Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Newcastle upon Tyne

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,568 a month against $2,221 in Newcastle upon Tyne, rent and utilities included – about $7,800 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
109

Cost of Living Index in Newcastle upon Tyne
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Newcastle upon Tyne Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Newcastle upon Tyne

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,221

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cape Town and in Newcastle upon Tyne

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 Newcastle upon Tyne actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,568 per month in Cape Town vs $2,221 in Newcastle upon Tyne, rent included.

Cape Town $1,568
Newcastle upon Tyne $2,221

A couple spends around $2,438 per month in Cape Town vs $3,285 in Newcastle upon Tyne, rent included.

Cape Town $2,438
Newcastle upon Tyne $3,285

A family of three spends $3,307 per month in Cape Town vs $4,349 in Newcastle upon Tyne, rent included.

Cape Town $3,307
Newcastle upon Tyne $4,349

Cape Town is about 29% cheaper than Newcastle upon Tyne, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Cape Town and Newcastle upon Tyne sit above the global median – Cape Town by 17%, Newcastle upon Tyne by 66%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.78 R 194

$19.68 £14.87

-40.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.55 R 768

$97.9 £74.0

-52.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.96 R 98.4

$10.76 £8.13

-44.61%

Cappuccino

$2.47 R 40.80

$4.83 £3.65

-48.86%

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

$1.33 R 21.91

$3.14 £2.37

-57.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 R 16.99

$2.36 £1.78

-56.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.01 R 49.72

$6.77 £5.12

-55.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 R 60.4

$6.76 £5.11

-45.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 R 22.96

$1.45 £1.10

-4.14%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 R 19.60

$1.84 £1.39

-35.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.11 R 34.84

$2.27 £1.72

-7.05%

Eggs

$3.01 R 49.58

$3.69 £2.79

-18.43%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.96 R 148

$9.59 £7.25

-6.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.65 R 110

$8.86 £6.69

-24.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.29 R 153

$14.35 £10.85

-35.26%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.13

$2.88 £2.18

-36.46%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 R 31.31

$1.84 £1.39

3.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.75 R 28.83

$2.85 £2.15

-38.60%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.09 R 34.41

$3.43 £2.59

-39.07%

Potato (1kg)

$1.55 R 25.64

$1.76 £1.33

-11.93%

Onion (1kg)

$1.49 R 24.53

$1.37 £1.04

8.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$1.14 £0.86

14.04%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 R 19.19

$1.78 £1.35

-34.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.71 R 61.2

$20.57 £15.54

-81.96%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.06 R 100

$10.61 £8.01

-42.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.85

$3.07 £2.32

-54.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 R 36.32

$3.43 £2.59

-35.86%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.51 R 24.98

$3.39 £2.56

-55.46%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.0 R 1,006

$87.5 £66.1

-30.32%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.63 R 10.33

$6.46 £4.88

-90.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 R 25.29

$1.53 £1.16

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.81 R 79.4

$27.52 £20.79

-82.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 R 26.08

$2.10 £1.59

-24.76%

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

$35.5K R 585.7K

$38.4K £29.0K

-7.62%

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

$31.7K R 523.8K

$40.6K £30.7K

-21.74%

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

$116 R 1,920

$246 £186

-52.74%

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

$28.37 R 468

$16.85 £12.73

68.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.69 R 671

$41.97 £31.71

-3.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.85 R 806

$36.18 £27.34

35.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.13 R 184

$19.55 £14.77

-43.07%

Cinema Ticket

$8.83 R 146

$10.71 £8.09

-17.55%

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

$261 R 4,314

$1,233 £932

-78.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,702 R 110.6K

$17.7K £13.4K

-62.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.4 R 914

$90.4 £68.3

-38.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.27 R 532

$46.83 £35.39

-31.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 R 1,939

$105 £79.6

11.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 R 1,766

$94.1 £71.1

13.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,015 R 16.7K

$1,341 £1,013

-24.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$715 R 11.8K

$998 £754

-28.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,801 R 29.7K

$2,133 £1,612

-15.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,330 R 22.0K

$1,584 £1,197

-16.03%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,331 R 38.5K

$5,085 £3,843

-54.17%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,513 R 25.0K

$3,548 £2,681

-57.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,636 R 27.0K

$3,366 £2,544

-51.39%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

5.15

113.01%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Last update for Newcastle upon Tyne: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$715 45.3%

Newcastle upon Tyne

$998 44.4% 39.6% $283

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$222 14.1%

Newcastle upon Tyne

$304 13.5% 36.8% $82

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$185 11.7%

Newcastle upon Tyne

$305 13.6% 64.5% $120

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11%

Newcastle upon Tyne

$317 14.1% 82.6% $143

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$141 8.9%

Newcastle upon Tyne

$151 6.7% 7.8% $11

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.8%

Newcastle upon Tyne

$115 5.1% 52.9% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Newcastle upon Tyne

$58 2.6% 13.4% $8.9

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,015 in Cape Town versus $1,341 in Newcastle upon Tyne. 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 106% higher in Newcastle upon Tyne, 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 $98.0 in Newcastle upon Tyne. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $222 vs $304 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇬🇧 Newcastle upon Tyne

🕒 Local time

12:47 12:47 PM

11:47 11:47 AM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

809,000

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, 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).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.847 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Newcastle upon Tyne 10,070 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Newcastle upon Tyne

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 Newcastle upon Tyne: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Newcastle upon Tyne costs about 42% 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 $2,352 per month in Cape Town and $3,332 in Newcastle upon Tyne. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cape Town, 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 $2,221 in Newcastle upon Tyne. That's a gap of about 42%.

Public transport costs about 44% less in Cape Town. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Cape Town, where all-in costs run around $1,568, than in Newcastle upon Tyne at $2,221. In Cape Town it covers expenses comfortably, while in Newcastle upon Tyne it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cape Town costs $1,568 versus $2,221 in Newcastle upon Tyne. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Cape Town. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Newcastle upon Tyne makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.