Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Mercedes

For one person, living is cheaper in Mercedes: $1,285 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $2,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cape Town outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Mercedes
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Mercedes Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Mercedes

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,285

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,527 per month in Cape Town vs $1,285 in Mercedes, rent included.

Cape Town $1,527
Mercedes $1,285

A couple spends around $2,417 per month in Cape Town vs $1,968 in Mercedes, rent included.

Cape Town $2,417
Mercedes $1,968

A family of three spends $3,306 per month in Cape Town vs $2,650 in Mercedes, rent included.

Cape Town $3,306
Mercedes $2,650

Cape Town costs about 19% more than Mercedes, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Cape Town sits 13% above the global median, while Mercedes is 5% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 199

$15.66 UYU 630

-23.31%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 709

$63.1 UYU 2,537

-31.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 102

$14.04 UYU 565

-56.20%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 39.16

$2.53 UYU 102

-6.32%

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

$1.27 R 21.03

$2.51 UYU 101

-49.40%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.50

$0.88 UYU 35.19

6.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.92

$2.47 UYU 99.2

19.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 61.0

$3.79 UYU 153

-2.64%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.80

$1.25 UYU 50.2

5.60%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.93

$3.02 UYU 121

-59.93%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.37

$1.43 UYU 57.5

53.85%

Eggs

$3.10 R 51.3

$2.80 UYU 112

10.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 144

$14.35 UYU 577

-39.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 114

$11.51 UYU 463

-40.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 153

$7.40 UYU 298

25.14%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.17

$2.01 UYU 81.0

-8.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 32.22

$2.42 UYU 97.3

-19.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.40

$1.14 UYU 45.87

45.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 35.30

$2.92 UYU 117

-26.71%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 26.09

$1.91 UYU 77.0

-17.28%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.37

$2.17 UYU 87.4

-32.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.25

$1.39 UYU 56.1

-2.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.91

$1.71 UYU 68.8

-33.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 59.1

$4.87 UYU 196

-26.49%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 100

$8.29 UYU 334

-27.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 23.02

$2.33 UYU 93.8

-40.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 36.01

$2.77 UYU 112

-21.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 23.09

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,004

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.31

$1.84 UYU 74.0

-49.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.88

$1.06 UYU 42.50

-15.09%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 82.0

$12.77 UYU 514

-61.16%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.45

$2.24 UYU 90.0

-31.25%

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

$35.4K R 584.6K

$26.7K UYU 1.1M

32.44%

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

$33.4K R 551.6K

$36.9K UYU 1.5M

-9.61%

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

$117 R 1,935

$183 UYU 7,380

-36.20%

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

$25.71 R 425

$21.33 UYU 858

20.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 651

$43.14 UYU 1,735

-8.65%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 853

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 188

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 147

$12.07 UYU 485

-26.35%

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

$308 R 5,085

$632 UYU 25.4K

-51.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 134.6K

$11.2K UYU 450.8K

-27.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 948

$99.0 UYU 3,981

-42.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 525

$57.1 UYU 2,295

-44.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,917

$120 UYU 4,834

-3.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,665

$130 UYU 5,242

-22.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.3K

$582 UYU 23.4K

79.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.1K

$295 UYU 11.9K

126.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.8K

$627 UYU 25.2K

196.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.3K

$452 UYU 18.2K

211.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.8K

$3,050 UYU 122.7K

-20.97%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.9K

$1,968 UYU 79.2K

-20.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

5.65

92.74%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Mercedes: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Mercedes

$295 23% 55.8% $374

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Mercedes

$296 23% 32.7% $73

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Mercedes

$248 19.3% 36.1% $66

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Mercedes

$231 18% 32.9% $57

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Mercedes

$183 14.2% 33% $45

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Mercedes

$7.1 * 0.6% 90.1% $65

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Mercedes

$24 * 1.9% 65.2% $45

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,047 in Cape Town versus $582 in Mercedes. 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 $43 in Cape Town versus $63 in Mercedes. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $223 vs $296 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇺🇾 Mercedes

🕒 Local time

23:28 11:28 PM

18:28 6:28 PM

5 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

41,975

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.05 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

UYU, 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 = 16.53 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.05 USD). 1 EUR = 18.47 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 40.22 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 44.95 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Mercedes 6,900 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Mercedes

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 Mercedes: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 19% more than Mercedes, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. 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 $1,928 in Mercedes. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Mercedes, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $582 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,527 in Cape Town and $1,285 in Mercedes. That makes Mercedes about 16% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $308 per month in Cape Town and $632 in Mercedes. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,527 in Cape Town and $1,285 in Mercedes. 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 $1,285 in Mercedes to $1,527 in Cape Town. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.