Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Mamaia

For one person, living is cheaper in Mamaia: $1,038 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $6,600 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
50

Cost of Living Index in Mamaia
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Mamaia Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Mamaia

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,038

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,586 per month in Cape Town vs $1,038 in Mamaia, rent included.

Cape Town $1,586
Mamaia $1,038

A couple spends around $2,425 per month in Cape Town vs $1,573 in Mamaia, rent included.

Cape Town $2,425
Mamaia $1,573

A family of three spends $3,263 per month in Cape Town vs $2,108 in Mamaia, rent included.

Cape Town $3,263
Mamaia $2,108

Cape Town costs about 53% more than Mamaia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Mamaia is 23% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$9.93 RON 46.98

22.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$45.60 RON 216

-0.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$7.60 RON 35.96

-22.63%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$2.65 RON 12.55

-5.66%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$1.97 RON 9.34

-35.53%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$1.80 RON 8.52

-45.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 R 49.33

$2.28 RON 10.77

31.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 R 61.4

$2.83 RON 13.38

31.45%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.40

$1.46 RON 6.92

-10.96%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$1.24 RON 5.89

0.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$1.68 RON 7.96

32.74%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$3.36 RON 15.91

-7.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$8.27 RON 39.11

9.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$6.74 RON 31.88

2.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$9.56 RON 45.24

-2.72%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$1.17 RON 5.54

57.26%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$1.58 RON 7.46

24.05%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$1.62 RON 7.65

3.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$2.23 RON 10.53

-2.69%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$0.81 RON 3.81

93.83%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$0.89 RON 4.19

66.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$0.93 RON 4.40

39.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$0.78 RON 3.67

44.87%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$5.85 RON 27.68

-38.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.15 R 101

$6.14 RON 29.04

0.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.66

$1.06 RON 5.02

30.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 R 35.20

$1.61 RON 7.62

32.92%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R 24.65

$0.67 RON 3.19

123.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$19.50 RON 92.3

211.54%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.59 R 9.71

$0.71 RON 3.36

-16.90%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

$0.76 RON 3.58

97.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

$6.96 RON 32.95

-26.58%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.50

$1.55 RON 7.34

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

$36.2K R 596.5K

$27.6K RON 130.7K

31.08%

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

$27.7K RON 131.0K

12.89%

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

$114 R 1,883

$146 RON 693

-21.96%

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

$28.91 R 476

$7.93 RON 37.52

264.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$9.06 RON 42.86

338.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

$41.75 RON 198

17.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

$18.91 RON 89.5

-41.88%

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$6.96 RON 32.94

31.47%

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

$259 R 4,264

$429 RON 2,027

-39.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

$6,889 RON 32.6K

-1.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

$69.6 RON 329

-19.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

$39.57 RON 187

-18.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

$75.0 RON 355

60.71%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

$93.5 RON 442

15.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

$390 RON 1,845

161.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

$296 RON 1,400

142.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

$583 RON 2,758

212.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

$432 RON 2,042

207.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

$1,901 RON 8,996

25.75%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.4K

$1,517 RON 7,175

1.67%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

6.5

68.77%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Last update for Mamaia: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Mamaia

$296 28.5% 58.7% $421

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

Mamaia

$205 19.8% 8.7% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

Mamaia

$163 15.7% 10.6% $19

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

Mamaia

$166 16% 5.6% $9.9

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Mamaia

$125 12% 12.5% $18

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

Mamaia

$27 2.6% 64.3% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Mamaia

$56 5.4% 17.3% $12

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,021 in Cape Town versus $390 in Mamaia. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $45.00 in Cape Town versus $46.00 in Mamaia. Groceries tell a different story – $225 in Cape Town vs $205 in Mamaia – so Mamaia wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇷🇴 Mamaia

🕒 Local time

22:50 10:50 PM

23:50 11:50 PM

1 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

441

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, 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).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Mamaia 8,750 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Mamaia

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 Mamaia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 53% more than Mamaia, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from utilities. 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 $1,557 in Mamaia. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Mamaia, 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 $1,038 in Mamaia. That's a gap of about 53%.

Public transport costs about 212% less in Mamaia. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Mamaia, where all-in costs run around $1,038, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Mamaia 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. Mamaia costs $1,038 versus $1,586 in Cape Town. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Mamaia. 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.