Last update: Oct 2026
Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and the Gambia
For one person, living is cheaper in the Gambia: $713 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $10,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.
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Cape Town Living Index76Cost of Living Index in Cape TownLearn more -
Gambia Living Index34Cost of Living Index in the GambiaLearn more
😐 Solo nomad: Cape Town is 38.6% more expensive than the Gambia without rent, and 120% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Cape Town is 29.6% more expensive than the Gambia without rent, and 93.1% more expensive with rent.
🍽 Eating Out
Cape Town
Gambia
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.78 R 194
$6.79 GMD 489
73.49%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$46.55 R 768
$75.4 GMD 5,432
-38.30%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.96 R 98.4
$7.66 GMD 551
-22.19%
Cappuccino
$2.47 R 40.80
$3.33 GMD 240
-25.83%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.33 R 21.91
$2.19 GMD 158
-39.27%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.03 R 16.99
$1.36 GMD 97.9
-24.26%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.01 R 49.72
$5.49 GMD 395
-45.17%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.66 R 60.4
$4.37 GMD 315
-16.25%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Cape Town
Gambia
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.39 R 22.96
$1.40 GMD 101
-0.71%
White Bread (500g)
$1.19 R 19.60
$0.73 GMD 52.9
63.01%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.11 R 34.84
$1.14 GMD 82.1
85.09%
Eggs
$3.01 R 49.58
$2.06 GMD 148
46.12%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.96 R 148
$5.90 GMD 425
51.86%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.65 R 110
$8.59 GMD 618
-22.58%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$9.29 R 153
$5.47 GMD 394
69.84%
Apples (1kg)
$1.83 R 30.13
$2.09 GMD 151
-12.44%
Banana (1kg)
$1.90 R 31.31
$1.57 GMD 113
21.02%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.75 R 28.83
$2.09 GMD 150
-16.27%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.09 R 34.41
$1.84 GMD 133
13.59%
Potato (1kg)
$1.55 R 25.64
$1.02 GMD 73.2
51.96%
Onion (1kg)
$1.49 R 24.53
$0.99 GMD 71.1
50.51%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.30 R 21.41
$0.28 GMD 20.29
364.29%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.16 R 19.19
$0.38 GMD 27.15
205.26%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.71 R 61.2
$1.67 GMD 120
122.16%
Wine (Bottle)
$6.06 R 100
$6.57 GMD 473
-7.76%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.39 R 22.85
$1.59 GMD 115
-12.58%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.20 R 36.32
$1.60 GMD 115
37.50%
🚌 Getting Around
Cape Town
Gambia
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.51 R 24.98
$0.36 GMD 25.63
319.44%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$61.0 R 1,006
$6.74 GMD 485
804.45%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.63 R 10.33
-
-
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.53 R 25.29
$0.66 GMD 47.52
131.82%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$4.81 R 79.4
$4.14 GMD 298
16.18%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.58 R 26.08
$1.09 GMD 78.2
44.95%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$35.5K R 585.7K
$2,674 GMD 192.5K
1227.70%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$31.7K R 523.8K
$3,218 GMD 231.7K
886.59%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cape Town
Gambia
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$116 R 1,920
$30.17 GMD 2,172
285.75%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$28.37 R 468
$14.35 GMD 1,033
97.70%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$40.69 R 671
$51.8 GMD 3,726
-21.37%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Cape Town
Gambia
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$48.85 R 806
$23.20 GMD 1,670
110.56%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$11.13 R 184
$13.75 GMD 990
-19.05%
Cinema Ticket
$8.83 R 146
$3.33 GMD 239
165.17%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Cape Town
Gambia
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$261 R 4,314
$6.60 GMD 475
3861.36%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$6,702 R 110.6K
$136 GMD 9,815
4816.49%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Cape Town
Gambia
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$55.4 R 914
$56.1 GMD 4,038
-1.23%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$32.27 R 532
$44.23 GMD 3,185
-27.04%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$118 R 1,939
$100 GMD 7,204
17.44%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$107 R 1,766
$88.2 GMD 6,348
21.43%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Cape Town
Gambia
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,015 R 16.7K
$104 GMD 7,488
875.90%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$715 R 11.8K
$82.2 GMD 5,919
770.20%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,801 R 29.7K
$212 GMD 15.3K
748.60%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,330 R 22.0K
$101 GMD 7,261
1219.40%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,331 R 38.5K
$1,468 GMD 105.7K
58.72%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,513 R 25.0K
$1,153 GMD 83.0K
31.22%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Cape Town
Gambia
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,636 R 27.0K
$61.5 GMD 4,430
2559.46%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
10.97
15
-26.87%
CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.
Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026
Last update for the Gambia: October 3, 2026
Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Share of the monthly basket for a family of three, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Cape Town $715 45.3%
Gambia $82 11.7% 88.5% $633
Groceries & Markets
Cape Town $222 14.1%
Gambia $184 26.2% 17.5% $39
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cape Town $185 11.7%
Gambia $96 13.7% 48.1% $89
Eating Out
Cape Town $174 11%
Gambia $168 23.9% 3.4% $6
Clothing & Footwear
Cape Town $141 8.9%
Gambia $130 18.5% 7.6% $11
Getting Around
Cape Town $75 4.8%
Gambia $11 * 1.6% 84.8% $64
Sport & Entertainment
Cape Town $67 4.2%
Gambia $30 4.3% 55.1% $37
Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.
Accommodation & Living
Cape Town $1.3K 40.8%
Gambia $101 5.9% 92.4% $1.2K
Groceries & Markets
Cape Town $516 15.9%
Gambia $427 24.8% 17.3% $89
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cape Town $214 6.6%
Gambia $111 6.4% 48.3% $103
Eating Out
Cape Town $587 18%
Gambia $700 40.6% 19.3% $113
Clothing & Footwear
Cape Town $312 9.6%
Gambia $289 16.7% 7.6% $24
Getting Around
Cape Town $154 4.7%
Gambia $24 * 1.4% 84.6% $130
Sport & Entertainment
Cape Town $144 4.4%
Gambia $73 4.3% 49% $71
Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.
Good to know
🇿🇦 Cape Town
🇬🇲 Gambia
Weather
Population
3,740,026 Capital
2,639,916
Exchange rates and currency converter
On the map
Lowest
Highest
Between locations
- Cape Town Gambia 6,440 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight
From you
- Cape Town
- Gambia
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 other spots: cost of living compared
Cape Town
🇿🇦 South Africa
$1,568
/mo nomad
Johannesburg
🇿🇦 South Africa
$1,406
/mo nomad
Cape Town
🇿🇦 South Africa
$1,568
/mo nomad
Lisbon
🇵🇹 Portugal
$2,203
/mo nomad
Cape Town
🇿🇦 South Africa
$1,568
/mo nomad
Antalya
🇹🇷 Turkey
$1,256
/mo nomad
Cape Town
🇿🇦 South Africa
$1,568
/mo nomad
Denpasar, Bali
🇮🇩 Indonesia
$896
/mo nomad
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