Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Finale Emilia

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $1,754 in Finale Emilia, rent and utilities included – about $2,700 less a year. The total is higher in Finale Emilia despite lower rent and utilities.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
84

Cost of Living Index in Finale Emilia
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Finale Emilia Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Finale Emilia

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,754

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cape Town and in Finale Emilia

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

A single person spends $1,527 per month in Cape Town vs $1,754 in Finale Emilia, rent included.

Cape Town $1,527
Finale Emilia $1,754

A couple spends around $2,417 per month in Cape Town vs $2,724 in Finale Emilia, rent included.

Cape Town $2,417
Finale Emilia $2,724

A family of three spends $3,306 per month in Cape Town vs $3,695 in Finale Emilia, rent included.

Cape Town $3,306
Finale Emilia $3,695

Cape Town is about 13% cheaper than Finale Emilia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Cape Town and Finale Emilia sit above the global median – Cape Town by 13%, Finale Emilia by 30%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 199

$17.53 €15.69

-31.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 709

$89.1 €79.7

-51.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 102

$12.40 €11.10

-50.40%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 39.16

$2.19 €1.96

8.22%

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

$1.27 R 21.03

$3.24 €2.90

-60.80%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.50

$1.63 €1.46

-42.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.92

$6.09 €5.45

-51.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 61.0

$5.64 €5.05

-34.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.80

$1.82 €1.63

-27.47%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.93

$2.85 €2.55

-57.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.37

$3.09 €2.77

-28.80%

Eggs

$3.10 R 51.3

$4.74 €4.24

-34.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 144

$18.00 €16.10

-51.50%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 114

$12.09 €10.82

-43.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 153

$24.48 €21.90

-62.17%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.17

$3.02 €2.71

-39.40%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 32.22

$2.76 €2.47

-29.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.40

$3.89 €3.48

-57.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 35.30

$4.44 €3.97

-51.80%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 26.09

$2.46 €2.20

-35.77%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.37

$2.45 €2.19

-40.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.25

$1.90 €1.70

-28.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.91

$0.34 €0.30

235.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 59.1

$6.80 €6.08

-47.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 100

$9.53 €8.53

-36.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 23.02

$1.39 €1.25

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 36.01

$2.10 €1.88

3.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 23.09

$1.71 €1.53

-18.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,004

$41.17 €36.84

47.56%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.31

$8.54 €7.65

-89.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.88

$2.00 €1.79

-55.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 82.0

$34.18 €30.59

-85.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.45

$2.03 €1.82

-24.14%

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

$35.4K R 584.6K

$36.6K €32.8K

-3.49%

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

$33.4K R 551.6K

$38.0K €34.0K

-12.16%

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

$117 R 1,935

$191 €171

-38.59%

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

$25.71 R 425

$9.38 €8.39

174.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 651

$30.72 €27.49

28.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 853

$54.1 €48.43

-4.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 188

$24.21 €21.66

-53.12%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 147

$12.28 €10.98

-27.61%

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

$308 R 5,085

$582 €520

-47.10%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 134.6K

$9,883 €8,843

-17.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 948

$96.3 €86.1

-40.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 525

$37.13 €33.22

-14.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,917

$111 €99.5

4.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,665

$104 €92.7

-2.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.3K

$738 €660

41.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.1K

$566 €507

18.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.8K

$1,134 €1,015

64.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.3K

$882 €789

59.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.8K

$2,884 €2,581

-16.44%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.9K

$2,014 €1,802

-22.08%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.9K

$2,098 €1,877

-22.31%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

3.37

223.15%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Finale Emilia: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Finale Emilia

$566 32.3% 15.4% $103

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Finale Emilia

$390 22.2% 74.6% $166

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Finale Emilia

$231 13.2% 26.6% $49

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Finale Emilia

$265 15.1% 52.3% $91

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Finale Emilia

$157 8.9% 13.9% $19

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Finale Emilia

$67 3.8% 7.2% $5.2

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Finale Emilia

$79 4.5% 13.4% $9.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,047 in Cape Town versus $738 in Finale Emilia. 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 Finale Emilia. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Cape Town versus $89 in Finale Emilia. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $223 vs $390 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇮🇹 Finale Emilia

🕒 Local time

23:56 11:56 PM

22:56 10:56 PM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

15,699

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.05 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD 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 = 16.53 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.05 USD). 1 EUR = 18.47 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.895 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Finale Emilia 8,790 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Finale Emilia

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 Finale Emilia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Finale Emilia costs about 15% 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 $2,630 in Finale Emilia. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Finale Emilia, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $738 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,527 in Cape Town and $1,754 in Finale Emilia. That makes Cape Town about 13% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 32% less in Finale Emilia. 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 $1,754 in Finale Emilia. 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 $1,754 in Finale Emilia. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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