Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Peshawar

For one person, living is cheaper in Peshawar: $435 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $13,600 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
22

Cost of Living Index in Peshawar
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Peshawar Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Peshawar

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$435

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,568 per month in Cape Town vs $435 in Peshawar, rent included.

Cape Town $1,568
Peshawar $435

A couple spends around $2,438 per month in Cape Town vs $628 in Peshawar, rent included.

Cape Town $2,438
Peshawar $628

A family of three spends $3,307 per month in Cape Town vs $820 in Peshawar, rent included.

Cape Town $3,307
Peshawar $820

Cape Town costs about 260% more than Peshawar, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Peshawar is 68% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.78 R 194

$2.43 PKR 672

384.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.55 R 768

$8.92 PKR 2,470

421.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.96 R 98.4

$5.29 PKR 1,465

12.67%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.15 PKR 595

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.91 PKR 806

Cappuccino

$2.47 R 40.80

$2.63 PKR 727

-6.08%

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

$1.33 R 21.91

$0.35 PKR 97.1

280.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 R 16.99

$0.21 PKR 57.7

390.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.01 R 49.72

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 R 60.4

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 R 22.96

$0.95 PKR 262

46.32%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 R 19.60

$0.77 PKR 214

54.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.11 R 34.84

$1.05 PKR 291

100.95%

Eggs

$3.01 R 49.58

$1.11 PKR 308

171.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.96 R 148

$3.53 PKR 977

153.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.65 R 110

$3.28 PKR 907

102.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.29 R 153

$3.79 PKR 1,050

145.12%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.13

$1.22 PKR 339

50.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 R 31.31

$0.53 PKR 146

258.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.75 R 28.83

$0.62 PKR 171

182.26%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.09 R 34.41

$0.51 PKR 141

309.80%

Potato (1kg)

$1.55 R 25.64

$0.26 PKR 71.5

496.15%

Onion (1kg)

$1.49 R 24.53

$0.31 PKR 84.6

380.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$0.28 PKR 77.1

364.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 R 19.19

$0.27 PKR 74.7

329.63%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.93 PKR 534

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.69 PKR 191

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.74 PKR 206

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.71 R 61.2

$1.78 PKR 493

108.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.06 R 100

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.85

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 R 36.32

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.51 R 24.98

$0.23 PKR 63.8

556.52%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.0 R 1,006

$12.40 PKR 3,432

391.61%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.63 R 10.33

$1.11 PKR 307

-43.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 R 25.29

$0.74 PKR 206

106.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.81 R 79.4

$1.40 PKR 389

243.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 R 26.08

$1.18 PKR 328

33.90%

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

$35.5K R 585.7K

$22.3K PKR 6.2M

59.34%

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

$31.7K R 523.8K

$24.0K PKR 6.6M

32.42%

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

$116 R 1,920

$103 PKR 28.6K

12.80%

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

$28.37 R 468

$5.89 PKR 1,630

381.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.69 R 671

$14.40 PKR 3,986

182.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.85 R 806

$15.12 PKR 4,184

223.08%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.13 R 184

$5.91 PKR 1,636

88.32%

Cinema Ticket

$8.83 R 146

$1.98 PKR 548

345.96%

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

$261 R 4,314

$47.06 PKR 13.0K

455.57%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,702 R 110.6K

$5,113 PKR 1.4M

31.08%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.4 R 914

$7.42 PKR 2,053

646.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.27 R 532

$16.32 PKR 4,516

97.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 R 1,939

$50.4 PKR 14.0K

132.97%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 R 1,766

$40.55 PKR 11.2K

164.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,015 R 16.7K

$127 PKR 35.1K

700.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$715 R 11.8K

$76.8 PKR 21.2K

832.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,801 R 29.7K

$200 PKR 55.4K

799.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,330 R 22.0K

$115 PKR 31.9K

1055.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,331 R 38.5K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,513 R 25.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,636 R 27.0K

$148 PKR 40.9K

1007.27%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

-0.27%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Last update for Peshawar: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$715 45.3%

Peshawar

$77 17.4% 89.3% $639

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$222 14.1%

Peshawar

$84 19.1% 62.1% $138

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$185 11.7%

Peshawar

$123 27.9% 33.4% $62

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11%

Peshawar

$69 15.6% 60.2% $105

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$141 8.9%

Peshawar

$52 11.7% 63.3% $89

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.8%

Peshawar

$18 4.1% 75.9% $57

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Peshawar

$19 4.3% 71.3% $47

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,015 in Cape Town versus $127 in Peshawar. 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 1007% 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 $9.00 in Peshawar. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $222 vs $84.0 – making Peshawar the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇵🇰 Peshawar

🕒 Local time

09:04 9:04 AM

12:04 12:04 PM

3 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

1,970,042

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PKR, 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 = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 277 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD). 1 EUR = 310 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Peshawar 9,370 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Peshawar

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 Peshawar: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 260% more than Peshawar, 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 $2,352 per month in Cape Town and $653 in Peshawar. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Peshawar, 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 $435 in Peshawar. That's a gap of about 260%.

Public transport costs about 392% less in Peshawar. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Peshawar, where all-in costs run around $435, than in Cape Town at $1,568. In Peshawar 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. Peshawar costs $435 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 Peshawar. 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.