Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Marsta

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $1,609 in Marsta, rent and utilities included – about $980 less a year. The total is higher in Marsta despite lower rent and utilities.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Marsta
Learn more

Marsta Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Marsta

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,609

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,527 per month in Cape Town vs $1,609 in Marsta, rent included.

Cape Town $1,527
Marsta $1,609

A couple spends around $2,417 per month in Cape Town vs $2,571 in Marsta, rent included.

Cape Town $2,417
Marsta $2,571

A family of three spends $3,306 per month in Cape Town vs $3,532 in Marsta, rent included.

Cape Town $3,306
Marsta $3,532

Cape Town is about 5% cheaper than Marsta, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Cape Town and Marsta sit above the global median – Cape Town by 13%, Marsta by 19%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 197

$13.05 SEK 128

-7.97%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 703

$65.7 SEK 642

-34.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 101

$10.40 SEK 102

-40.87%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 38.81

$4.54 SEK 44.32

-47.80%

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

$1.27 R 20.84

$2.00 SEK 19.57

-36.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.37

$1.87 SEK 18.27

-49.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.48

$7.35 SEK 71.8

-59.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 60.5

$7.00 SEK 68.4

-47.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.61

$1.79 SEK 17.47

-26.26%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.75

$3.08 SEK 30.13

-60.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.05

$5.82 SEK 56.9

-62.20%

Eggs

$3.10 R 50.8

$3.62 SEK 35.42

-14.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 143

$14.05 SEK 137

-37.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 113

$9.10 SEK 89.0

-24.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 152

$17.57 SEK 172

-47.30%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 29.90

$3.02 SEK 29.48

-39.40%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 31.94

$2.72 SEK 26.56

-28.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.16

$2.02 SEK 19.73

-17.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 34.99

$3.88 SEK 37.95

-44.85%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 25.86

$1.50 SEK 14.65

5.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.15

$1.56 SEK 15.23

-5.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.05

$2.10 SEK 20.51

-35.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.75

$1.93 SEK 18.81

-40.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 58.6

$6.98 SEK 68.2

-48.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 99.2

$10.31 SEK 101

-41.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.82

$1.98 SEK 19.31

-29.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.69

$2.20 SEK 21.54

-0.91%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 22.88

$3.28 SEK 32.01

-57.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 995

$75.1 SEK 734

-19.09%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.18

$13.24 SEK 129

-92.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.75

$2.09 SEK 20.42

-56.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 81.3

$58.2 SEK 569

-91.48%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.23

$1.80 SEK 17.57

-14.44%

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

$35.4K R 579.4K

$33.9K SEK 331.5K

4.26%

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

$33.4K R 546.7K

$33.5K SEK 327.1K

-0.29%

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

$117 R 1,918

$61.5 SEK 601

90.45%

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

$25.71 R 421

$28.35 SEK 277

-9.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 646

$40.76 SEK 398

-3.31%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 846

$36.81 SEK 360

40.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 186

$23.93 SEK 234

-52.57%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$17.46 SEK 171

-49.08%

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

$308 R 5,040

$207 SEK 2,026

48.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 133.4K

$5,528 SEK 54.0K

47.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 940

$51.6 SEK 504

11.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 520

$31.12 SEK 304

2.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,900

$92.5 SEK 903

25.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,650

$101 SEK 992

-0.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.1K

$904 SEK 8,832

15.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.0K

$554 SEK 5,419

20.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.5K

$1,360 SEK 13.3K

36.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.1K

$1,040 SEK 10.2K

35.34%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.5K

$3,648 SEK 35.6K

-33.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.7K

$2,967 SEK 29.0K

-47.10%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.7K

$4,668 SEK 45.6K

-65.09%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

2.8

288.93%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Marsta: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Marsta

$554 34.5% 17.1% $115

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Marsta

$360 22.4% 61.2% $137

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Marsta

$131 8.1% 28.3% $52

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Marsta

$256 15.9% 47.3% $82

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Marsta

$125 7.7% 9.5% $13

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Marsta

$112 7% 55.9% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Marsta

$72 4.5% 3.4% $2.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,047 in Cape Town versus $904 in Marsta. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Marsta are about 2.9 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Cape Town versus $66 in Marsta. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $223 vs $360 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇸🇪 Marsta

🕒 Local time

02:13 2:13 AM

01:13 1:13 AM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

24,068

💱 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 6, 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 6, 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 Marsta 10,400 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Marsta

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 Marsta: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Marsta costs about 5% 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 $2,414 in Marsta. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Marsta, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $904 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,527 in Cape Town and $1,609 in Marsta. That makes Cape Town about 5% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 19% 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 $1,609 in Marsta. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Cape Town has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,527 in Cape Town to $1,609 in Marsta. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Cape Town. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Marsta makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.