Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Nairobi Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Nairobi

😐 Solo nomad: Cape Town is 19.4% more expensive than Nairobi without rent, and 61.5% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Cape Town is 21.6% more expensive than Nairobi without rent, and 49.6% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.02 R 188

$5.43 KES 702

102.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.49 R 777

$38.29 KES 4,949

18.80%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.99 R 85.3

$6.86 KES 887

-27.26%

Cappuccino

$2.08 R 35.61

$2.48 KES 320

-16.13%

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

$1.1 R 18.77

$0.76 KES 97.9

44.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.88 R 15.05

$0.53 KES 68.6

66.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.76 R 47.2

$2.34 KES 302

17.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.49 R 42.49

$2.94 KES 380

-15.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.11 R 18.99

$0.86 KES 111

29.07%

White Bread (500g)

$1.05 R 17.92

$0.57 KES 73.6

84.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 R 31.67

$1.6 KES 207

15.63%

Eggs

$2.4 R 41.04

$1.63 KES 210

47.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.4 R 143

$11.58 KES 1,497

-27.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.33 R 91.1

$6.91 KES 893

-22.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.63 R 130

$5.57 KES 719

36.98%

Apples (1kg)

$1.57 R 26.87

$3.09 KES 399

-49.19%

Banana (1kg)

$1.48 R 25.35

$1.07 KES 138

38.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.46 R 24.95

$2.09 KES 269

-30.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.59 R 27.23

$1.05 KES 135

51.43%

Potato (1kg)

$1.09 R 18.58

$1.08 KES 139

0.93%

Onion (1kg)

$1.23 R 21.06

$1.11 KES 144

10.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 R 18.48

$0.65 KES 83.4

66.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1 R 17.05

$0.81 KES 104

23.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.14 R 53.6

$3.08 KES 398

1.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.65 R 96.5

$11.54 KES 1,492

-51.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.35 R 23.04

$2.26 KES 292

-40.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.67 R 28.57

$2.73 KES 353

-38.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.99 R 16.89

$0.75 KES 97.5

32.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$47.86 R 817

$30.4 KES 3,929

57.43%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.43 R 24.49

$1.53 KES 198

-6.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 R 16.95

$1.58 KES 204

-37.34%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.38 R 74.9

$2.86 KES 370

53.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.24 R 21.14

$1.56 KES 202

-20.51%

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

$21K R 358.9K

$21.8K KES 2.8M

-3.55%

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

$23.9K R 408.4K

$19.9K KES 2.6M

20.40%

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

$97.8 R 1,671

$34.7 KES 4,485

181.93%

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

$33.51 R 572

$16.92 KES 2,186

98.05%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.97 R 717

$40 KES 5,170

4.92%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.72 R 712

$43.17 KES 5,579

-3.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.03 R 137

$20.56 KES 2,657

-60.94%

Cinema Ticket

$6.77 R 116

$6.26 KES 809

8.15%

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

$214 R 3,654

$203 KES 26.3K

5.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,349 R 91.3K

$7,894 KES 1M

-32.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.7 R 950

$18.04 KES 2,331

208.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.21 R 567

$23.8 KES 3,076

39.54%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$114 R 1,939

$65.4 KES 8,458

73.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 R 1,465

$57.2 KES 7,396

49.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$743 R 12.7K

$454 KES 58.6K

63.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$524 R 8,953

$183 KES 23.7K

185.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,447 R 24.7K

$1,128 KES 145.7K

28.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,028 R 17.6K

$424 KES 54.8K

142.55%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,935 R 33K

$2,108 KES 272.5K

-8.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,299 R 22.2K

$1,097 KES 141.7K

18.49%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,665 R 28.4K

$409 KES 52.9K

306.79%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.77

14.84

-20.69%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 24, 2025

Last update for Nairobi: November 24, 2025

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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