Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Hurghada

For one person, living is cheaper in Hurghada: $473 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $13,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
Learn more

Cape Town Living Index
23

Cost of Living Index in Hurghada
Learn more

Hurghada Living Index

Jump to prices

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Hurghada

🇪🇬 Egypt

$473

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,568 per month in Cape Town vs $473 in Hurghada, rent included.

Cape Town $1,568
Hurghada $473

A couple spends around $2,438 per month in Cape Town vs $963 in Hurghada, rent included.

Cape Town $2,438
Hurghada $963

A family of three spends $3,307 per month in Cape Town vs $1,453 in Hurghada, rent included.

Cape Town $3,307
Hurghada $1,453

Cape Town costs about 232% more than Hurghada, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Hurghada is 65% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.78 R 194

$3.88 E£203

203.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.55 R 768

$39.97 E£2,091

16.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.96 R 98.4

$5.82 E£304

2.41%

Cappuccino

$2.47 R 40.80

$1.94 E£102

27.32%

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

$1.33 R 21.91

$0.48 E£25.05

177.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 R 16.99

$0.20 E£10.35

415.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.01 R 49.72

$1.92 E£101

56.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 R 60.4

$3.12 E£163

17.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 R 22.96

$0.94 E£49.30

47.87%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 R 19.60

$0.78 E£40.66

52.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.11 R 34.84

$0.60 E£31.59

251.67%

Eggs

$3.01 R 49.58

$1.92 E£101

56.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.96 R 148

$3.25 E£170

175.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.65 R 110

$5.87 E£307

13.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.29 R 153

$9.62 E£503

-3.43%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.13

$1.42 E£74.4

28.87%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 R 31.31

$0.48 E£24.94

295.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.75 R 28.83

$0.41 E£21.47

326.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.09 R 34.41

$0.43 E£22.52

386.05%

Potato (1kg)

$1.55 R 25.64

$0.34 E£17.81

355.88%

Onion (1kg)

$1.49 R 24.53

$0.41 E£21.42

263.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$0.27 E£13.97

381.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 R 19.19

$0.18 E£9.52

544.44%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.71 R 61.2

$2.14 E£112

73.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.06 R 100

$7.43 E£389

-18.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.85

$1.21 E£63.3

14.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 R 36.32

$1.74 E£91.2

26.44%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.51 R 24.98

$0.20 E£10.27

655.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.0 R 1,006

$5.72 E£299

965.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.63 R 10.33

$0.98 E£51.4

-35.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 R 25.29

$0.20 E£10.37

665.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.81 R 79.4

$1.93 E£101

149.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 R 26.08

$0.45 E£23.69

251.11%

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

$35.5K R 585.7K

$31.8K E£1.7M

11.69%

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

$31.7K R 523.8K

$22.3K E£1.2M

42.12%

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

$116 R 1,920

$24.80 E£1,298

369.27%

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

$28.37 R 468

$7.72 E£404

267.49%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.69 R 671

$9.60 E£502

323.85%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.85 R 806

$27.21 E£1,424

79.53%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.13 R 184

$5.99 E£313

85.81%

Cinema Ticket

$8.83 R 146

$3.36 E£176

162.80%

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

$261 R 4,314

$99.9 E£5,229

161.61%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,702 R 110.6K

$604 E£31.6K

1009.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.4 R 914

$20.13 E£1,053

175.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.27 R 532

$32.96 E£1,724

-2.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 R 1,939

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 R 1,766

$28.43 E£1,487

276.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,015 R 16.7K

$213 E£11.2K

375.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$715 R 11.8K

$119 E£6,245

499.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,801 R 29.7K

$216 E£11.3K

733.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,330 R 22.0K

$555 E£29.0K

139.78%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,331 R 38.5K

$553 E£28.9K

321.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,513 R 25.0K

$602 E£31.5K

151.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,636 R 27.0K

$154 E£8,082

959.10%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Last update for Hurghada: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$715 45.3%

Hurghada

$119 25.4% 83.3% $596

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$222 14.1%

Hurghada

$139 29.5% 37.7% $84

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$185 11.7%

Hurghada

$42 9% 77.3% $143

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11%

Hurghada

$90 19.3% 48% $83

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$141 8.9%

Hurghada

$37 * 7.8% 73.9% $104

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.8%

Hurghada

$8.5 1.8% 88.7% $67

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Hurghada

$34 7.2% 49% $33

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 $213 in Hurghada. 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 959% 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 $40.00 in Hurghada. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $222 vs $139 – making Hurghada the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇪🇬 Hurghada

🕒 Local time

13:18 1:18 PM

14:18 2:18 PM

1 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

160,901

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

100 EGP = 1.91 USD

100 EGP = 1.71 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, 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).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 52.32 EGP (100 EGP = 1.91 USD). 1 EUR = 58.63 EGP (100 EGP = 1.71 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Hurghada 6,990 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Hurghada

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 Hurghada: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 232% more than Hurghada, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from clothing. 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 $709 in Hurghada. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Hurghada, 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 $473 in Hurghada. That's a gap of about 232%.

Public transport costs about 966% less in Hurghada. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Hurghada, where all-in costs run around $473, than in Cape Town at $1,568. In Hurghada 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. Hurghada costs $473 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 Hurghada. 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.