Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Mahdia

For one person, living is cheaper in Mahdia: $557 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $12,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
27

Cost of Living Index in Mahdia
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Mahdia Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Mahdia

🇹🇳 Tunisia

$557

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,586 per month in Cape Town vs $557 in Mahdia, rent included.

Cape Town $1,586
Mahdia $557

A couple spends around $2,425 per month in Cape Town vs $881 in Mahdia, rent included.

Cape Town $2,425
Mahdia $881

A family of three spends $3,263 per month in Cape Town vs $1,206 in Mahdia, rent included.

Cape Town $3,263
Mahdia $1,206

Cape Town costs about 185% more than Mahdia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Mahdia is 59% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$2.48 TND 7.44

389.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$20.01 TND 59.9

126.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$4.84 TND 14.49

21.49%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$0.96 TND 2.89

160.42%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$0.57 TND 1.72

122.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$0.19 TND 0.56

415.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 R 49.33

$1.03 TND 3.07

190.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 R 61.4

$1.51 TND 4.52

146.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.40

$0.43 TND 1.30

202.33%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$0.26 TND 0.78

380.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$1.38 TND 4.13

61.59%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$1.53 TND 4.58

103.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$11.75 TND 35.19

-22.89%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$4.96 TND 14.87

39.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$14.46 TND 43.29

-35.68%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$2.86 TND 8.56

-35.66%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$2.86 TND 8.55

-31.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$1.44 TND 4.32

15.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$0.72 TND 2.15

201.39%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$0.65 TND 1.94

141.54%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$0.34 TND 1.03

335.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$0.43 TND 1.29

202.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$0.31 TND 0.94

264.52%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$3.53 TND 10.56

1.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.15 R 101

$3.35 TND 10.04

83.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.66

$1.63 TND 4.88

-15.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 R 35.20

$1.25 TND 3.75

71.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R 24.65

$0.32 TND 0.95

368.75%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$13.33 TND 39.92

355.74%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.59 R 9.71

$0.31 TND 0.93

90.32%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

$0.26 TND 0.77

476.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.50

$0.88 TND 2.64

76.14%

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

$36.2K R 596.5K

$40.9K TND 122.5K

-11.44%

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

$40.1K TND 120.0K

-22.03%

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

$114 R 1,883

$56.3 TND 169

102.95%

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

$28.91 R 476

$7.15 TND 21.41

304.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$20.10 TND 60.2

97.66%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

$20.52 TND 61.5

138.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

$7.69 TND 23.03

42.91%

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$6.80 TND 20.36

34.56%

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

$259 R 4,264

$109 TND 326

137.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

$985 TND 2,951

589.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

$37.98 TND 114

47.92%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

$32.80 TND 98.2

-1.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

$76.9 TND 230

56.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

$23.51 TND 70.4

359.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

$130 TND 390

683.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

$100 TND 301

614.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

$292 TND 875

523.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

$175 TND 523

659.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

$675 TND 2,022

254.26%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.4K

$201 TND 602

667.35%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

$232 TND 695

606.51%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

10.33

6.20%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Last update for Mahdia: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Mahdia

$100 18% 86% $617

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

Mahdia

$188 33.8% 16.3% $37

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

Mahdia

$84 15% 54.3% $99

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

Mahdia

$57 10.3% 67.6% $119

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Mahdia

$77 13.8% 46.1% $66

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

Mahdia

$16 2.9% 78.3% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Mahdia

$34 6.1% 49.3% $33

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,021 in Cape Town versus $130 in Mahdia. 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 607% 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 $45.00 in Cape Town versus $20.00 in Mahdia. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $225 vs $188 – making Mahdia the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇹🇳 Mahdia

🕒 Local time

18:38 6:38 PM

17:38 5:38 PM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

79,545

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Tunisian Dinar TND د.ت

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1 TND = 0.334 USD

1 TND = 0.297 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Tunisian Dinar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 2.99 TND (1 TND = 0.334 USD). 1 EUR = 3.37 TND (1 TND = 0.297 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Mahdia 7,760 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Mahdia

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 Mahdia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 185% more than Mahdia, 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 $2,379 per month in Cape Town and $835 in Mahdia. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Mahdia, 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 $1,586 in Cape Town and $557 in Mahdia. That's a gap of about 185%.

Public transport costs about 356% less in Mahdia. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Mahdia, where all-in costs run around $557, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Mahdia 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. Mahdia costs $557 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 Mahdia. 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.