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

😐 Solo nomad: Cape Town is 23% more expensive than Nairobi without rent, and 67.7% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Cape Town is 20.3% more expensive than Nairobi without rent, and 55.5% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.06 R 180

$5.31 KES 685

108.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.39 R 740

$37.93 KES 4,898

19.67%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.09 R 82.9

$6.65 KES 859

-23.46%

Cappuccino

$2.08 R 33.88

$2.44 KES 315

-14.75%

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

$1.16 R 18.97

$0.70 KES 90.8

65.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.89 R 14.55

$0.55 KES 70.4

61.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.84 R 46.27

$2.31 KES 298

22.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.45 R 39.90

$2.95 KES 380

-16.95%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.10 R 17.88

$0.88 KES 114

25.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.10 R 17.86

$0.57 KES 73.4

92.98%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 R 29.85

$1.59 KES 205

15.09%

Eggs

$2.50 R 40.77

$1.68 KES 217

48.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.65 R 141

$11.40 KES 1,472

-24.12%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.06 R 82.5

$6.64 KES 857

-23.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.58 R 124

$5.57 KES 719

36.09%

Apples (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.61

$3.15 KES 407

-50.16%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 R 23.04

$1.04 KES 135

35.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.50 R 24.51

$2.17 KES 280

-30.88%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.53 R 24.94

$1.02 KES 131

50.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.09 R 17.69

$1.02 KES 132

6.86%

Onion (1kg)

$1.18 R 19.27

$1.13 KES 145

4.42%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.06 R 17.27

$0.70 KES 90.6

51.43%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 R 16.09

$0.81 KES 104

22.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.11 R 50.6

$3.14 KES 405

-0.96%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.36 R 104

$11.65 KES 1,505

-45.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 R 22.31

$2.18 KES 281

-37.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 R 28.60

$2.75 KES 355

-36.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.92 R 14.94

$0.76 KES 98.1

21.05%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$48.28 R 787

$31.27 KES 4,038

54.40%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.38 R 22.45

$1.52 KES 196

-9.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.93 R 15.16

$1.50 KES 194

-38.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.37 R 71.2

$2.85 KES 367

53.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.20 R 19.56

$1.54 KES 199

-22.08%

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

$21.6K R 351.9K

$21.9K KES 2.8M

-1.35%

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

$24.0K R 391.3K

$20.3K KES 2.6M

18.17%

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

$101 R 1,654

$34.60 KES 4,468

193.24%

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

$32.97 R 537

$16.64 KES 2,149

98.14%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.85 R 666

$39.82 KES 5,143

2.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.59 R 694

$42.27 KES 5,458

0.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.89 R 129

$20.64 KES 2,665

-61.77%

Cinema Ticket

$6.62 R 108

$6.26 KES 808

5.75%

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

$213 R 3,469

$204 KES 26.3K

4.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,331 R 86.9K

$7,885 KES 1.0M

-32.39%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.6 R 890

$18.29 KES 2,362

198.69%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.27 R 542

$23.62 KES 3,051

40.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$114 R 1,866

$66.2 KES 8,547

73.00%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.0 R 1,369

$56.7 KES 7,316

48.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$767 R 12.5K

$449 KES 57.9K

70.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$525 R 8,551

$184 KES 23.7K

185.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,440 R 23.5K

$1,129 KES 145.8K

27.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 R 16.4K

$433 KES 56.0K

132.50%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,240 R 36.5K

$1,566 KES 202.2K

43.11%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,451 R 23.6K

$903 KES 116.7K

60.60%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,707 R 27.8K

$406 KES 52.4K

320.32%

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: April 14, 2026

Last update for Nairobi: April 12, 2026

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 other spots: cost of living compared

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