergom, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $528 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,527 in Cape Town and $1,293 in Esztergom. That makes Esztergom about 15% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 56% less in Esztergom. 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 $1,293 in Esztergom. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward Esztergom – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Esztergom. 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.