Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Middlesbrough

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,586 a month against $2,089 in Middlesbrough, rent and utilities included – about $6,000 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
102

Cost of Living Index in Middlesbrough
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Middlesbrough Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Middlesbrough

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,089

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,586 per month in Cape Town vs $2,089 in Middlesbrough, rent included.

Cape Town $1,586
Middlesbrough $2,089

A couple spends around $2,425 per month in Cape Town vs $3,001 in Middlesbrough, rent included.

Cape Town $2,425
Middlesbrough $3,001

A family of three spends $3,263 per month in Cape Town vs $3,913 in Middlesbrough, rent included.

Cape Town $3,263
Middlesbrough $3,913

Cape Town is about 24% cheaper than Middlesbrough, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Cape Town and Middlesbrough sit above the global median – Cape Town by 17%, Middlesbrough by 55%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$23.80 £17.85

-48.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$72.5 £54.4

-37.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$10.73 £8.05

-45.20%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$4.69 £3.52

-46.70%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$2.41 £1.81

-47.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$1.79 £1.35

-45.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 R 49.33

$4.70 £3.53

-36.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 R 61.4

$7.17 £5.38

-48.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.40

$1.22 £0.92

6.56%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$1.41 £1.06

-11.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$2.45 £1.84

-8.98%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$3.70 £2.77

-15.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$7.68 £5.76

17.97%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$7.29 £5.47

-5.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$14.41 £10.81

-35.46%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$2.48 £1.86

-25.81%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$2.38 £1.79

-17.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$2.57 £1.93

-35.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$2.60 £1.95

-16.54%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$1.78 £1.34

-11.80%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$1.54 £1.15

-3.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$1.16 £0.87

12.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$3.03 £2.27

-62.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$22.39 £16.79

-83.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.15 R 101

$9.42 £7.07

-34.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.66

$4.43 £3.32

-68.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 R 35.20

$3.68 £2.76

-41.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R 24.65

$5.53 £4.15

-72.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$92.6 £69.5

-34.38%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.59 R 9.71

$4.39 £3.29

-86.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

$25.94 £19.46

-80.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.50

$1.99 £1.49

-22.11%

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

$36.2K R 596.5K

$37.6K £28.2K

-3.81%

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

$39.8K £29.9K

-21.58%

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

$114 R 1,883

$346 £260

-66.99%

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

$28.91 R 476

$16.93 £12.70

70.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$41.87 £31.41

-5.11%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

$49.69 £37.28

-1.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

$32.46 £24.35

-66.14%

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$14.43 £10.83

-36.59%

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

$259 R 4,264

$795 £596

-67.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

$40.4K £30.3K

-83.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

$106 £79.8

-47.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

$53.8 £40.36

-39.76%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

$110 £82.7

9.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

$104 £78.2

3.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

$997 £748

2.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

$683 £513

4.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

$961 £721

89.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

$955 £716

38.96%

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

$2,303 £1,728

-28.84%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

5.64

94.50%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Last update for Middlesbrough: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Middlesbrough

$683 32.7% 4.7% $34

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

Middlesbrough

$301 14.4% 34% $76

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

Middlesbrough

$405 19.4% 121% $222

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

Middlesbrough

$334 16% 89.3% $157

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Middlesbrough

$169 8.1% 18.1% $26

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

Middlesbrough

$119 * 5.7% 59.2% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Middlesbrough

$79 3.8% 16.7% $11

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 $997 in Middlesbrough. 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 41% higher in Middlesbrough, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $45.00 in Cape Town versus $72.0 in Middlesbrough. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $225 vs $301 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇬🇧 Middlesbrough

🕒 Local time

08:21 8:21 AM

07:21 7:21 AM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

139,000

💱 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 20, 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 20, 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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Between locations

Cape Town Middlesbrough 10,020 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Middlesbrough

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 Middlesbrough: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Middlesbrough costs about 32% 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 $3,134 in Middlesbrough. 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 $2,089 in Middlesbrough. That's a gap of about 32%.

Public transport costs about 52% 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 Middlesbrough at $2,089. In Cape Town it covers expenses comfortably, while in Middlesbrough it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cape Town costs $1,586 versus $2,089 in Middlesbrough. 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, Middlesbrough makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.