Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Luanda

For one person, living is cheaper in Luanda: $1,002 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $6,800 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
48

Cost of Living Index in Luanda
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Luanda Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Luanda

🇦🇴 Angola

$1,002

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,568 per month in Cape Town vs $1,002 in Luanda, rent included.

Cape Town $1,568
Luanda $1,002

A couple spends around $2,438 per month in Cape Town vs $1,894 in Luanda, rent included.

Cape Town $2,438
Luanda $1,894

A family of three spends $3,307 per month in Cape Town vs $2,787 in Luanda, rent included.

Cape Town $3,307
Luanda $2,787

Cape Town costs about 57% more than Luanda, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Luanda is 25% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.78 R 194

$5.32 AOA 4,859

121.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.55 R 768

$36.65 AOA 33.5K

27.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.96 R 98.4

$6.69 AOA 6,110

-10.91%

Cappuccino

$2.47 R 40.80

$2.65 AOA 2,417

-6.79%

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

$1.33 R 21.91

$1.35 AOA 1,231

-1.48%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 R 16.99

$1.15 AOA 1,046

-10.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.01 R 49.72

$1.68 AOA 1,533

79.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 R 60.4

$1.63 AOA 1,487

124.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 R 22.96

$1.92 AOA 1,750

-27.60%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 R 19.60

$0.98 AOA 890

21.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.11 R 34.84

$1.62 AOA 1,479

30.25%

Eggs

$3.01 R 49.58

$1.89 AOA 1,729

59.26%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.96 R 148

$9.22 AOA 8,417

-2.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.65 R 110

$3.34 AOA 3,047

99.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.29 R 153

$7.81 AOA 7,130

18.95%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.13

$2.25 AOA 2,056

-18.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 R 31.31

$0.92 AOA 841

106.52%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.75 R 28.83

$2.76 AOA 2,519

-36.59%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.09 R 34.41

$1.82 AOA 1,664

14.84%

Potato (1kg)

$1.55 R 25.64

$1.52 AOA 1,389

1.97%

Onion (1kg)

$1.49 R 24.53

$1.50 AOA 1,366

-0.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$1.68 AOA 1,537

-22.62%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 R 19.19

$0.36 AOA 332

222.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.71 R 61.2

$1.69 AOA 1,539

119.53%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.06 R 100

$6.15 AOA 5,614

-1.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.85

$0.43 AOA 388

223.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 R 36.32

$0.92 AOA 840

139.13%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.51 R 24.98

$0.32 AOA 291

371.87%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.0 R 1,006

$33.30 AOA 30.4K

83.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.63 R 10.33

$1.11 AOA 1,016

-43.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 R 25.29

$0.83 AOA 762

84.34%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.81 R 79.4

$5.38 AOA 4,911

-10.59%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 R 26.08

$0.32 AOA 289

393.75%

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

$35.5K R 585.7K

$14.3K AOA 13.1M

148.06%

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

$31.7K R 523.8K

$22.3K AOA 20.4M

42.14%

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

$116 R 1,920

$101 AOA 92.2K

15.23%

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

$28.37 R 468

$17.81 AOA 16.3K

59.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.69 R 671

$76.8 AOA 70.1K

-47.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.85 R 806

$46.31 AOA 42.3K

5.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.13 R 184

$15.27 AOA 13.9K

-27.11%

Cinema Ticket

$8.83 R 146

$3.65 AOA 3,332

141.92%

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

$261 R 4,314

$750 AOA 684.4K

-65.13%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,702 R 110.6K

$13.6K AOA 12.4M

-50.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.4 R 914

$110 AOA 100.4K

-49.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.27 R 532

$63.6 AOA 58.1K

-49.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 R 1,939

$96.3 AOA 87.9K

22.02%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 R 1,766

$196 AOA 179.0K

-45.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,015 R 16.7K

$382 AOA 348.9K

165.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$715 R 11.8K

$203 AOA 185.2K

252.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,801 R 29.7K

$2,087 AOA 1.9M

-13.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,330 R 22.0K

$1,039 AOA 948.5K

28.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,331 R 38.5K

$12.0K AOA 10.9M

-80.52%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,513 R 25.0K

$868 AOA 792.2K

74.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,636 R 27.0K

$1,374 AOA 1.3M

19.07%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

-47.76%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Last update for Luanda: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$715 45.3%

Luanda

$203 20.3% 71.6% $513

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$222 14.1%

Luanda

$183 18.3% 17.9% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$185 11.7%

Luanda

$196 19.6% 5.5% $10

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11%

Luanda

$116 11.6% 33.2% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$141 8.9%

Luanda

$210 21% 49.3% $69

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.8%

Luanda

$40 4% 47.1% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Luanda

$54 5.4% 19.4% $13

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,015 in Cape Town versus $382 in Luanda. 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 19% 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 $37.00 in Luanda. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $222 vs $183 – making Luanda the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇦🇴 Luanda

🕒 Local time

11:04 11:04 AM

10:04 10:04 AM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

2,600,000 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Angolan Kwanza AOA Kz

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

10,000 AOA = 10.96 USD

10,000 AOA = 9.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AOA, 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 = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Angolan Kwanza exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 913 AOA (1,000 AOA = 1.1 USD). 1 EUR = 1,024 AOA (10,000 AOA = 9.77 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Luanda 2,840 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Luanda

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 Luanda: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 57% more than Luanda, 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 $1,503 in Luanda. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Luanda, 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 $1,002 in Luanda. That's a gap of about 57%.

Public transport costs about 83% less in Luanda. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Luanda, where all-in costs run around $1,002, than in Cape Town at $1,568. In Luanda 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. Luanda costs $1,002 versus $1,568 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 Luanda. 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.