Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Goes

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,599 a month against $2,593 in Goes, rent and utilities included – about $11,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
126

Cost of Living Index in Goes
Learn more

Goes Living Index

Jump to prices

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,599

/mo nomad

Goes

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$2,593

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,599 per month in Cape Town vs $2,593 in Goes, rent included.

Cape Town $1,599
Goes $2,593

A couple spends around $2,460 per month in Cape Town vs $3,733 in Goes, rent included.

Cape Town $2,460
Goes $3,733

A family of three spends $3,320 per month in Cape Town vs $4,873 in Goes, rent included.

Cape Town $3,320
Goes $4,873

Cape Town is about 38% cheaper than Goes, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Cape Town and Goes sit above the global median – Cape Town by 18%, Goes by 91%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.07 R 201

$16.51 €14.72

-26.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.65 R 776

$72.7 €64.8

-35.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.20 R 103

$14.84 €13.23

-58.22%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.50

$4.89 €4.36

-48.88%

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

$1.35 R 22.48

$3.24 €2.89

-58.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.00 R 16.62

$2.81 €2.50

-64.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.06 R 50.8

$6.57 €5.85

-53.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 R 61.1

$5.67 €5.05

-35.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.65

$1.47 €1.31

-11.56%

White Bread (500g)

$1.27 R 21.08

$2.40 €2.14

-47.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.17 R 36.00

$3.71 €3.31

-41.51%

Eggs

$3.09 R 51.4

$5.25 €4.68

-41.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.98 R 149

$15.14 €13.49

-40.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.99 R 116

$14.91 €13.29

-53.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.67 R 161

$15.87 €14.14

-39.07%

Apples (1kg)

$1.87 R 31.06

$2.78 €2.48

-32.73%

Banana (1kg)

$1.93 R 32.00

$2.48 €2.21

-22.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.77 R 29.40

$1.87 €1.66

-5.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 R 36.18

$5.62 €5.01

-61.21%

Potato (1kg)

$1.52 R 25.30

$1.81 €1.61

-16.02%

Onion (1kg)

$1.56 R 25.86

$2.80 €2.50

-44.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.32 R 21.93

$1.28 €1.14

3.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 R 19.15

$0.87 €0.77

32.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.72 R 61.9

$14.06 €12.53

-73.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.01 R 99.9

$6.98 €6.22

-13.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.34 R 22.33

$1.29 €1.15

3.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.13 R 35.43

$2.61 €2.33

-18.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.55 R 25.76

$3.40 €3.03

-54.41%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.3 R 1,019

$88.0 €78.4

-30.34%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.60 R 9.94

$4.07 €3.63

-85.26%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.54 R 25.59

$2.80 €2.50

-45.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.01 R 83.3

$29.59 €26.38

-83.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.60 R 26.57

$2.42 €2.16

-33.88%

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

$35.4K R 588.7K

$42.0K €37.5K

-15.73%

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

$34.7K R 576.1K

$38.6K €34.4K

-10.27%

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

$119 R 1,972

$340 €303

-65.13%

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

$29.42 R 489

$22.78 €20.30

29.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.81 R 662

$61.6 €54.9

-35.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.8 R 844

$40.24 €35.86

26.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.93 R 182

$23.47 €20.92

-53.43%

Cinema Ticket

$8.99 R 149

$14.53 €12.95

-38.13%

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

$261 R 4,342

$2,996 €2,670

-91.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,966 R 115.8K

$5,979 €5,329

16.50%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.1 R 933

$93.8 €83.6

-40.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.26 R 553

$42.63 €37.99

-21.98%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 2,017

$86.7 €77.3

39.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,796

$99.0 €88.2

9.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,028 R 17.1K

$1,415 €1,261

-27.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$720 R 12.0K

$1,172 €1,045

-38.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,835 R 30.5K

$2,429 €2,165

-24.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,360 R 22.6K

$1,880 €1,675

-27.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,407 R 40.0K

$5,254 €4,683

-54.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,504 R 25.0K

$4,444 €3,961

-66.15%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,649 R 27.4K

$3,080 €2,745

-46.46%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

3.95

177.72%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 20, 2026

Last update for Goes: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$720 45%

Goes

$1.2K 45.2% 62.9% $453

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$226 14.2%

Goes

$359 13.8% 58.5% $132

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$188 11.8%

Goes

$425 16.4% 126% $237

Eating Out

Cape Town

$177 11.1%

Goes

$304 11.7% 71.4% $127

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Goes

$145 5.6% 1.1% $1.5

Getting Around

Cape Town

$76 4.7%

Goes

$120 4.6% 57.9% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.3%

Goes

$69 2.7% 0.8% $0.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,028 in Cape Town versus $1,415 in Goes. 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 87% higher in Goes. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47 in Cape Town versus $73 in Goes. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $226 vs $359 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇳🇱 Goes

🕒 Local time

09:03 9:03 AM

08:03 8:03 AM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

27,495

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.02 USD

100 ZAR = 5.36 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 October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 16.62 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.02 USD). 1 EUR = 18.65 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.36 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 0.891 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Goes 9,610 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Goes

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 Goes: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Goes costs about 62% 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 $2,398 per month in Cape Town and $3,890 in Goes. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cape Town, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,028 there versus $1,415 in Goes.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,599 in Cape Town and $2,593 in Goes. That’s a gap of about 62%.

Public transport costs about 30% 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 $1,599 in Cape Town and $2,593 in Goes. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward Cape Town – 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 Cape Town. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Goes makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.