Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

For one person, living is cheaper in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos: $953 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $7,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cape Town outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
Learn more

Cape Town Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos
Learn more

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos Living Index

Jump to prices

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

🇴🇲 Oman

$953

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cape Town and in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

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 Madinat As Sultan Qaboos actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,586 per month in Cape Town vs $953 in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos, rent included.

Cape Town $1,586
Madinat As Sultan Qaboos $953

A couple spends around $2,425 per month in Cape Town vs $1,433 in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos, rent included.

Cape Town $2,425
Madinat As Sultan Qaboos $1,433

A family of three spends $3,263 per month in Cape Town vs $1,914 in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos, rent included.

Cape Town $3,263
Madinat As Sultan Qaboos $1,914

Cape Town costs about 66% more than Madinat As Sultan Qaboos, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Madinat As Sultan Qaboos is 29% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$5.29 OMR 2.04

129.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$39.70 OMR 15.29

14.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$7.76 OMR 2.99

-24.23%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$4.94 OMR 1.90

-49.39%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$0.84 OMR 0.32

51.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$0.29 OMR 0.11

237.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 R 49.33

$12.92 OMR 4.97

-76.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 R 61.4

$12.93 OMR 4.98

-71.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.40

$2.31 OMR 0.89

-43.72%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$1.20 OMR 0.46

4.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$1.82 OMR 0.70

22.53%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$3.03 OMR 1.17

2.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$7.11 OMR 2.74

27.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$7.00 OMR 2.70

-1.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$10.58 OMR 4.07

-12.10%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$3.59 OMR 1.38

-48.75%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$2.03 OMR 0.78

-3.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$2.34 OMR 0.90

-28.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$1.31 OMR 0.50

65.65%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$1.16 OMR 0.45

35.34%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$1.28 OMR 0.49

15.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$1.85 OMR 0.71

-29.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$0.71 OMR 0.27

59.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$6.65 OMR 2.56

-45.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.15 R 101

$15.76 OMR 6.07

-60.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.66

$6.08 OMR 2.34

-77.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 R 35.20

$10.22 OMR 3.93

-79.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R 24.65

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.59 R 9.71

$3.32 OMR 1.28

-82.23%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

$2.56 OMR 0.98

-41.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

$7.74 OMR 2.98

-33.98%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.50

$0.64 OMR 0.25

142.19%

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

$36.2K R 596.5K

$25.3K OMR 9,736

43.17%

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

$22.3K OMR 8,570

40.38%

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

$114 R 1,883

$176 OMR 67.9

-35.16%

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

$28.91 R 476

$31.16 OMR 12.00

-7.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$71.5 OMR 27.51

-44.41%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$10.43 OMR 4.01

-12.27%

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

$259 R 4,264

$292 OMR 112

-11.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

$10.5K OMR 4,033

-35.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

$55.4 OMR 21.33

1.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

$43.86 OMR 16.89

-26.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

$88.6 OMR 34.12

36.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

$88.4 OMR 34.02

22.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

5.25

108.95%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Last update for Madinat As Sultan Qaboos: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

$293 30.7% 30.3% $68

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

$279 29.3% 52.5% $96

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

$220 23.1% 24.8% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

$124 13% 12.9% $18

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

$16 * 1.7% 78.5% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

$21 * 2.2% 69% $46

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $45.00 in Cape Town versus $40.00 in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos. Groceries tell a different story – $225 in Cape Town vs $293 in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos – so Cape Town wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇴🇲 Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

🕒 Local time

07:25 7:25 AM

09:25 9:25 AM

2 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Omani Rial OMR ر.ع.

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1 OMR = 2.6 USD

1 OMR = 2.31 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

OMR, USD, EUR 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).

Omani Rial exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.385 OMR (1 OMR = 2.6 USD). 1 EUR = 0.433 OMR (1 OMR = 2.31 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Madinat As Sultan Qaboos 7,670 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

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 Madinat As Sultan Qaboos: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 66% more than Madinat As Sultan Qaboos, 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 $2,379 per month in Cape Town and $1,430 in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,586 in Cape Town and $953 in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos. That's a gap of about 66%.

Kindergarten costs $259 per month in Cape Town and $292 in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos. 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 Madinat As Sultan Qaboos, where all-in costs run around $953, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Madinat As Sultan Qaboos 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. Madinat As Sultan Qaboos costs $953 versus $1,586 in Cape Town. 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 Madinat As Sultan Qaboos. 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.