Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Kutaisi

For one person, living is cheaper in Kutaisi: $886 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $8,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
43

Cost of Living Index in Kutaisi
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Kutaisi Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Kutaisi

🇬🇪 Georgia

$886

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,568 per month in Cape Town vs $886 in Kutaisi, rent included.

Cape Town $1,568
Kutaisi $886

A couple spends around $2,438 per month in Cape Town vs $1,318 in Kutaisi, rent included.

Cape Town $2,438
Kutaisi $1,318

A family of three spends $3,307 per month in Cape Town vs $1,750 in Kutaisi, rent included.

Cape Town $3,307
Kutaisi $1,750

Cape Town costs about 77% more than Kutaisi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Kutaisi is 34% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.78 R 195

$9.85 ₾25.53

19.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.55 R 772

$31.26 ₾81.0

48.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.96 R 98.9

$10.59 ₾27.44

-43.72%

Cappuccino

$2.47 R 41.01

$2.06 ₾5.33

19.90%

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

$1.33 R 22.03

$0.74 ₾1.92

79.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 R 17.08

$0.55 ₾1.42

87.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.01 R 49.98

$1.21 ₾3.15

148.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 R 60.8

$1.90 ₾4.92

92.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 R 23.08

$1.75 ₾4.54

-20.57%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 R 19.70

$0.51 ₾1.31

133.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.11 R 35.02

$1.19 ₾3.09

77.31%

Eggs

$3.01 R 49.84

$2.37 ₾6.14

27.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.96 R 149

$6.11 ₾15.84

46.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.65 R 110

$4.80 ₾12.45

38.54%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.29 R 154

$10.54 ₾27.32

-11.86%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.28

$1.21 ₾3.14

51.24%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 R 31.47

$1.60 ₾4.14

18.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.75 R 28.98

$1.54 ₾4.00

13.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.09 R 34.59

$1.72 ₾4.47

21.51%

Potato (1kg)

$1.55 R 25.78

$0.71 ₾1.83

118.31%

Onion (1kg)

$1.49 R 24.65

$0.65 ₾1.69

129.23%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.53

$1.22 ₾3.15

6.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 R 19.29

$0.63 ₾1.63

84.13%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.71 R 61.5

$3.06 ₾7.94

21.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.06 R 101

$3.77 ₾9.76

60.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.97

$1.57 ₾4.06

-11.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 R 36.51

$2.59 ₾6.72

-15.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.51 R 25.11

$0.33 ₾0.87

357.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.0 R 1,011

$7.73 ₾20.04

688.62%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.63 R 10.38

$0.75 ₾1.94

-16.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 R 25.42

$0.74 ₾1.93

106.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.81 R 79.8

$5.63 ₾14.59

-14.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 R 26.22

$1.27 ₾3.30

24.41%

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

$35.5K R 588.7K

$23.1K ₾59.9K

53.58%

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

$31.7K R 526.6K

$22.3K ₾57.8K

42.44%

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

$116 R 1,930

$77.5 ₾201

50.11%

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

$28.37 R 471

$8.75 ₾22.67

224.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.69 R 675

$15.25 ₾39.52

166.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.85 R 810

$41.90 ₾109

16.59%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.13 R 185

$8.49 ₾22.00

31.10%

Cinema Ticket

$8.83 R 146

$4.77 ₾12.36

85.12%

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

$261 R 4,336

$132 ₾342

98.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,702 R 111.2K

$2,675 ₾6,934

150.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.4 R 919

$57.6 ₾149

-3.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.27 R 535

$39.87 ₾103

-19.06%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 R 1,949

$96.2 ₾249

22.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 R 1,775

$86.5 ₾224

23.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,015 R 16.8K

$362 ₾939

180.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$715 R 11.9K

$262 ₾679

173.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,801 R 29.9K

$517 ₾1,340

248.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,330 R 22.1K

$343 ₾889

288.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,331 R 38.7K

$1,069 ₾2,772

117.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,513 R 25.1K

$669 ₾1,735

126.04%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,636 R 27.1K

$474 ₾1,229

245.04%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

15.67

-29.99%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Last update for Kutaisi: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$715 45.3%

Kutaisi

$262 29.7% 63.4% $454

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$222 14.1%

Kutaisi

$178 20.1% 20.2% $45

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$185 11.7%

Kutaisi

$102 11.5% 45.3% $84

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11%

Kutaisi

$150 17% 13.5% $23

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$141 8.9%

Kutaisi

$126 14.3% 10.3% $14

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.8%

Kutaisi

$14 1.5% 82% $62

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Kutaisi

$51 5.8% 22.7% $15

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,015 in Cape Town versus $362 in Kutaisi. 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 245% 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 $31.00 in Kutaisi. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $222 vs $178 – making Kutaisi the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇬🇪 Kutaisi

🕒 Local time

05:51 5:51 AM

07:51 7:51 AM

2 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

130,411

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Georgian Lari GEL ₾

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.03 USD

100 ZAR = 5.38 EUR

1 GEL = 0.386 USD

1 GEL = 0.344 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GEL, 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 = 16.59 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.03 USD). 1 EUR = 18.6 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.38 EUR).

Georgian Lari exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 2.59 GEL (1 GEL = 0.386 USD). 1 EUR = 2.91 GEL (1 GEL = 0.344 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Kutaisi 8,830 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Kutaisi

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 Kutaisi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 77% more than Kutaisi, 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 $1,329 in Kutaisi. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Kutaisi, 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 $886 in Kutaisi. That's a gap of about 77%.

Public transport costs about 689% less in Kutaisi. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Kutaisi, where all-in costs run around $886, than in Cape Town at $1,568. In Kutaisi 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. Kutaisi costs $886 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 Kutaisi. 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.