Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Maceio - Alagoas

For one person, living is cheaper in Maceio - Alagoas: $780 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $9,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
37

Cost of Living Index in Maceio - Alagoas
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Maceio - Alagoas Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Maceio - Alagoas

🇧🇷 Brazil

$780

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cape Town and in Maceio - Alagoas

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 Maceio - Alagoas actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,527 per month in Cape Town vs $780 in Maceio - Alagoas, rent included.

Cape Town $1,527
Maceio - Alagoas $780

A couple spends around $2,417 per month in Cape Town vs $1,227 in Maceio - Alagoas, rent included.

Cape Town $2,417
Maceio - Alagoas $1,227

A family of three spends $3,306 per month in Cape Town vs $1,674 in Maceio - Alagoas, rent included.

Cape Town $3,306
Maceio - Alagoas $1,674

Cape Town costs about 96% more than Maceio - Alagoas, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Cape Town sits 13% above the global median, while Maceio - Alagoas is 42% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 198

$5.45 R$29.93

120.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 707

$27.72 R$152

54.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 101

$5.37 R$29.49

14.53%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 39.04

$1.65 R$9.05

43.64%

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

$1.27 R 20.96

$1.03 R$5.66

23.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.46

$0.45 R$2.46

108.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.77

$1.45 R$7.93

104.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 60.8

$3.84 R$21.09

-3.91%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.73

$1.00 R$5.51

32.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.87

$1.88 R$10.31

-35.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.26

$0.95 R$5.23

131.58%

Eggs

$3.10 R 51.1

$1.88 R$10.33

64.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 144

$8.30 R$45.55

5.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 114

$4.30 R$23.59

60.23%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 153

$7.01 R$38.45

32.10%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.08

$2.66 R$14.57

-31.20%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 32.12

$1.04 R$5.73

87.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.32

$1.30 R$7.16

27.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 35.19

$1.22 R$6.69

75.41%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 26.01

$1.36 R$7.45

16.18%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.29

$1.19 R$6.51

23.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.18

$0.51 R$2.79

164.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.85

$0.70 R$3.86

62.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 59.0

$1.88 R$10.31

90.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 99.7

$6.48 R$35.55

-6.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.95

$1.46 R$8.04

-4.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.90

$1.34 R$7.34

62.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 23.02

$0.76 R$4.16

84.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.26

$0.39 R$2.13

138.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.83

$0.35 R$1.95

157.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 81.7

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.37

$1.12 R$6.17

37.50%

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

$35.4K R 582.8K

$20.1K R$110.3K

76.00%

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

$33.4K R 549.9K

$29.0K R$158.9K

15.25%

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

$117 R 1,929

$74.3 R$408

57.52%

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

$25.71 R 424

$15.37 R$84.3

67.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 649

$16.30 R$89.5

141.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 850

$22.78 R$125

126.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 187

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$5.47 R$30.01

62.52%

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

$308 R 5,069

$206 R$1,129

49.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 134.2K

$6,490 R$35.6K

25.44%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 946

$50.3 R$276

14.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 523

$71.3 R$391

-55.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,911

$87.1 R$478

33.20%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,660

$74.5 R$409

35.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.2K

$270 R$1,484

287.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.0K

$229 R$1,258

191.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.7K

$469 R$2,571

297.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.2K

$441 R$2,418

219.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.7K

$1,431 R$7,854

68.37%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.9K

$654 R$3,587

140.08%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.9K

$562 R$3,081

190.26%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

10.17

7.08%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Maceio - Alagoas: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Maceio - Alagoas

$229 29.4% 65.7% $440

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Maceio - Alagoas

$178 22.9% 20.1% $45

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Maceio - Alagoas

$106 13.6% 41.8% $76

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Maceio - Alagoas

$100 12.9% 42.3% $74

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Maceio - Alagoas

$127 16.3% 7.4% $10

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Maceio - Alagoas

$5.2 * 0.7% 92.8% $67

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Maceio - Alagoas

$34 4.3% 51.4% $36

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 $270 in Maceio - Alagoas. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Cape Town are about 2.9 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Cape Town versus $28 in Maceio - Alagoas. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $223 vs $178 – making Maceio - Alagoas the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇧🇷 Maceio - Alagoas

🕒 Local time

10:24 10:24 AM

05:24 5:24 AM

5 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

1,031,597

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1 BRL = 0.182 USD

1 BRL = 0.162 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, 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).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 5.49 BRL (1 BRL = 0.182 USD). 1 EUR = 6.16 BRL (1 BRL = 0.162 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Maceio - Alagoas 6,120 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Maceio - Alagoas

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 Maceio - Alagoas: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 96% more than Maceio - Alagoas, 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 $2,291 per month in Cape Town and $1,170 in Maceio - Alagoas. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Maceio - Alagoas, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $270 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,527 in Cape Town and $780 in Maceio - Alagoas. That makes Maceio - Alagoas about 49% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $308 per month in Cape Town and $206 in Maceio - Alagoas. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Maceio - Alagoas, where all-in costs run around $780, than in Cape Town at $1,527. In Maceio - Alagoas it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cape Town it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Maceio - Alagoas – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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