Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Mahé

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,568 a month against $1,799 in Mahé, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
Learn more

Cape Town Living Index
91

Cost of Living Index in Mahé
Learn more

Mahé Living Index

Jump to prices

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Mahé

🇸🇨 Seychelles

$1,799

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,568 per month in Cape Town vs $1,799 in Mahé, rent included.

Cape Town $1,568
Mahé $1,799

A couple spends around $2,438 per month in Cape Town vs $2,618 in Mahé, rent included.

Cape Town $2,438
Mahé $2,618

A family of three spends $3,307 per month in Cape Town vs $3,438 in Mahé, rent included.

Cape Town $3,307
Mahé $3,438

Cape Town is about 13% cheaper than Mahé, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Cape Town and Mahé sit above the global median – Cape Town by 17%, Mahé by 34%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.78 R 194

$17.55 SCR 254

-32.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.55 R 768

$108 SCR 1,564

-56.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.96 R 98.4

$5.66 SCR 82.0

5.30%

Cappuccino

$2.47 R 40.80

$6.59 SCR 95.4

-62.52%

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

$1.33 R 21.91

$1.62 SCR 23.47

-17.90%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 R 16.99

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.01 R 49.72

$12.68 SCR 184

-76.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 R 60.4

$9.10 SCR 132

-59.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 R 22.96

$1.58 SCR 22.84

-12.03%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 R 19.60

$1.09 SCR 15.83

9.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.11 R 34.84

$1.84 SCR 26.66

14.67%

Eggs

$3.01 R 49.58

$4.29 SCR 62.1

-29.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.96 R 148

$15.89 SCR 230

-43.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.65 R 110

$8.28 SCR 120

-19.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.29 R 153

$12.96 SCR 188

-28.32%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.13

$2.07 SCR 29.93

-11.59%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 R 31.31

Oranges (1kg)

$1.75 R 28.83

$2.42 SCR 35.04

-27.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.09 R 34.41

$6.59 SCR 95.4

-68.29%

Potato (1kg)

$1.55 R 25.64

$1.06 SCR 15.33

46.23%

Onion (1kg)

$1.49 R 24.53

$1.05 SCR 15.23

41.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$1.09 SCR 15.81

19.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 R 19.19

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.71 R 61.2

$14.50 SCR 210

-74.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.06 R 100

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.85

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 R 36.32

$2.19 SCR 31.75

0.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.51 R 24.98

$0.76 SCR 11.03

98.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.0 R 1,006

$35.50 SCR 514

71.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.63 R 10.33

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 R 25.29

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.81 R 79.4

$14.40 SCR 209

-66.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 R 26.08

$1.48 SCR 21.40

6.76%

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

$35.5K R 585.7K

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

$31.7K R 523.8K

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

$116 R 1,920

$49.22 SCR 713

136.45%

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

$28.37 R 468

$21.81 SCR 316

30.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.69 R 671

$105 SCR 1,523

-61.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.85 R 806

$52.9 SCR 766

-7.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.13 R 184

Cinema Ticket

$8.83 R 146

$6.26 SCR 90.6

41.05%

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

$261 R 4,314

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,702 R 110.6K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.4 R 914

$29.88 SCR 433

85.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.27 R 532

$11.99 SCR 174

169.14%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 R 1,939

$47.18 SCR 683

149.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 R 1,766

$58.8 SCR 851

82.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,015 R 16.7K

$871 SCR 12.6K

16.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$715 R 11.8K

$842 SCR 12.2K

-15.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,801 R 29.7K

$1,772 SCR 25.7K

1.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,330 R 22.0K

$1,058 SCR 15.3K

25.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,331 R 38.5K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,513 R 25.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,636 R 27.0K

$855 SCR 12.4K

91.31%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Last update for Mahé: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$715 45.3%

Mahé

$842 47.9% 17.7% $127

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$222 14.1%

Mahé

$246 * 14% 10.7% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$185 11.7%

Mahé

$176 10% 5% $9.3

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11%

Mahé

$324 * 18.5% 86.9% $151

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$141 8.9%

Mahé

$67 3.8% 52.7% $74

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.8%

Mahé

$39 * 2.2% 48.8% $37

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Mahé

$65 3.7% 1.6% $1.1

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,015 in Cape Town versus $871 in Mahé. 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 91% higher in Cape Town, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47.00 in Cape Town versus $108 in Mahé. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $222 vs $246 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇸🇨 Mahé

🕒 Local time

09:30 9:30 AM

11:30 11:30 AM

2 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

78,539

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Seychellois Rupee SCR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

100 SCR = 6.91 USD

100 SCR = 6.16 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 16.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.06 USD). 1 EUR = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Seychellois Rupee exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 14.48 SCR (100 SCR = 6.91 USD). 1 EUR = 16.24 SCR (100 SCR = 6.16 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Mahé 5,020 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Mahé

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 Mahé: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mahé costs about 15% more than Cape Town, 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 $2,352 per month in Cape Town and $2,698 in Mahé. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cape Town, 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 $1,568 in Cape Town and $1,799 in Mahé. That's a gap of about 15%.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47.00 in Cape Town and $108 in Mahé. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Cape Town, where all-in costs run around $1,568, than in Mahé at $1,799. In Cape Town it covers expenses comfortably, while in Mahé it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cape Town costs $1,568 versus $1,799 in Mahé. 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 Cape Town. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Mahé makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.