Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Malmo

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $2,120 in Malmo, rent and utilities included – about $7,100 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
102

Cost of Living Index in Malmo
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Malmo Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Malmo

🇸🇪 Sweden

$2,120

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,527 per month in Cape Town vs $2,120 in Malmo, rent included.

Cape Town $1,527
Malmo $2,120

A couple spends around $2,417 per month in Cape Town vs $3,205 in Malmo, rent included.

Cape Town $2,417
Malmo $3,205

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

Cape Town $3,306
Malmo $4,290

Cape Town is about 28% cheaper than Malmo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Cape Town and Malmo sit above the global median – Cape Town by 13%, Malmo by 57%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 197

$15.53 SEK 152

-22.67%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 703

$78.4 SEK 766

-45.24%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 101

$12.46 SEK 122

-50.64%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 38.81

$4.94 SEK 48.27

-52.02%

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

$1.27 R 20.84

$3.39 SEK 33.12

-62.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.37

$2.67 SEK 26.06

-64.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.48

$8.77 SEK 85.7

-66.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 60.5

$8.94 SEK 87.4

-58.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.61

$1.71 SEK 16.71

-22.81%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.75

$2.86 SEK 27.97

-57.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.05

$3.51 SEK 34.29

-37.32%

Eggs

$3.10 R 50.8

$3.88 SEK 37.92

-20.10%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 143

$12.92 SEK 126

-32.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 113

$12.47 SEK 122

-44.75%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 152

$21.74 SEK 212

-57.41%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 29.90

$3.09 SEK 30.16

-40.78%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 31.94

$2.66 SEK 26.01

-26.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.16

$3.11 SEK 30.39

-46.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 34.99

$4.49 SEK 43.92

-52.34%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 25.86

$1.63 SEK 15.89

-3.07%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.15

$1.57 SEK 15.30

-6.37%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.05

$2.57 SEK 25.13

-47.47%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.75

$1.22 SEK 11.88

-6.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 58.6

$8.03 SEK 78.5

-55.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 99.2

$11.84 SEK 116

-48.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.82

$2.09 SEK 20.38

-33.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.69

$2.33 SEK 22.75

-6.44%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 22.88

$3.30 SEK 32.23

-57.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 995

$64.7 SEK 632

-6.11%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.18

$6.21 SEK 60.7

-85.02%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.75

$2.45 SEK 23.94

-63.27%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 81.3

$52.0 SEK 508

-90.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.23

$1.77 SEK 17.30

-12.99%

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

$35.4K R 579.4K

$33.5K SEK 327.0K

5.69%

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

$33.4K R 546.7K

$34.2K SEK 334.6K

-2.54%

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

$117 R 1,918

$146 SEK 1,431

-20.03%

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

$25.71 R 421

$22.36 SEK 218

14.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 646

$39.56 SEK 387

-0.38%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 846

$37.65 SEK 368

37.08%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 186

$31.39 SEK 307

-63.84%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$17.02 SEK 166

-47.77%

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

$308 R 5,040

$172 SEK 1,685

78.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 133.4K

$3,146 SEK 30.7K

158.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 940

$104 SEK 1,013

-44.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 520

$45.60 SEK 446

-30.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,900

$115 SEK 1,128

0.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,650

$156 SEK 1,528

-35.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.1K

$1,097 SEK 10.7K

-4.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.0K

$868 SEK 8,481

-22.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.5K

$1,800 SEK 17.6K

3.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.1K

$1,387 SEK 13.6K

1.48%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.5K

$4,139 SEK 40.4K

-41.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.7K

$3,172 SEK 31.0K

-50.52%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.7K

$3,173 SEK 31.0K

-48.63%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

3.05

257.05%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Malmo: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Malmo

$868 40.9% 29.7% $199

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Malmo

$380 17.9% 70% $156

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Malmo

$208 9.8% 14.3% $26

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Malmo

$307 14.5% 76.3% $133

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Malmo

$189 8.9% 37.7% $52

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Malmo

$96 4.6% 34.3% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Malmo

$72 3.4% 3.3% $2.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,047 in Cape Town versus $1,097 in Malmo. 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 95% higher in Malmo. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Cape Town versus $78 in Malmo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $223 vs $380 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇸🇪 Malmo

🕒 Local time

23:46 11:46 PM

22:46 10:46 PM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

316,588

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.1 USD

100 ZAR = 5.44 EUR

100 SEK = 10.23 USD

100 SEK = 9.12 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 16.38 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.1 USD). 1 EUR = 18.39 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.44 EUR).

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 9.77 SEK (1 SEK = 0.102 USD). 1 EUR = 10.97 SEK (100 SEK = 9.12 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Malmo 9,970 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Malmo

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 Malmo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Malmo costs about 39% 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 $3,180 in Malmo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $1,047 in Cape Town and $1,097 in Malmo. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,527 in Cape Town and $2,120 in Malmo. That makes Cape Town about 28% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 6% 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 $2,120 in Malmo. 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 $2,120 in Malmo. 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, Malmo makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.