Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Mölndal

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $1,610 in Mölndal, rent and utilities included – about $1,000 less a year. The total is higher in Mölndal despite lower rent and utilities.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Mölndal
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Mölndal Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Mölndal

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,610

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,527 per month in Cape Town vs $1,610 in Mölndal, rent included.

Cape Town $1,527
Mölndal $1,610

A couple spends around $2,417 per month in Cape Town vs $2,472 in Mölndal, rent included.

Cape Town $2,417
Mölndal $2,472

A family of three spends $3,306 per month in Cape Town vs $3,334 in Mölndal, rent included.

Cape Town $3,306
Mölndal $3,334

Cape Town is about 5% cheaper than Mölndal, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Cape Town and Mölndal sit above the global median – Cape Town by 13%, Mölndal by 19%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 198

$13.76 SEK 135

-12.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 707

$71.2 SEK 699

-39.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 101

$11.08 SEK 109

-44.49%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 39.04

$5.20 SEK 51.0

-54.42%

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

$1.27 R 20.96

$2.96 SEK 29.02

-57.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.46

$1.00 SEK 9.79

-6.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.77

$7.24 SEK 71.1

-59.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 60.8

$6.30 SEK 61.8

-41.43%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.73

$1.19 SEK 11.68

10.92%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.87

$1.55 SEK 15.24

-21.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.26

$3.18 SEK 31.22

-30.82%

Eggs

$3.10 R 51.1

$3.74 SEK 36.70

-17.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 144

$6.83 SEK 67.0

27.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 114

$9.11 SEK 89.4

-24.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 153

$17.63 SEK 173

-47.48%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.08

$3.02 SEK 29.68

-39.40%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 32.12

$2.52 SEK 24.72

-22.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.32

$2.83 SEK 27.78

-41.34%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 35.19

$4.52 SEK 44.32

-52.65%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 26.01

$1.66 SEK 16.29

-4.82%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.29

$1.63 SEK 15.99

-9.82%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.18

$1.91 SEK 18.71

-29.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.85

$1.22 SEK 12.00

-6.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 59.0

$7.21 SEK 70.7

-50.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 99.7

$10.26 SEK 101

-41.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.95

$2.07 SEK 20.35

-32.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.90

$2.22 SEK 21.77

-1.80%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 23.02

$3.60 SEK 35.32

-61.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$85.7 SEK 840

-29.08%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.26

$6.04 SEK 59.3

-84.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.83

$1.69 SEK 16.56

-46.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 81.7

$61.5 SEK 603

-91.93%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.37

$1.78 SEK 17.45

-13.48%

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

$35.4K R 582.8K

$34.3K SEK 336.7K

3.05%

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

$33.4K R 549.9K

$34.5K SEK 338.8K

-3.37%

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

$117 R 1,929

$43.80 SEK 430

167.28%

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

$25.71 R 424

$10.32 SEK 101

149.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 649

$20.40 SEK 200

93.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 850

$40.34 SEK 396

27.94%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 187

$29.01 SEK 285

-60.88%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$17.42 SEK 171

-48.97%

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

$308 R 5,069

$223 SEK 2,185

38.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 134.2K

$4,688 SEK 46.0K

73.68%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 946

$89.6 SEK 879

-35.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 523

$33.32 SEK 327

-4.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,911

$71.8 SEK 705

61.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,660

$133 SEK 1,307

-24.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.2K

$804 SEK 7,893

30.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.0K

$624 SEK 6,118

7.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.7K

$1,277 SEK 12.5K

45.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.2K

$908 SEK 8,906

55.03%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.7K

$4,104 SEK 40.3K

-41.27%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.9K

$2,926 SEK 28.7K

-46.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

3.06

255.88%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Mölndal: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Mölndal

$624 38.7% 6.8% $46

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Mölndal

$304 18.9% 36.2% $81

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Mölndal

$75 4.6% 59.1% $108

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Mölndal

$270 16.8% 55.4% $96

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Mölndal

$148 9.2% 7.2% $10

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Mölndal

$115 7.1% 59.6% $43

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Mölndal

$75 4.7% 8.3% $5.8

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,047 in Cape Town versus $804 in Mölndal. 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 $71 in Mölndal. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $223 vs $304 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇸🇪 Mölndal

🕒 Local time

06:54 6:54 AM

05:54 5:54 AM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

60,000

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

100 SEK = 10.19 USD

100 SEK = 9.08 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SEK, 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 = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 9.81 SEK (1 SEK = 0.102 USD). 1 EUR = 11.01 SEK (100 SEK = 9.08 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Mölndal 10,200 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Mölndal

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 Mölndal: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mölndal costs about 5% 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 $2,291 per month in Cape Town and $2,415 in Mölndal. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Mölndal, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $804 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,527 in Cape Town and $1,610 in Mölndal. That makes Cape Town about 5% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 29% less in Cape Town. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,527 in Cape Town and $1,610 in Mölndal. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cape Town costs $1,527 versus $1,610 in Mölndal. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.