Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Polokwane

For one person, living is cheaper in Polokwane: $959 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $7,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in Polokwane
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Polokwane Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Polokwane

🇿🇦 South Africa

$959

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,586 per month in Cape Town vs $959 in Polokwane, rent included.

Cape Town $1,586
Polokwane $959

A couple spends around $2,425 per month in Cape Town vs $1,417 in Polokwane, rent included.

Cape Town $2,425
Polokwane $1,417

A family of three spends $3,263 per month in Cape Town vs $1,875 in Polokwane, rent included.

Cape Town $3,263
Polokwane $1,875

Cape Town costs about 65% more than Polokwane, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Polokwane is 29% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$12.24 R 202

-0.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$29.66 R 489

52.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$7.46 R 123

-21.18%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$2.38 R 39.26

5.04%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$0.77 R 12.68

64.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$0.88 R 14.47

11.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 R 49.33

$1.68 R 27.65

77.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 R 61.4

$1.88 R 30.95

97.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.40

$1.32 R 21.71

-1.52%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$1.08 R 17.82

15.74%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$1.70 R 28.03

31.18%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$2.65 R 43.69

17.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$7.84 R 129

15.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$4.59 R 75.6

50.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$6.04 R 99.6

53.97%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$2.01 R 33.19

-8.46%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$1.85 R 30.53

5.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$1.81 R 29.80

-7.73%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$1.96 R 32.30

10.71%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$1.67 R 27.49

-5.99%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$1.50 R 24.73

-1.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$1.12 R 18.48

16.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$0.82 R 13.46

37.80%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$2.68 R 44.22

34.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.15 R 101

$4.87 R 80.2

26.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.66

$1.15 R 18.88

20.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 R 35.20

$1.61 R 26.54

32.92%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R 24.65

$0.92 R 15.22

63.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$30.03 R 495

102.30%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.59 R 9.71

$0.87 R 14.41

-32.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

$0.95 R 15.66

57.89%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

$14.36 R 237

-64.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.50

$1.43 R 23.52

8.39%

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

$36.2K R 596.5K

$26.1K R 430.1K

38.70%

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

$28.5K R 469.0K

9.77%

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

$114 R 1,883

$138 R 2,281

-17.43%

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

$28.91 R 476

$38.10 R 628

-24.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$32.99 R 544

20.43%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

$23.29 R 384

110.43%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$8.00 R 132

14.38%

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

$259 R 4,264

$179 R 2,946

44.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

$1,452 R 23.9K

368.02%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

$45.30 R 746

24.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

$37.73 R 622

-14.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

$80.6 R 1,328

49.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

$93.7 R 1,544

15.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

$290 R 4,785

251.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

$203 R 3,338

253.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

$420 R 6,922

334.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

$284 R 4,683

366.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

$1,343 R 22.1K

22.02%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

10.91

0.55%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Last update for Polokwane: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Polokwane

$203 21.1% 71.7% $514

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

Polokwane

$185 19.3% 17.7% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

Polokwane

$210 21.8% 14.5% $27

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

Polokwane

$168 17.5% 4.8% $8.5

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Polokwane

$116 12.1% 18.9% $27

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

Polokwane

$39 4.1% 47.4% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Polokwane

$39 4.1% 41.6% $28

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,021 in Cape Town versus $290 in Polokwane. 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 22% 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 $45.00 in Cape Town versus $30.00 in Polokwane. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $225 vs $185 – making Polokwane the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇿🇦 Polokwane

🕒 Local time

18:46 6:46 PM

Same time as Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

628,999

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Cape Town Polokwane 1,550 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Polokwane

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 Polokwane: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 65% more than Polokwane, 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 $2,379 per month in Cape Town and $1,439 in Polokwane. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Polokwane, 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 $1,586 in Cape Town and $959 in Polokwane. That's a gap of about 65%.

Public transport costs about 102% less in Polokwane. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Polokwane, where all-in costs run around $959, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Polokwane 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. Polokwane costs $959 versus $1,586 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 Polokwane. 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.