Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Port Louis

For one person, living is cheaper in Port Louis: $945 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $7,500 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
46

Cost of Living Index in Port Louis
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Port Louis Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Port Louis

🇲🇺 Mauritius

$945

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cape Town and in Port Louis

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

A single person spends $1,568 per month in Cape Town vs $945 in Port Louis, rent included.

Cape Town $1,568
Port Louis $945

A couple spends around $2,438 per month in Cape Town vs $1,579 in Port Louis, rent included.

Cape Town $2,438
Port Louis $1,579

A family of three spends $3,307 per month in Cape Town vs $2,212 in Port Louis, rent included.

Cape Town $3,307
Port Louis $2,212

Cape Town costs about 66% more than Port Louis, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.78 R 194

$5.65 MUR 267

108.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.55 R 768

$37.50 MUR 1,774

24.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.96 R 98.4

$7.21 MUR 341

-17.34%

Cappuccino

$2.47 R 40.80

$2.55 MUR 120

-3.14%

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

$1.33 R 21.91

$1.11 MUR 52.5

19.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 R 16.99

$0.62 MUR 29.19

66.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.01 R 49.72

$2.56 MUR 121

17.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 R 60.4

$4.83 MUR 229

-24.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 R 22.96

$1.51 MUR 71.7

-7.95%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 R 19.60

$0.78 MUR 36.74

52.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.11 R 34.84

$1.14 MUR 54.0

85.09%

Eggs

$3.01 R 49.58

$2.50 MUR 118

20.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.96 R 148

$5.24 MUR 248

70.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.65 R 110

$6.23 MUR 295

6.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.29 R 153

$11.33 MUR 536

-18.01%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.13

$2.70 MUR 128

-32.22%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 R 31.31

$2.56 MUR 121

-25.78%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.75 R 28.83

$1.42 MUR 67.3

23.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.09 R 34.41

$3.00 MUR 142

-30.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.55 R 25.64

$0.93 MUR 44.18

66.67%

Onion (1kg)

$1.49 R 24.53

$0.94 MUR 44.62

58.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$0.73 MUR 34.51

78.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 R 19.19

$0.85 MUR 40.11

36.47%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.71 R 61.2

$6.48 MUR 307

-42.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.06 R 100

$8.16 MUR 386

-25.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.85

$1.61 MUR 76.3

-13.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 R 36.32

$2.36 MUR 112

-6.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.51 R 24.98

$1.02 MUR 48.21

48.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.0 R 1,006

$31.09 MUR 1,471

96.08%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.63 R 10.33

$4.24 MUR 200

-85.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 R 25.29

$3.16 MUR 149

-51.58%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.81 R 79.4

$21.17 MUR 1,001

-77.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 R 26.08

$1.40 MUR 66.2

12.86%

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

$35.5K R 585.7K

$36.0K MUR 1.7M

-1.38%

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

$31.7K R 523.8K

$31.0K MUR 1.5M

2.30%

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

$116 R 1,920

$43.83 MUR 2,073

165.53%

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

$28.37 R 468

$10.37 MUR 490

173.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.69 R 671

$28.41 MUR 1,344

43.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.85 R 806

$25.62 MUR 1,212

90.67%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.13 R 184

$3.88 MUR 184

186.86%

Cinema Ticket

$8.83 R 146

$6.20 MUR 293

42.42%

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

$261 R 4,314

$125 MUR 5,930

108.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,702 R 110.6K

$7,687 MUR 363.7K

-12.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.4 R 914

$76.2 MUR 3,607

-27.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.27 R 532

$73.4 MUR 3,471

-56.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 R 1,939

$118 MUR 5,569

-0.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 R 1,766

$77.4 MUR 3,663

38.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,015 R 16.7K

$465 MUR 22.0K

118.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$715 R 11.8K

$269 MUR 12.7K

166.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,801 R 29.7K

$761 MUR 36.0K

136.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,330 R 22.0K

$588 MUR 27.8K

126.38%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,331 R 38.5K

$4,109 MUR 194.4K

-43.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,513 R 25.0K

$1,047 MUR 49.6K

44.44%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,636 R 27.0K

$670 MUR 31.7K

144.21%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

6.67

64.47%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Last update for Port Louis: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$715 45.3%

Port Louis

$269 28.5% 62.5% $447

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$222 14.1%

Port Louis

$215 22.8% 3.4% $7.6

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$185 11.7%

Port Louis

$83 8.8% 55.5% $103

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11%

Port Louis

$127 13.5% 27% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$141 8.9%

Port Louis

$155 16.5% 10.4% $15

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.8%

Port Louis

$55 5.9% 26.7% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Port Louis

$38 4% 42.8% $28

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,015 in Cape Town versus $465 in Port Louis. 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 144% 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 $37.00 in Port Louis. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $222 vs $215 – making Port Louis the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇲🇺 Port Louis

🕒 Local time

13:36 1:36 PM

15:36 3:36 PM

2 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

147,688 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Mauritian Rupee MUR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

100 MUR = 2.11 USD

100 MUR = 1.89 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MUR, 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).

Mauritian Rupee exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 47.31 MUR (100 MUR = 2.11 USD). 1 EUR = 53.01 MUR (100 MUR = 1.89 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Port Louis 4,130 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Port Louis

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 Port Louis: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 66% more than Port Louis, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. 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 $1,418 in Port Louis. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Port Louis, 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 $945 in Port Louis. That's a gap of about 66%.

Public transport costs about 96% less in Port Louis. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Port Louis, where all-in costs run around $945, than in Cape Town at $1,568. In Port Louis 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. Port Louis costs $945 versus $1,568 in Cape Town. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Port Louis. 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.