Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and North Macedonia

For one person, living is cheaper in North Macedonia: $930 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Cape Town, South Africa
North Macedonia
Cape Town
🇿🇦 South Africa
$1,527
/mo nomad
🇲🇰 North Macedonia
$930
/mo nomad
😐 Solo nomad: Cape Town is 34.6% more expensive than North Macedonia without rent, and 64.3% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Cape Town is 33.7% more expensive than North Macedonia without rent, and 80% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Cape Town
North Macedonia
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$12.01 R 199
$7.13 MKD 388
68.44%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.92 R 709
$26.99 MKD 1,470
59.02%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$6.15 R 102
$5.41 MKD 295
13.68%
Cappuccino
$2.37 R 39.16
$1.69 MKD 92.3
40.24%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.27 R 21.03
$1.61 MKD 87.8
-21.12%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.94 R 15.50
$1.23 MKD 66.8
-23.58%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.96 R 48.92
$2.24 MKD 122
32.14%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.69 R 61.0
$2.77 MKD 151
33.21%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Cape Town
North Macedonia
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.32 R 21.80
$1.31 MKD 71.2
0.76%
White Bread (500g)
$1.21 R 19.93
$0.72 MKD 39.18
68.06%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.20 R 36.37
$1.59 MKD 86.8
38.36%
Eggs
$3.10 R 51.3
$2.21 MKD 121
40.27%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.73 R 144
$7.86 MKD 428
11.07%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.89 R 114
$6.54 MKD 357
5.35%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$9.26 R 153
$12.20 MKD 664
-24.10%
Apples (1kg)
$1.83 R 30.17
$1.16 MKD 63.0
57.76%
Banana (1kg)
$1.95 R 32.22
$1.45 MKD 78.9
34.48%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.66 R 27.40
$1.33 MKD 72.6
24.81%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.14 R 35.30
$1.82 MKD 99.3
17.58%
Potato (1kg)
$1.58 R 26.09
$0.88 MKD 47.93
79.55%
Onion (1kg)
$1.47 R 24.37
$1.01 MKD 54.9
45.54%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.35 R 22.25
$0.62 MKD 34.02
117.74%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.14 R 18.91
$0.55 MKD 29.83
107.27%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.58 R 59.1
$3.30 MKD 180
8.48%
Wine (Bottle)
$6.05 R 100
$5.50 MKD 299
10.00%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.39 R 23.02
$1.01 MKD 55.2
37.62%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.18 R 36.01
$1.36 MKD 74.2
60.29%
🚌 Getting Around
Cape Town
North Macedonia
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.40 R 23.09
$0.76 MKD 41.14
84.21%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$60.8 R 1,004
$25.85 MKD 1,408
135.01%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.93 R 15.31
$1.28 MKD 69.9
-27.34%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.90 R 14.88
$0.71 MKD 38.86
26.76%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$4.96 R 82.0
$7.44 MKD 405
-33.33%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.54 R 25.45
$1.46 MKD 79.4
5.48%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$35.4K R 584.6K
$33.6K MKD 1.8M
5.18%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$33.4K R 551.6K
$27.9K MKD 1.5M
19.59%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cape Town
North Macedonia
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$117 R 1,935
$144 MKD 7,867
-18.93%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$25.71 R 425
$17.18 MKD 936
49.65%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$39.41 R 651
$16.96 MKD 924
132.37%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Cape Town
North Macedonia
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$51.6 R 853
$27.09 MKD 1,476
90.51%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$11.35 R 188
$14.74 MKD 803
-23.00%
Cinema Ticket
$8.89 R 147
$6.53 MKD 356
36.14%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Cape Town
North Macedonia
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$308 R 5,085
$286 MKD 15.6K
7.41%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$8,141 R 134.6K
$7,525 MKD 410.0K
8.19%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Cape Town
North Macedonia
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$57.4 R 948
$66.4 MKD 3,618
-13.58%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$31.75 R 525
$37.55 MKD 2,045
-15.45%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$116 R 1,917
$86.6 MKD 4,720
33.86%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$101 R 1,665
$101 MKD 5,503
-0.31%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Cape Town
North Macedonia
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,047 R 17.3K
$297 MKD 16.2K
252.53%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$669 R 11.1K
$235 MKD 12.8K
185.27%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,861 R 30.8K
$538 MKD 29.3K
245.52%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,407 R 23.3K
$360 MKD 19.6K
291.16%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,410 R 39.8K
$1,888 MKD 102.9K
27.63%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,570 R 25.9K
$1,309 MKD 71.3K
19.92%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Cape Town
North Macedonia
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,630 R 26.9K
$736 MKD 40.1K
121.37%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
10.89
4.69
132.20%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for North Macedonia: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Cape Town
$669
North Macedonia
$235 64.9% $435
Groceries & Markets
Cape Town
$223
North Macedonia
$190 15% $33
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cape Town
$182
North Macedonia
$179 2% $3.7
Eating Out
Cape Town
$174
North Macedonia
$122 30.1% $52
Clothing & Footwear
Cape Town
$138
North Macedonia
$131 4.6% $6.4
Getting Around
Cape Town
$72
North Macedonia
$34 53% $38
Sport & Entertainment
Cape Town
$69
North Macedonia
$40 42.2% $29
Good to know
🇿🇦 Cape Town
🇲🇰 North Macedonia
🕒 Local time
15:45 3:45 PM
14:45 2:45 PM
1 h behind Cape Town
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
3,740,026 Capital
1,836,713
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

MKD, USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.53 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.05 USD). 1 EUR = 18.56 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR).

North Macedonian Denar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 54.48 MKD (100 MKD = 1.84 USD). 1 EUR = 61.19 MKD (100 MKD = 1.63 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Cape Town North Macedonia 8,450 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Cape Town
  • North Macedonia

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

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