Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,586 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $7,600 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
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,586 per month in Cape Town vs $2,223 in Lisbon, rent included.

Cape Town $1,586
Lisbon $2,223

A couple spends around $2,425 per month in Cape Town vs $3,271 in Lisbon, rent included.

Cape Town $2,425
Lisbon $3,271

A family of three spends $3,263 per month in Cape Town vs $4,319 in Lisbon, rent included.

Cape Town $3,263
Lisbon $4,319

Cape Town is about 29% cheaper than Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Cape Town and Lisbon sit above the global median – Cape Town by 17%, Lisbon by 65%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$16.50 €14.67

-26.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$61.3 €54.5

-25.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$11.27 €10.03

-47.83%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$3.06 €2.72

-18.30%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$2.26 €2.01

-43.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$1.73 €1.54

-43.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 R 49.33

$3.39 €3.02

-11.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 R 61.4

$3.40 €3.02

9.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.40

$1.12 €1.00

16.07%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$1.86 €1.65

-32.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$1.53 €1.36

45.75%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$3.96 €3.53

-21.46%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$12.76 €11.35

-29.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$7.90 €7.02

-12.41%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$16.97 €15.09

-45.20%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$2.27 €2.02

-18.94%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$1.75 €1.55

12.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$1.85 €1.64

-9.73%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$2.57 €2.28

-15.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$1.86 €1.65

-15.59%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$2.02 €1.80

-26.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$1.44 €1.28

-9.72%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$0.82 €0.73

37.80%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$6.56 €5.83

-45.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.15 R 101

$5.62 €5.00

9.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.66

$1.28 €1.14

7.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 R 35.20

$2.07 €1.84

3.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R 24.65

$2.35 €2.09

-36.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$44.18 €39.30

37.51%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.59 R 9.71

$3.99 €3.55

-85.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

$1.09 €0.97

37.61%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

$16.64 €14.81

-69.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.50

$2.28 €2.03

-32.02%

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

$36.2K R 596.5K

$33.7K €30.0K

7.52%

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

$39.3K €35.0K

-20.48%

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

$114 R 1,883

$167 €149

-31.75%

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

$28.91 R 476

$18.80 €16.72

53.78%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$33.09 €29.43

20.07%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

$46.01 €40.93

6.52%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

$19.19 €17.07

-42.73%

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$9.84 €8.75

-7.01%

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

$259 R 4,264

$677 €602

-61.78%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

$16.9K €15.1K

-59.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

$101 €90.1

-44.51%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

$45.76 €40.70

-29.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

$100.0 €88.9

20.61%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

$123 €109

-11.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

$1,614 €1,436

-36.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

$1,197 €1,065

-40.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

$2,862 €2,545

-36.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

$1,990 €1,770

-33.34%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

$7,577 €6,740

-68.44%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.4K

$4,307 €3,831

-64.20%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

$1,588 €1,412

3.21%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

3.85

184.94%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9% 67% $480

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

Lisbon

$269 12.1% 19.8% $44

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

Lisbon

$219 9.9% 19.9% $36

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

Lisbon

$242 10.9% 37.5% $66

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 16.5% $24

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

Lisbon

$63 2.8% 15.8% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Lisbon

$66 3% 2.4% $1.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,021 in Cape Town versus $1,614 in Lisbon. 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 3% higher in Cape Town, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $45.00 in Cape Town versus $61.0 in Lisbon. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $225 vs $269 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

10:32 10:32 AM

09:32 9:32 AM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 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 20, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Lisbon 8,560 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Lisbon

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 Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon costs about 40% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. 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 $3,335 in Lisbon. 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. 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 $2,223 in Lisbon. That's a gap of about 40%.

Public transport costs about 38% less in Cape Town. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Cape Town, where all-in costs run around $1,586, than in Lisbon at $2,223. In Cape Town it covers expenses comfortably, while in Lisbon it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cape Town costs $1,586 versus $2,223 in Lisbon. 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 Cape Town. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Lisbon makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.