Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Mogadishu

For one person, living is cheaper in Mogadishu: $618 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $11,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
30

Cost of Living Index in Mogadishu
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Mogadishu Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Mogadishu

🇸🇴 Somalia

$618

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,568 per month in Cape Town vs $618 in Mogadishu, rent included.

Cape Town $1,568
Mogadishu $618

A couple spends around $2,438 per month in Cape Town vs $951 in Mogadishu, rent included.

Cape Town $2,438
Mogadishu $951

A family of three spends $3,307 per month in Cape Town vs $1,283 in Mogadishu, rent included.

Cape Town $3,307
Mogadishu $1,283

Cape Town costs about 154% more than Mogadishu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Mogadishu is 54% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.78 R 194

$2.93 SOS 1,665

302.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.55 R 768

$34.64 SOS 19.7K

34.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.96 R 98.4

$4.40 SOS 2,501

35.45%

Cappuccino

$2.47 R 40.80

$1.94 SOS 1,103

27.32%

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

$1.33 R 21.91

$1.20 SOS 682

10.83%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 R 16.99

$0.53 SOS 302

94.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.01 R 49.72

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 R 60.4

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 R 22.96

$1.34 SOS 760

3.73%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 R 19.60

$1.66 SOS 940

-28.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.11 R 34.84

$0.75 SOS 428

181.33%

Eggs

$3.01 R 49.58

$1.93 SOS 1,096

55.96%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.96 R 148

$4.89 SOS 2,780

83.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.65 R 110

$3.96 SOS 2,252

67.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.29 R 153

$4.45 SOS 2,529

108.76%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.13

$3.80 SOS 2,160

-51.84%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 R 31.31

$1.02 SOS 580

86.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.75 R 28.83

$3.04 SOS 1,724

-42.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.09 R 34.41

$1.27 SOS 721

64.57%

Potato (1kg)

$1.55 R 25.64

$1.48 SOS 843

4.73%

Onion (1kg)

$1.49 R 24.53

$1.72 SOS 978

-13.37%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$1.49 SOS 846

-12.75%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 R 19.19

$0.53 SOS 301

118.87%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.71 R 61.2

Wine (Bottle)

$6.06 R 100

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.85

$2.05 SOS 1,166

-32.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 R 36.32

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.51 R 24.98

$0.51 SOS 291

196.08%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.0 R 1,006

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.63 R 10.33

$0.99 SOS 562

-36.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 R 25.29

$0.56 SOS 318

173.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.81 R 79.4

$2.92 SOS 1,658

64.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 R 26.08

$0.92 SOS 523

71.74%

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

$35.5K R 585.7K

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

$31.7K R 523.8K

$6,416 SOS 3.6M

394.81%

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

$116 R 1,920

$162 SOS 92.2K

-28.28%

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

$28.37 R 468

$4.89 SOS 2,777

480.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.69 R 671

$65.5 SOS 37.2K

-37.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.85 R 806

$32.12 SOS 18.2K

52.09%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.13 R 184

Cinema Ticket

$8.83 R 146

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

$261 R 4,314

$79.9 SOS 45.4K

227.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,702 R 110.6K

$751 SOS 426.4K

792.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.4 R 914

$13.79 SOS 7,832

301.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.27 R 532

$13.90 SOS 7,893

132.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 R 1,939

$24.66 SOS 14.0K

376.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 R 1,766

$32.82 SOS 18.6K

226.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,015 R 16.7K

$198 SOS 112.6K

411.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$715 R 11.8K

$77.6 SOS 44.1K

822.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,801 R 29.7K

$475 SOS 269.6K

279.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,330 R 22.0K

$186 SOS 105.9K

613.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,331 R 38.5K

$3,242 SOS 1.8M

-28.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,513 R 25.0K

$2,367 SOS 1.3M

-36.07%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,636 R 27.0K

$276 SOS 156.6K

493.41%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Last update for Mogadishu: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$715 45.3%

Mogadishu

$78 12.6% 89.2% $638

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$222 14.1%

Mogadishu

$163 * 26.4% 26.9% $60

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$185 11.7%

Mogadishu

$233 37.8% 25.5% $47

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11%

Mogadishu

$67 * 10.9% 61.5% $107

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$141 8.9%

Mogadishu

$38 6.2% 72.7% $102

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.8%

Mogadishu

$5.8 * 1% 92.2% $69

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Mogadishu

$32 * 5.2% 51.7% $34

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,015 in Cape Town versus $198 in Mogadishu. 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 493% higher in Cape Town, 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 $47.00 in Cape Town versus $35.00 in Mogadishu. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $222 vs $163 – making Mogadishu the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇸🇴 Mogadishu

🕒 Local time

15:43 3:43 PM

16:43 4:43 PM

1 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

2,610,000 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Somali Shilling SOS Sh

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

1,000 SOS = 1.76 USD

1,000 SOS = 1.57 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 16.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.06 USD). 1 EUR = 18.49 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

Somali Shilling exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 568 SOS (1,000 SOS = 1.76 USD). 1 EUR = 636 SOS (1,000 SOS = 1.57 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Mogadishu 4,890 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Mogadishu

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 Mogadishu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 154% more than Mogadishu, 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 $2,352 per month in Cape Town and $927 in Mogadishu. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Mogadishu, 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 $1,568 in Cape Town and $618 in Mogadishu. That's a gap of about 154%.

Kindergarten costs $261 per month in Cape Town and $79.9 in Mogadishu. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Mogadishu, where all-in costs run around $618, than in Cape Town at $1,568. In Mogadishu 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. Mogadishu costs $618 versus $1,568 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 Mogadishu. 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.