Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Hulhumale

For one person, living is cheaper in Hulhumale: $1,450 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $1,400 less a year. The total is higher in Cape Town despite lower rent and utilities.

76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
70

Cost of Living Index in Hulhumale
Learn more

Hulhumale Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Hulhumale

🇲🇻 Maldives

$1,450

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,568 per month in Cape Town vs $1,450 in Hulhumale, rent included.

Cape Town $1,568
Hulhumale $1,450

A couple spends around $2,438 per month in Cape Town vs $2,606 in Hulhumale, rent included.

Cape Town $2,438
Hulhumale $2,606

A family of three spends $3,307 per month in Cape Town vs $3,762 in Hulhumale, rent included.

Cape Town $3,307
Hulhumale $3,762

Cape Town costs about 8% more than Hulhumale, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Cape Town and Hulhumale sit above the global median – Cape Town by 17%, Hulhumale by 8%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.78 R 194

$6.15 MVR 94.9

91.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.55 R 768

$38.70 MVR 597

20.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.96 R 98.4

$9.60 MVR 148

-37.92%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.78 MVR 73.6

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.96 MVR 76.5

Cappuccino

$2.47 R 40.80

$3.56 MVR 54.8

-30.62%

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

$1.33 R 21.91

$1.61 MVR 24.81

-17.39%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 R 16.99

$0.31 MVR 4.83

232.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.01 R 49.72

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 R 60.4

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 R 22.96

$1.60 MVR 24.63

-13.13%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 R 19.60

$1.64 MVR 25.27

-27.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.11 R 34.84

$0.33 MVR 5.11

539.39%

Eggs

$3.01 R 49.58

$1.85 MVR 28.55

62.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.96 R 148

$3.30 MVR 50.8

171.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.65 R 110

$6.17 MVR 95.2

7.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.29 R 153

$9.60 MVR 148

-3.23%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.13

$3.91 MVR 60.3

-53.20%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 R 31.31

$3.08 MVR 47.48

-38.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.75 R 28.83

$2.82 MVR 43.56

-37.94%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.09 R 34.41

$2.71 MVR 41.71

-22.88%

Potato (1kg)

$1.55 R 25.64

$1.22 MVR 18.88

27.05%

Onion (1kg)

$1.49 R 24.53

$1.11 MVR 17.10

34.23%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$2.12 MVR 32.72

-38.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 R 19.19

$0.62 MVR 9.50

87.10%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$12.11 MVR 187

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.67 MVR 41.25

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.01 MVR 30.94

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.71 R 61.2

$12.87 MVR 198

-71.17%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.06 R 100

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.85

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 R 36.32

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.51 R 24.98

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.0 R 1,006

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.63 R 10.33

$1.89 MVR 29.12

-66.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 R 25.29

$1.91 MVR 29.39

-19.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.81 R 79.4

$10.07 MVR 155

-52.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 R 26.08

$0.98 MVR 15.12

61.22%

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

$35.5K R 585.7K

$33.0K MVR 508.2K

7.70%

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

$31.7K R 523.8K

$29.5K MVR 455.6K

7.45%

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

$116 R 1,920

$102 MVR 1,568

14.46%

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

$28.37 R 468

$30.38 MVR 469

-6.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.69 R 671

$72.4 MVR 1,117

-43.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.85 R 806

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.13 R 184

Cinema Ticket

$8.83 R 146

$9.82 MVR 151

-10.08%

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

$261 R 4,314

$186 MVR 2,863

40.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,702 R 110.6K

$3,007 MVR 46.4K

122.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.4 R 914

$38.95 MVR 601

42.23%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.27 R 532

$50.3 MVR 775

-35.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 R 1,939

$86.9 MVR 1,340

35.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 R 1,766

$51.6 MVR 796

107.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,015 R 16.7K

$1,118 MVR 17.2K

-9.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$715 R 11.8K

$786 MVR 12.1K

-9.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,801 R 29.7K

$2,270 MVR 35.0K

-20.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,330 R 22.0K

$2,293 MVR 35.4K

-41.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,331 R 38.5K

$5,453 MVR 84.1K

-57.26%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,513 R 25.0K

$506 MVR 7,802

199.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,636 R 27.0K

$710 MVR 10.9K

130.44%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

-21.64%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Last update for Hulhumale: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$715 45.3%

Hulhumale

$786 54.3% 9.9% $71

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$222 14.1%

Hulhumale

$195 13.5% 12.2% $27

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$185 11.7%

Hulhumale

$204 14.1% 10.3% $19

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11%

Hulhumale

$128 8.9% 26.1% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$141 8.9%

Hulhumale

$102 7.1% 27.1% $38

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.8%

Hulhumale

$11 * 0.8% 84.8% $64

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Hulhumale

$20 * 1.4% 70.5% $47

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,015 in Cape Town versus $1,118 in Hulhumale. 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 130% higher in Cape Town, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47.00 in Cape Town versus $39.00 in Hulhumale. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $222 vs $195 – making Hulhumale the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇲🇻 Hulhumale

🕒 Local time

15:44 3:44 PM

18:44 6:44 PM

3 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

5,000

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Maldivian Rufiyaa MVR Rf

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

100 MVR = 6.49 USD

100 MVR = 5.79 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 16.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.06 USD). 1 EUR = 18.49 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

Maldivian Rufiyaa exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 15.42 MVR (100 MVR = 6.49 USD). 1 EUR = 17.28 MVR (100 MVR = 5.79 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Hulhumale 7,160 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Hulhumale

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 Hulhumale: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 8% more than Hulhumale, 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 $2,352 per month in Cape Town and $2,175 in Hulhumale. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Hulhumale, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,568 in Cape Town and $1,450 in Hulhumale. That's a gap of about 8%.

Kindergarten costs $261 per month in Cape Town and $186 in Hulhumale. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Hulhumale, where all-in costs run around $1,450, than in Cape Town at $1,568. In Hulhumale it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cape Town it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Hulhumale costs $1,450 versus $1,568 in Cape Town. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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