Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Kimberley

For one person, living is cheaper in Kimberley: $1,128 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $5,500 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
55

Cost of Living Index in Kimberley
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Kimberley Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Kimberley

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,128

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,586 per month in Cape Town vs $1,128 in Kimberley, rent included.

Cape Town $1,586
Kimberley $1,128

A couple spends around $2,425 per month in Cape Town vs $1,905 in Kimberley, rent included.

Cape Town $2,425
Kimberley $1,905

A family of three spends $3,263 per month in Cape Town vs $2,683 in Kimberley, rent included.

Cape Town $3,263
Kimberley $2,683

Cape Town costs about 41% more than Kimberley, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Kimberley is 16% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$12.22 R 201

-0.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$36.40 R 600

24.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$5.91 R 97.3

-0.51%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$3.02 R 49.76

-17.22%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$1.32 R 21.67

-3.79%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$1.27 R 20.96

-22.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 R 49.33

$2.78 R 45.76

7.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 R 61.4

$2.76 R 45.40

34.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.40

$1.52 R 25.08

-14.47%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$1.16 R 19.09

7.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$3.01 R 49.58

-25.91%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$2.88 R 47.44

7.99%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$6.60 R 109

37.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$5.84 R 96.2

18.49%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$8.62 R 142

7.89%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$2.24 R 36.86

-17.86%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$2.46 R 40.59

-20.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$1.76 R 29.02

-5.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$3.33 R 54.9

-34.83%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$1.47 R 24.20

6.80%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$1.42 R 23.42

4.23%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$1.34 R 22.03

-2.99%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$0.86 R 14.25

31.40%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$3.09 R 50.9

16.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.15 R 101

$6.51 R 107

-5.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.66

$2.21 R 36.48

-37.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 R 35.20

$2.79 R 45.98

-23.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R 24.65

$1.52 R 24.97

-1.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$33.35 R 549

82.16%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.59 R 9.71

$0.58 R 9.57

1.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

$0.88 R 14.57

70.45%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

$11.59 R 191

-55.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.50

$1.39 R 22.88

11.51%

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

$36.2K R 596.5K

$35.2K R 579.7K

2.91%

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

$31.7K R 522.0K

-1.37%

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

$114 R 1,883

$105 R 1,734

8.63%

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

$28.91 R 476

$34.81 R 573

-16.95%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$42.50 R 700

-6.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

$22.96 R 378

113.46%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

$10.87 R 179

1.10%

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$7.27 R 120

25.86%

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

$259 R 4,264

$242 R 3,985

7.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

$5,516 R 90.9K

23.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

$52.9 R 871

6.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

$33.01 R 544

-1.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

$98.7 R 1,626

22.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

$87.3 R 1,438

23.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

$266 R 4,378

284.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

$332 R 5,472

115.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

$640 R 10.5K

185.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

$940 R 15.5K

41.11%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

$888 R 14.6K

169.41%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.4K

$649 R 10.7K

137.53%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

$935 R 15.4K

75.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

10.94

0.27%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Last update for Kimberley: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Kimberley

$332 29.5% 53.7% $385

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

Kimberley

$228 20.2% 1.2% $2.6

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

Kimberley

$183 16.2% 0.2% $0.4

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

Kimberley

$181 16.1% 3% $5.3

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Kimberley

$122 10.9% 14.3% $20

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

Kimberley

$44 3.9% 40.6% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Kimberley

$38 3.3% 44.3% $30

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,021 in Cape Town versus $266 in Kimberley. 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 75% 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 $45.00 in Cape Town versus $36.00 in Kimberley. Groceries tell a different story – $225 in Cape Town vs $228 in Kimberley – so Cape Town wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇿🇦 Kimberley

🕒 Local time

10:41 10:41 AM

Same time as Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

225,160

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Kimberley 830 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Kimberley

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 Kimberley: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 41% more than Kimberley, 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 $2,379 per month in Cape Town and $1,692 in Kimberley. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Kimberley, 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 $1,586 in Cape Town and $1,128 in Kimberley. That's a gap of about 41%.

Public transport costs about 82% less in Kimberley. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Kimberley, where all-in costs run around $1,128, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Kimberley 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. Kimberley costs $1,128 versus $1,586 in Cape Town. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Kimberley. 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.