Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Oskemen

For one person, living is cheaper in Oskemen: $897 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 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
43

Cost of Living Index in Oskemen
Learn more

Oskemen Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Oskemen

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan

$897

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,568 per month in Cape Town vs $897 in Oskemen, rent included.

Cape Town $1,568
Oskemen $897

A couple spends around $2,438 per month in Cape Town vs $1,498 in Oskemen, rent included.

Cape Town $2,438
Oskemen $1,498

A family of three spends $3,307 per month in Cape Town vs $2,099 in Oskemen, rent included.

Cape Town $3,307
Oskemen $2,099

Cape Town costs about 75% more than Oskemen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Oskemen is 33% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.78 R 194

$12.96 ₸5,876

-9.10%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.55 R 768

$26.65 ₸12.1K

74.67%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.96 R 98.4

$3.96 ₸1,796

50.51%

Cappuccino

$2.47 R 40.80

$3.41 ₸1,545

-27.57%

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

$1.33 R 21.91

$1.02 ₸460

30.39%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 R 16.99

$0.58 ₸265

77.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.01 R 49.72

$1.57 ₸714

91.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 R 60.4

$1.68 ₸760

117.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 R 22.96

$1.41 ₸641

-1.42%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 R 19.60

$0.50 ₸225

138.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.11 R 34.84

$1.29 ₸583

63.57%

Eggs

$3.01 R 49.58

$1.72 ₸779

75.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.96 R 148

$10.25 ₸4,647

-12.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.65 R 110

$5.73 ₸2,599

16.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.29 R 153

$7.97 ₸3,612

16.56%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.13

$1.15 ₸519

59.13%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 R 31.31

$1.98 ₸898

-4.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.75 R 28.83

$2.61 ₸1,183

-32.95%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.09 R 34.41

$2.52 ₸1,141

-17.06%

Potato (1kg)

$1.55 R 25.64

$0.89 ₸402

74.16%

Onion (1kg)

$1.49 R 24.53

$0.49 ₸221

204.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$0.31 ₸143

319.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 R 19.19

$1.05 ₸475

10.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.71 R 61.2

$2.13 ₸967

74.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.06 R 100

$4.95 ₸2,243

22.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.85

$1.45 ₸656

-4.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 R 36.32

$1.66 ₸751

32.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.51 R 24.98

$0.26 ₸118

480.77%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.0 R 1,006

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.63 R 10.33

$1.08 ₸489

-41.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 R 25.29

$0.30 ₸134

410.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.81 R 79.4

$2.34 ₸1,060

105.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 R 26.08

$0.68 ₸307

132.35%

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

$35.5K R 585.7K

$32.3K ₸14.6M

10.03%

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

$31.7K R 523.8K

$30.1K ₸13.6M

5.56%

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

$116 R 1,920

$45.73 ₸20.7K

154.49%

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

$28.37 R 468

$11.11 ₸5,038

155.36%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.69 R 671

$22.78 ₸10.3K

78.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.85 R 806

$26.16 ₸11.9K

86.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.13 R 184

$19.98 ₸9,057

-44.29%

Cinema Ticket

$8.83 R 146

$5.02 ₸2,275

75.90%

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

$261 R 4,314

$66.5 ₸30.2K

292.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,702 R 110.6K

$2,760 ₸1.3M

142.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.4 R 914

$115 ₸52.1K

-51.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.27 R 532

$80.4 ₸36.4K

-59.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 R 1,939

$98.0 ₸44.5K

19.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 R 1,766

$122 ₸55.4K

-12.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,015 R 16.7K

$341 ₸154.5K

197.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$715 R 11.8K

$224 ₸101.7K

218.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,801 R 29.7K

$650 ₸294.8K

176.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,330 R 22.0K

$576 ₸261.0K

131.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,331 R 38.5K

$1,118 ₸507.1K

108.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,513 R 25.0K

$810 ₸367.4K

86.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,636 R 27.0K

$794 ₸360.0K

106.04%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

19.5

-43.74%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Last update for Oskemen: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$715 45.3%

Oskemen

$224 25% 68.6% $491

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$222 14.1%

Oskemen

$193 21.5% 13.2% $29

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$185 11.7%

Oskemen

$80 8.9% 57.1% $106

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11%

Oskemen

$174 19.4% 0.3% $0.4

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$141 8.9%

Oskemen

$187 20.8% 33.1% $47

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.8%

Oskemen

$3.6 * 0.4% 95.2% $72

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Oskemen

$36 4% 45.6% $30

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,015 in Cape Town versus $341 in Oskemen. 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 Cape Town, 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 $27.00 in Oskemen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $222 vs $193 – making Oskemen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇰🇿 Oskemen

🕒 Local time

12:12 12:12 PM

16:12 4:12 PM

4 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

354,770

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Kazakhstani Tenge KZT ₸

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

1,000 KZT = 2.21 USD

1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KZT, 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).

Kazakhstani Tenge exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 453 KZT (1,000 KZT = 2.21 USD). 1 EUR = 508 KZT (1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Oskemen 11,260 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Oskemen

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 Oskemen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 75% more than Oskemen, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. 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 $1,346 in Oskemen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Oskemen, 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 $897 in Oskemen. That's a gap of about 75%.

Kindergarten costs $261 per month in Cape Town and $66.5 in Oskemen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Oskemen, where all-in costs run around $897, than in Cape Town at $1,568. In Oskemen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cape Town it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Oskemen costs $897 versus $1,568 in Cape Town. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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