Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Newcastle, South Africa

For one person, living is cheaper in Newcastle: $1,020 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Newcastle
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Newcastle Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Newcastle

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,020

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,527 per month in Cape Town vs $1,020 in Newcastle, rent included.

Cape Town $1,527
Newcastle $1,020

A couple spends around $2,417 per month in Cape Town vs $1,627 in Newcastle, rent included.

Cape Town $2,417
Newcastle $1,627

A family of three spends $3,306 per month in Cape Town vs $2,235 in Newcastle, rent included.

Cape Town $3,306
Newcastle $2,235

Cape Town costs about 50% more than Newcastle, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Cape Town sits 13% above the global median, while Newcastle is 25% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 197

$9.14 R 150

31.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 704

$36.28 R 595

18.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 101

$5.33 R 87.4

15.38%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 38.87

$2.28 R 37.39

3.95%

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

$1.27 R 20.87

$1.03 R 16.83

23.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.39

$0.81 R 13.24

16.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.55

$2.36 R 38.73

25.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 60.5

$3.38 R 55.4

9.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.64

$1.19 R 19.50

10.92%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.78

$1.10 R 18.03

10.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.10

$1.34 R 21.91

64.18%

Eggs

$3.10 R 50.9

$1.83 R 30.08

69.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 143

$6.79 R 111

28.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 113

$4.97 R 81.6

38.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 152

$7.43 R 122

24.63%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 29.94

$0.84 R 13.85

117.86%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 31.99

$1.03 R 16.83

89.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.20

$0.93 R 15.23

78.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 35.04

$1.37 R 22.55

56.20%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 25.90

$0.96 R 15.69

64.58%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.19

$1.23 R 20.23

19.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.08

$0.77 R 12.62

75.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.77

$0.61 R 10.01

86.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 58.7

$3.22 R 52.9

11.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 99.3

$2.93 R 48.01

106.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.85

$1.37 R 22.50

1.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.75

$0.88 R 14.39

147.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 22.92

$1.59 R 26.10

-11.95%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 997

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.20

$0.31 R 5.16

200.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.77

$0.76 R 12.53

18.42%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 81.4

$14.48 R 238

-65.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.26

$1.53 R 25.16

0.65%

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

$35.4K R 580.2K

$35.8K R 587.8K

-1.29%

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

$33.4K R 547.5K

$34.1K R 560.0K

-2.23%

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

$117 R 1,921

$154 R 2,527

-24.00%

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

$25.71 R 422

$37.56 R 616

-31.55%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 647

$36.63 R 601

7.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 847

$32.65 R 536

58.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 186

$10.38 R 170

9.34%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$7.29 R 120

21.95%

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

$308 R 5,047

$265 R 4,353

15.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 133.6K

$6,178 R 101.4K

31.79%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 941

$52.7 R 865

8.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 521

$32.02 R 525

-0.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,903

$91.7 R 1,505

26.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,652

$82.1 R 1,347

22.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.2K

$434 R 7,116

141.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.0K

$321 R 5,260

108.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.5K

$759 R 12.4K

145.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.1K

$751 R 12.3K

87.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.5K

$676 R 11.1K

256.53%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.8K

$704 R 11.5K

123.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

11.34

-3.97%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Newcastle: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Newcastle

$321 31.5% 52.1% $349

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Newcastle

$154 15.1% 30.9% $69

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Newcastle

$228 22.4% 25.3% $46

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Newcastle

$142 14% 18.2% $32

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Newcastle

$116 11.4% 15.4% $21

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Newcastle

$11 * 1% 85.4% $61

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Newcastle

$47 4.6% 31.9% $22

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,047 in Cape Town versus $434 in Newcastle. 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 $36 in Newcastle. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $223 vs $154 – making Newcastle the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇿🇦 Newcastle

🕒 Local time

08:33 8:33 AM

Same time as Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

363,236

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.09 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.09 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Newcastle 1,290 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Newcastle

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: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 50% more than Newcastle, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. 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 $1,529 in Newcastle. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Newcastle, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $434 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,527 in Cape Town and $1,020 in Newcastle. That makes Newcastle about 33% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $308 per month in Cape Town and $265 in Newcastle. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,527 in Cape Town and $1,020 in Newcastle, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Newcastle – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.