Last update: Nov 2026
Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and the Netherlands
For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $2,724 in the Netherlands, rent and utilities included – about $14,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.
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Cape Town Living Index74Cost of Living Index in Cape TownLearn more -
Netherlands Living Index131Cost of Living Index in the NetherlandsLearn more
🙂 Solo nomad: Cape Town is 34.7% cheaper than the Netherlands without rent, and 43.9% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Cape Town is 37.9% cheaper than the Netherlands without rent, and 35.8% cheaper with rent.
🍽 Eating Out
Cape Town
Netherlands
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$12.01 R 198
$22.46 €20.00
-46.53%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.92 R 707
$89.1 €79.3
-51.83%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$6.15 R 101
$14.10 €12.55
-56.38%
Cappuccino
$2.37 R 39.04
$4.28 €3.81
-44.63%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.27 R 20.96
$3.70 €3.29
-65.68%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.94 R 15.46
$3.07 €2.74
-69.38%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.96 R 48.77
$6.59 €5.86
-55.08%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.69 R 60.8
$5.50 €4.90
-32.91%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Cape Town
Netherlands
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.32 R 21.73
$1.37 €1.22
-3.65%
White Bread (500g)
$1.21 R 19.87
$2.21 €1.97
-45.25%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.20 R 36.26
$2.61 €2.33
-15.71%
Eggs
$3.10 R 51.1
$4.85 €4.32
-36.08%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.73 R 144
$13.74 €12.23
-36.46%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.89 R 114
$14.50 €12.91
-52.48%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$9.26 R 153
$17.04 €15.17
-45.66%
Apples (1kg)
$1.83 R 30.08
$2.67 €2.37
-31.46%
Banana (1kg)
$1.95 R 32.12
$2.39 €2.13
-18.41%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.66 R 27.32
$2.07 €1.84
-19.81%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.14 R 35.19
$4.08 €3.63
-47.55%
Potato (1kg)
$1.58 R 26.01
$1.87 €1.67
-15.51%
Onion (1kg)
$1.47 R 24.29
$1.86 €1.65
-20.97%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.35 R 22.18
$1.23 €1.10
9.76%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.14 R 18.85
$0.90 €0.80
26.67%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.58 R 59.0
$13.94 €12.41
-74.32%
Wine (Bottle)
$6.05 R 99.7
$6.61 €5.88
-8.47%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.39 R 22.95
$1.46 €1.30
-4.79%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.18 R 35.90
$2.51 €2.23
-13.15%
🚌 Getting Around
Cape Town
Netherlands
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.40 R 23.02
$3.95 €3.51
-64.56%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$60.8 R 1,001
$101 €90.0
-39.90%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.93 R 15.26
$4.88 €4.35
-80.94%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.90 R 14.83
$3.57 €3.18
-74.79%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$4.96 R 81.7
$65.6 €58.4
-92.44%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.54 R 25.37
$2.43 €2.17
-36.63%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$35.4K R 582.8K
$40.8K €36.4K
-13.39%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$33.4K R 549.9K
$39.4K €35.1K
-15.36%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cape Town
Netherlands
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$117 R 1,929
$256 €228
-54.20%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$25.71 R 424
$23.12 €20.59
11.20%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$39.41 R 649
$50.1 €44.63
-21.38%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Cape Town
Netherlands
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$51.6 R 850
$39.49 €35.16
30.69%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$11.35 R 187
$26.39 €23.50
-56.99%
Cinema Ticket
$8.89 R 146
$15.63 €13.92
-43.12%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Cape Town
Netherlands
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$308 R 5,069
$2,552 €2,273
-87.95%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$8,141 R 134.2K
$10.8K €9,649
-24.87%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Cape Town
Netherlands
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$57.4 R 946
$96.8 €86.2
-40.73%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$31.75 R 523
$42.16 €37.54
-24.69%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$116 R 1,911
$103 €92.0
12.22%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$101 R 1,660
$136 €121
-26.04%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Cape Town
Netherlands
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,047 R 17.2K
$1,670 €1,487
-37.34%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$669 R 11.0K
$1,332 €1,186
-49.77%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,861 R 30.7K
$2,654 €2,363
-29.89%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,407 R 23.2K
$2,028 €1,805
-30.60%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,410 R 39.7K
$6,648 €5,920
-63.75%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,570 R 25.9K
$4,788 €4,263
-67.22%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Cape Town
Netherlands
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,630 R 26.9K
$3,865 €3,441
-57.83%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
10.89
3.86
182.12%
CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.
Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026
Last update for the Netherlands: November 1, 2026
Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Share of the monthly basket for a family of three, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Cape Town $669 43.8%
Netherlands $1.3K 48.9% 99.1% $663
Groceries & Markets
Cape Town $223 14.6%
Netherlands $338 12.4% 51.2% $114
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cape Town $182 11.9%
Netherlands $329 12.1% 80.5% $147
Eating Out
Cape Town $174 11.4%
Netherlands $344 12.6% 97.9% $170
Clothing & Footwear
Cape Town $138 9%
Netherlands $170 6.3% 23.8% $33
Getting Around
Cape Town $72 4.7%
Netherlands $140 5.1% 94.5% $68
Sport & Entertainment
Cape Town $69 4.5%
Netherlands $71 2.6% 2% $1.4
Accommodation & Living
Cape Town $1.4K 42.6%
Netherlands $2K 39.4% 44.1% $620
Groceries & Markets
Cape Town $518 15.7%
Netherlands $802 15.6% 54.7% $283
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cape Town $208 6.3%
Netherlands $352 6.8% 69.3% $144
Eating Out
Cape Town $570 17.3%
Netherlands $1.1K 22.1% 99.7% $568
Clothing & Footwear
Cape Town $306 9.3%
Netherlands $378 7.3% 23.8% $73
Getting Around
Cape Town $146 4.4%
Netherlands $287 5.6% 96.2% $141
Sport & Entertainment
Cape Town $150 4.5%
Netherlands $168 3.3% 11.9% $18
Good to know
🇿🇦 Cape Town
🇳🇱 Netherlands
Weather
Population
3,740,026 Capital
17,100,715
Exchange rates and currency converter
On the map
Lowest
Highest
Between locations
- Cape Town Netherlands 9,690 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight
From you
- Cape Town
- Netherlands
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 other spots: cost of living compared
Cape Town
🇿🇦 South Africa
$1,527
/mo nomad
Johannesburg
🇿🇦 South Africa
$1,406
/mo nomad
Cape Town
🇿🇦 South Africa
$1,527
/mo nomad
Lisbon
🇵🇹 Portugal
$2,206
/mo nomad
Cape Town
🇿🇦 South Africa
$1,527
/mo nomad
Antalya
🇹🇷 Turkey
$1,264
/mo nomad
Cape Town
🇿🇦 South Africa
$1,527
/mo nomad
Denpasar, Bali
🇮🇩 Indonesia
$889
/mo nomad
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