Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Mbarara

For one person, living is cheaper in Mbarara: $504 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $13,000 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
25

Cost of Living Index in Mbarara
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Mbarara Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Mbarara

🇺🇬 Uganda

$504

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,586 per month in Cape Town vs $504 in Mbarara, rent included.

Cape Town $1,586
Mbarara $504

A couple spends around $2,425 per month in Cape Town vs $798 in Mbarara, rent included.

Cape Town $2,425
Mbarara $798

A family of three spends $3,263 per month in Cape Town vs $1,093 in Mbarara, rent included.

Cape Town $3,263
Mbarara $1,093

Cape Town costs about 215% more than Mbarara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Mbarara is 63% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$2.48 UGX 10.2K

389.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$25.03 UGX 102.9K

81.14%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$7.64 UGX 31.4K

-23.04%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$2.49 UGX 10.2K

0.40%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$0.35 UGX 1,455

262.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$0.28 UGX 1,165

250.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 R 49.33

$1.22 UGX 4,998

145.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 R 61.4

$1.89 UGX 7,765

96.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.40

$0.49 UGX 2,012

165.31%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$0.88 UGX 3,621

42.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$1.27 UGX 5,239

75.59%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$1.56 UGX 6,409

99.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$4.49 UGX 18.5K

101.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$4.69 UGX 19.3K

47.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$3.42 UGX 14.1K

171.93%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$2.11 UGX 8,662

-12.80%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$1.28 UGX 5,284

53.12%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$1.29 UGX 5,316

29.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$1.17 UGX 4,820

85.47%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$1.27 UGX 5,236

23.62%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$1.22 UGX 5,007

21.31%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$0.75 UGX 3,065

73.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$0.52 UGX 2,149

117.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$2.44 UGX 10.0K

47.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.15 R 101

$7.27 UGX 29.9K

-15.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.66

$1.06 UGX 4,363

30.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 R 35.20

$1.96 UGX 8,042

9.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R 24.65

$0.74 UGX 3,030

102.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.59 R 9.71

$0.48 UGX 1,975

22.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

$0.32 UGX 1,334

368.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

$3.16 UGX 13.0K

61.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.50

$1.45 UGX 5,972

6.90%

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

$36.2K R 596.5K

$7,458 UGX 30.7M

385.48%

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

$7,349 UGX 30.2M

325.21%

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

$114 R 1,883

$70.7 UGX 290.7K

61.77%

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

$28.91 R 476

$11.88 UGX 48.9K

143.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$35.51 UGX 146.1K

11.88%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

$18.93 UGX 77.9K

158.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$7.55 UGX 31.0K

21.19%

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

$259 R 4,264

$255 UGX 1.0M

1.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

$8,455 UGX 34.8M

-19.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

$14.07 UGX 57.9K

299.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

$13.15 UGX 54.1K

146.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

$32.11 UGX 132.1K

275.58%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

$44.20 UGX 181.8K

144.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

$85.9 UGX 353.5K

1088.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

$74.2 UGX 305.2K

866.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

$239 UGX 981.4K

664.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

$172 UGX 708.1K

670.67%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

20.75

-47.13%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Last update for Mbarara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Mbarara

$74 14.7% 89.6% $643

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

Mbarara

$141 28% 37.4% $84

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

Mbarara

$118 23.4% 35.5% $65

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

Mbarara

$85 16.9% 51.8% $91

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Mbarara

$47 9.3% 67.4% $96

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

Mbarara

$5.1 * 1% 93.2% $70

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Mbarara

$34 6.8% 49.4% $33

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,021 in Cape Town versus $85.9 in Mbarara. 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 $25.00 in Mbarara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $225 vs $141 – making Mbarara the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇺🇬 Mbarara

🕒 Local time

06:11 6:11 AM

07:11 7:11 AM

1 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

195,013

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Ugandan Shilling UGX Sh

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

10,000 UGX = 2.43 USD

10,000 UGX = 2.16 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Ugandan Shilling exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 4,113 UGX (10,000 UGX = 2.43 USD). 1 EUR = 4,624 UGX (10,000 UGX = 2.16 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Mbarara 3,920 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Mbarara

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 Mbarara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 215% more than Mbarara, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from clothing. 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 $755 in Mbarara. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Mbarara, 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 $504 in Mbarara. That's a gap of about 215%.

Kindergarten costs $259 per month in Cape Town and $255 in Mbarara. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Mbarara, where all-in costs run around $504, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Mbarara 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. Mbarara costs $504 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 Mbarara. 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.