Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Merthyr Tydfil

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,586 a month against $2,067 in Merthyr Tydfil, rent and utilities included – about $5,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
100

Cost of Living Index in Merthyr Tydfil
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Merthyr Tydfil Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Merthyr Tydfil

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,067

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cape Town and in Merthyr Tydfil

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

A single person spends $1,586 per month in Cape Town vs $2,067 in Merthyr Tydfil, rent included.

Cape Town $1,586
Merthyr Tydfil $2,067

A couple spends around $2,425 per month in Cape Town vs $2,860 in Merthyr Tydfil, rent included.

Cape Town $2,425
Merthyr Tydfil $2,860

A family of three spends $3,263 per month in Cape Town vs $3,654 in Merthyr Tydfil, rent included.

Cape Town $3,263
Merthyr Tydfil $3,654

Cape Town is about 23% cheaper than Merthyr Tydfil, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Cape Town and Merthyr Tydfil sit above the global median – Cape Town by 17%, Merthyr Tydfil by 53%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$23.35 £17.52

-48.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$61.9 £46.41

-26.71%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$10.50 £7.88

-44.00%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$4.62 £3.46

-45.89%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$2.50 £1.87

-49.20%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$1.70 £1.27

-42.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 R 49.33

$6.33 £4.75

-52.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 R 61.4

$5.76 £4.32

-35.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.40

$1.38 £1.04

-5.80%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$0.60 £0.45

108.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$1.69 £1.27

31.95%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$4.07 £3.05

-23.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$8.31 £6.24

9.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$8.83 £6.63

-21.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$12.98 £9.74

-28.35%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$2.66 £1.99

-30.83%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$1.71 £1.28

14.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$2.59 £1.94

-35.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$3.20 £2.40

-32.19%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$1.22 £0.91

28.69%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$1.33 £1.00

11.28%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$1.16 £0.87

12.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$1.08 £0.81

4.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$22.78 £17.09

-84.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.15 R 101

$10.38 £7.79

-40.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.66

$2.75 £2.06

-49.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 R 35.20

$3.53 £2.65

-39.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R 24.65

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$97.5 £73.1

-37.67%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.59 R 9.71

$3.52 £2.64

-83.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

$1.68 £1.26

-10.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

$26.25 £19.69

-80.53%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.50

$2.06 £1.54

-24.76%

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

$36.2K R 596.5K

$38.9K £29.2K

-6.88%

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

$39.7K £29.8K

-21.34%

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

$114 R 1,883

$314 £236

-63.60%

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

$28.91 R 476

$13.39 £10.04

115.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$36.97 £27.74

7.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

$39.66 £29.75

23.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$7.81 £5.86

17.16%

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

$259 R 4,264

$2,255 £1,692

-88.52%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

$24.7K £18.5K

-72.50%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

$102 £76.5

-44.92%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

$48.36 £36.28

-32.98%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

$105 £78.6

15.04%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

$96.9 £72.7

11.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

$784 £588

30.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

$779 £585

-8.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

$1,144 £859

59.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

$989 £742

34.15%

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

$1,581 £1,186

3.63%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

4.87

125.26%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Last update for Merthyr Tydfil: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Merthyr Tydfil

$779 37.7% 8.7% $62

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

Merthyr Tydfil

$266 12.9% 18.3% $41

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

Merthyr Tydfil

$364 17.6% 99.2% $181

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

Merthyr Tydfil

$334 16.1% 89.4% $157

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Merthyr Tydfil

$158 7.7% 11% $16

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

Merthyr Tydfil

$109 * 5.3% 46.2% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Merthyr Tydfil

$55 2.7% 17.9% $12

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 $784 in Merthyr Tydfil. 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 4% higher in Cape Town, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $45.00 in Cape Town versus $62.0 in Merthyr Tydfil. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $225 vs $266 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇬🇧 Merthyr Tydfil

🕒 Local time

00:07 12:07 AM

23:07 11:07 PM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

43,820

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, 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).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Merthyr Tydfil 9,760 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Merthyr Tydfil

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 Merthyr Tydfil: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Merthyr Tydfil costs about 30% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. 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 $3,100 in Merthyr Tydfil. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cape Town, 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 $2,067 in Merthyr Tydfil. That's a gap of about 30%.

Public transport costs about 60% less in Cape Town. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Cape Town, where all-in costs run around $1,586, than in Merthyr Tydfil at $2,067. In Cape Town it covers expenses comfortably, while in Merthyr Tydfil it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cape Town costs $1,586 versus $2,067 in Merthyr Tydfil. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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