Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Salalah

For one person, living is cheaper in Salalah: $1,059 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cape Town outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
52

Cost of Living Index in Salalah
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Salalah Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Salalah

🇴🇲 Oman

$1,059

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,568 per month in Cape Town vs $1,059 in Salalah, rent included.

Cape Town $1,568
Salalah $1,059

A couple spends around $2,438 per month in Cape Town vs $1,599 in Salalah, rent included.

Cape Town $2,438
Salalah $1,599

A family of three spends $3,307 per month in Cape Town vs $2,138 in Salalah, rent included.

Cape Town $3,307
Salalah $2,138

Cape Town costs about 48% more than Salalah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Salalah is 21% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.78 R 194

$5.31 OMR 2.05

121.85%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.55 R 768

$26.43 OMR 10.17

76.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.96 R 98.4

$12.97 OMR 4.99

-54.05%

Cappuccino

$2.47 R 40.80

$6.09 OMR 2.34

-59.44%

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

$1.33 R 21.91

$0.90 OMR 0.35

47.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 R 16.99

$0.25 OMR 0.10

312.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.01 R 49.72

$9.33 OMR 3.59

-67.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 R 60.4

$10.30 OMR 3.96

-64.47%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 R 22.96

$1.93 OMR 0.74

-27.98%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 R 19.60

$1.23 OMR 0.47

-3.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.11 R 34.84

$2.66 OMR 1.03

-20.68%

Eggs

$3.01 R 49.58

$1.82 OMR 0.70

65.38%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.96 R 148

$4.58 OMR 1.76

95.63%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.65 R 110

$4.62 OMR 1.78

43.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.29 R 153

$6.61 OMR 2.55

40.54%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.13

$1.91 OMR 0.74

-4.19%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 R 31.31

$1.87 OMR 0.72

1.60%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.75 R 28.83

$2.12 OMR 0.82

-17.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.09 R 34.41

$1.87 OMR 0.72

11.76%

Potato (1kg)

$1.55 R 25.64

$1.52 OMR 0.59

1.97%

Onion (1kg)

$1.49 R 24.53

$1.03 OMR 0.40

44.66%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$1.04 OMR 0.40

25.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 R 19.19

$0.48 OMR 0.18

141.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.71 R 61.2

$5.84 OMR 2.25

-36.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.06 R 100

$19.73 OMR 7.60

-69.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.85

$3.81 OMR 1.47

-63.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 R 36.32

$4.76 OMR 1.83

-53.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.51 R 24.98

$1.32 OMR 0.51

14.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.0 R 1,006

$55.3 OMR 21.27

10.33%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.63 R 10.33

$2.31 OMR 0.89

-72.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 R 25.29

$1.32 OMR 0.51

15.91%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.81 R 79.4

$11.49 OMR 4.42

-58.14%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 R 26.08

$0.61 OMR 0.23

159.02%

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

$35.5K R 585.7K

$20.8K OMR 8,004

70.75%

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

$31.7K R 523.8K

$18.3K OMR 7,048

73.44%

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

$116 R 1,920

$78.1 OMR 30.07

49.00%

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

$28.37 R 468

$49.55 OMR 19.08

-42.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.69 R 671

$74.3 OMR 28.59

-45.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.85 R 806

$39.58 OMR 15.24

23.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.13 R 184

$26.22 OMR 10.10

-57.55%

Cinema Ticket

$8.83 R 146

$7.81 OMR 3.01

13.06%

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

$261 R 4,314

$106 OMR 40.78

146.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,702 R 110.6K

$1,942 OMR 747

245.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.4 R 914

$28.74 OMR 11.06

92.76%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.27 R 532

$30.76 OMR 11.84

4.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 R 1,939

$57.8 OMR 22.23

103.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 R 1,766

$46.20 OMR 17.79

131.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,015 R 16.7K

$251 OMR 96.5

305.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$715 R 11.8K

$205 OMR 79.0

248.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,801 R 29.7K

$642 OMR 247

180.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,330 R 22.0K

$382 OMR 147

247.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,331 R 38.5K

$1,981 OMR 763

17.68%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,513 R 25.0K

$1,240 OMR 477

21.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,636 R 27.0K

$1,771 OMR 682

-7.59%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

4.58

139.52%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Last update for Salalah: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$715 45.3%

Salalah

$205 19.3% 71.3% $510

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$222 14.1%

Salalah

$229 21.6% 3.1% $6.9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$185 11.7%

Salalah

$202 19% 8.9% $16

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11%

Salalah

$226 21.3% 30.3% $53

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$141 8.9%

Salalah

$74 6.9% 47.7% $67

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.8%

Salalah

$69 6.6% 7.7% $5.8

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Salalah

$55 5.2% 17% $11

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,015 in Cape Town versus $251 in Salalah. 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 8% higher in Salalah, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47.00 in Cape Town versus $26.00 in Salalah. Groceries tell a different story – $222 in Cape Town vs $229 in Salalah – so Cape Town wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇴🇲 Salalah

🕒 Local time

13:24 1:24 PM

15:24 3:24 PM

2 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

178,469

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Omani Rial OMR ر.ع.

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

1 OMR = 2.6 USD

1 OMR = 2.32 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

OMR, 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).

Omani Rial exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.385 OMR (1 OMR = 2.6 USD). 1 EUR = 0.431 OMR (1 OMR = 2.32 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Salalah 6,810 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Salalah

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 Salalah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 48% more than Salalah, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from clothing. 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 $1,589 in Salalah. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Salalah, 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 $1,059 in Salalah. That's a gap of about 48%.

Public transport costs about 10% less in Salalah. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Salalah, where all-in costs run around $1,059, than in Cape Town at $1,568. In Salalah 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. Salalah costs $1,059 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 Salalah. 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.