Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Lyon

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $2,022 in Lyon, rent and utilities included – about $5,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
97

Cost of Living Index in Lyon
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Lyon Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Lyon

🇫🇷 France

$2,022

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,527 per month in Cape Town vs $2,022 in Lyon, rent included.

Cape Town $1,527
Lyon $2,022

A couple spends around $2,417 per month in Cape Town vs $3,156 in Lyon, rent included.

Cape Town $2,417
Lyon $3,156

A family of three spends $3,306 per month in Cape Town vs $4,290 in Lyon, rent included.

Cape Town $3,306
Lyon $4,290

Cape Town is about 24% cheaper than Lyon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Cape Town and Lyon sit above the global median – Cape Town by 13%, Lyon by 50%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 198

$17.07 €15.20

-29.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 707

$68.0 €60.5

-36.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 101

$13.52 €12.04

-54.51%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 39.04

$4.00 €3.56

-40.75%

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

$1.27 R 20.96

$2.74 €2.44

-53.65%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.46

$1.73 €1.54

-45.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.77

$7.76 €6.91

-61.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 60.8

$6.18 €5.51

-40.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.73

$1.51 €1.35

-12.58%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.87

$1.71 €1.52

-29.24%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.26

$2.60 €2.31

-15.38%

Eggs

$3.10 R 51.1

$4.60 €4.10

-32.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 144

$22.55 €20.08

-61.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 114

$12.44 €11.08

-44.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 153

$23.01 €20.49

-59.76%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.08

$2.40 €2.14

-23.75%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 32.12

$2.49 €2.22

-21.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.32

$3.52 €3.14

-52.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 35.19

$3.03 €2.70

-29.37%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 26.01

$2.46 €2.19

-35.77%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.29

$2.95 €2.63

-50.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.18

$1.30 €1.16

3.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.85

$1.12 €1.00

1.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 59.0

$13.81 €12.30

-74.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 99.7

$7.84 €6.98

-22.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.95

$2.73 €2.43

-49.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.90

$3.34 €2.98

-34.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 23.02

$2.30 €2.05

-39.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$81.7 €72.8

-25.64%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.26

$3.37 €3.00

-72.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.83

$2.26 €2.01

-60.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 81.7

$46.12 €41.07

-89.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.37

$2.28 €2.03

-32.46%

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

$35.4K R 582.8K

$34.9K €31.1K

1.35%

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

$33.4K R 549.9K

$37.5K €33.4K

-11.03%

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

$117 R 1,929

$263 €234

-55.49%

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

$25.71 R 424

$14.04 €12.50

83.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 649

$29.06 €25.87

35.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 850

$37.96 €33.80

35.96%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 187

$28.03 €24.95

-59.51%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$14.92 €13.28

-40.42%

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

$308 R 5,069

$629 €560

-51.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 134.2K

$12.3K €11.0K

-33.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 946

$108 €96.4

-46.99%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 523

$43.76 €38.96

-27.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,911

$121 €108

-3.96%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,660

$128 €114

-21.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.2K

$922 €821

13.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.0K

$684 €609

-2.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.7K

$1,910 €1,701

-2.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.2K

$1,358 €1,209

3.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.7K

$6,450 €5,743

-62.63%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.9K

$4,230 €3,766

-62.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.9K

$3,268 €2,910

-50.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

3.68

195.92%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Lyon: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Lyon

$684 33.8% 2.2% $15

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Lyon

$384 19% 72.1% $161

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Lyon

$306 15.1% 68% $124

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Lyon

$294 14.6% 69.1% $120

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Lyon

$180 8.9% 31% $43

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Lyon

$106 5.2% 47.1% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Lyon

$68 3.4% 2.3% $1.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,047 in Cape Town versus $922 in Lyon. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Lyon are about 2 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Cape Town versus $68 in Lyon. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $223 vs $384 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇫🇷 Lyon

🕒 Local time

14:05 2:05 PM

13:05 1:05 PM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

522,250

💱 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 November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.51 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.89 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Lyon 8,970 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Lyon

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 Lyon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lyon costs about 32% 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 $3,033 in Lyon. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Lyon, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $922 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,527 in Cape Town and $2,022 in Lyon. That makes Cape Town about 24% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 26% less in Cape Town. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,527 in Cape Town and $2,022 in Lyon. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cape Town costs $1,527 versus $2,022 in Lyon. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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