Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Ludvika

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $1,594 in Ludvika, rent and utilities included – about $800 less a year. The total is higher in Ludvika despite lower rent and utilities.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
Learn more

Cape Town Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Ludvika
Learn more

Ludvika Living Index

Jump to prices

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Ludvika

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,594

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,527 per month in Cape Town vs $1,594 in Ludvika, rent included.

Cape Town $1,527
Ludvika $1,594

A couple spends around $2,417 per month in Cape Town vs $2,642 in Ludvika, rent included.

Cape Town $2,417
Ludvika $2,642

A family of three spends $3,306 per month in Cape Town vs $3,690 in Ludvika, rent included.

Cape Town $3,306
Ludvika $3,690

Cape Town is about 4% cheaper than Ludvika, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Cape Town and Ludvika sit above the global median – Cape Town by 13%, Ludvika by 18%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 198

$13.78 SEK 135

-12.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 707

$67.3 SEK 661

-36.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 101

$10.30 SEK 101

-40.29%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 39.04

$4.33 SEK 42.49

-45.27%

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

$1.27 R 20.96

$2.72 SEK 26.71

-53.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.46

$2.21 SEK 21.72

-57.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.77

$7.34 SEK 72.1

-59.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 60.8

$7.22 SEK 70.8

-48.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.73

$1.72 SEK 16.87

-23.26%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.87

$2.70 SEK 26.53

-55.19%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.26

$3.91 SEK 38.40

-43.73%

Eggs

$3.10 R 51.1

$5.20 SEK 51.0

-40.38%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 144

$13.87 SEK 136

-37.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 114

$13.48 SEK 132

-48.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 153

$27.88 SEK 274

-66.79%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.08

$3.16 SEK 31.02

-42.09%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 32.12

$3.36 SEK 32.98

-41.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.32

$3.67 SEK 36.03

-54.77%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 35.19

$4.30 SEK 42.16

-50.23%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 26.01

$1.45 SEK 14.25

8.97%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.29

$1.75 SEK 17.18

-16.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.18

$2.36 SEK 23.12

-42.80%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.85

$1.48 SEK 14.49

-22.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 59.0

$8.49 SEK 83.3

-57.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 99.7

$10.36 SEK 102

-41.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.95

$1.92 SEK 18.86

-27.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.90

$2.27 SEK 22.27

-3.96%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 23.02

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.26

$13.09 SEK 128

-92.90%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.83

$2.03 SEK 19.92

-55.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 81.7

$80.3 SEK 788

-93.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.37

$1.71 SEK 16.82

-9.94%

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

$35.4K R 582.8K

$33.5K SEK 329.2K

5.41%

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

$33.4K R 549.9K

$34.3K SEK 336.9K

-2.82%

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

$117 R 1,929

$102 SEK 1,002

14.66%

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

$25.71 R 424

$20.34 SEK 200

26.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 649

$48.51 SEK 476

-18.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 850

$30.47 SEK 299

69.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 187

$52.0 SEK 510

-78.16%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$17.54 SEK 172

-49.32%

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

$308 R 5,069

$207 SEK 2,033

48.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 134.2K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 946

$102 SEK 1,002

-43.83%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 523

$53.8 SEK 528

-41.01%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,911

$99.5 SEK 976

16.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,660

$219 SEK 2,149

-54.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.2K

$469 SEK 4,601

123.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.0K

$441 SEK 4,328

51.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.7K

$963 SEK 9,446

93.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.2K

$957 SEK 9,393

47.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.9K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.9K

$3,810 SEK 37.4K

-57.22%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

2.8

288.93%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Ludvika: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Ludvika

$441 27.7% 34.1% $228

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Ludvika

$415 26.1% 86.1% $192

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Ludvika

$171 10.7% 6.2% $11

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Ludvika

$264 16.6% 51.7% $90

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Ludvika

$214 13.4% 55.2% $76

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Ludvika

$23 * 1.5% 67.6% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Ludvika

$66 4.1% 5.5% $3.8

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,047 in Cape Town versus $469 in Ludvika. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Ludvika are about 2.3 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Cape Town versus $67 in Ludvika. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $223 vs $415 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇸🇪 Ludvika

🕒 Local time

18:00 6:00 PM

17:00 5:00 PM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

26,343

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

100 SEK = 10.19 USD

100 SEK = 9.08 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SEK, USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.51 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 9.81 SEK (1 SEK = 0.102 USD). 1 EUR = 11.02 SEK (100 SEK = 9.08 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Ludvika 10,470 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Ludvika

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 Ludvika: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ludvika costs about 4% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,291 per month in Cape Town and $2,391 in Ludvika. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Ludvika, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $469 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,527 in Cape Town and $1,594 in Ludvika. That makes Cape Town about 4% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $308 per month in Cape Town and $207 in Ludvika. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,527 in Cape Town and $1,594 in Ludvika. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Cape Town has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,527 in Cape Town to $1,594 in Ludvika. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Cape Town. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Ludvika makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.