Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Sfantu Gheorghe

For one person, living is cheaper in Sfantu Gheorghe: $813 a month against $1,599 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $9,400 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
39

Cost of Living Index in Sfantu Gheorghe
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Sfantu Gheorghe Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,599

/mo nomad

Sfantu Gheorghe

🇷🇴 Romania

$813

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cape Town and in Sfantu Gheorghe

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

A single person spends $1,599 per month in Cape Town vs $813 in Sfantu Gheorghe, rent included.

Cape Town $1,599
Sfantu Gheorghe $813

A couple spends around $2,460 per month in Cape Town vs $1,297 in Sfantu Gheorghe, rent included.

Cape Town $2,460
Sfantu Gheorghe $1,297

A family of three spends $3,320 per month in Cape Town vs $1,781 in Sfantu Gheorghe, rent included.

Cape Town $3,320
Sfantu Gheorghe $1,781

Cape Town costs about 97% more than Sfantu Gheorghe, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Cape Town sits 18% above the global median, while Sfantu Gheorghe is 40% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.07 R 199

$8.56 RON 40.51

41.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.65 R 769

$41.50 RON 196

12.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.20 R 102

$7.21 RON 34.10

-14.01%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.13

$2.54 RON 12.04

-1.57%

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

$1.35 R 22.28

$1.23 RON 5.81

9.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.00 R 16.47

$1.07 RON 5.06

-6.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.06 R 50.4

$2.48 RON 11.74

23.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 R 60.5

$2.16 RON 10.20

69.91%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.45

$1.39 RON 6.55

-6.47%

White Bread (500g)

$1.27 R 20.89

$1.13 RON 5.36

12.39%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.68

$1.40 RON 6.64

55.00%

Eggs

$3.09 R 50.9

$3.28 RON 15.52

-5.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.98 R 148

$7.81 RON 36.97

14.98%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.99 R 115

$4.61 RON 21.83

51.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.67 R 159

$7.72 RON 36.51

25.26%

Apples (1kg)

$1.87 R 30.78

$1.08 RON 5.11

73.15%

Banana (1kg)

$1.93 R 31.72

$1.51 RON 7.14

27.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.77 R 29.13

$1.17 RON 5.52

51.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 R 35.86

$2.52 RON 11.92

-13.49%

Potato (1kg)

$1.52 R 25.07

$0.69 RON 3.27

120.29%

Onion (1kg)

$1.56 R 25.63

$0.60 RON 2.84

160.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.32 R 21.74

$1.03 RON 4.86

28.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 R 18.97

$0.81 RON 3.81

41.98%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.72 R 61.4

$4.90 RON 23.17

-24.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.01 R 99.0

$7.42 RON 35.10

-19.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.34 R 22.13

$0.96 RON 4.56

39.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.13 R 35.11

$1.07 RON 5.05

99.07%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.55 R 25.53

$0.87 RON 4.10

78.16%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.3 R 1,010

$15.61 RON 73.9

292.63%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.60 R 9.85

$1.00 RON 4.72

-40.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.54 R 25.36

$0.88 RON 4.17

75.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.01 R 82.5

$8.38 RON 39.63

-40.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.60 R 26.33

$1.62 RON 7.68

-1.23%

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

$35.4K R 583.4K

$28.9K RON 136.9K

22.41%

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

$34.7K R 570.9K

$24.9K RON 117.8K

39.20%

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

$119 R 1,955

$113 RON 536

4.69%

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

$29.42 R 485

$9.41 RON 44.53

212.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.81 R 656

$12.23 RON 57.9

225.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.8 R 836

$40.71 RON 193

24.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.93 R 180

$20.72 RON 98.0

-47.25%

Cinema Ticket

$8.99 R 148

$3.13 RON 14.80

187.22%

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

$261 R 4,303

$444 RON 2,102

-41.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,966 R 114.8K

$6,646 RON 31.4K

4.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.1 R 925

$25.88 RON 122

116.89%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.26 R 548

$13.62 RON 64.4

144.20%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,999

$39.45 RON 187

207.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,779

$63.3 RON 299

70.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,028 R 16.9K

$294 RON 1,389

250.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$720 R 11.9K

$212 RON 1,003

239.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,835 R 30.2K

$524 RON 2,479

250.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,360 R 22.4K

$401 RON 1,897

239.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,407 R 39.6K

$1,843 RON 8,718

30.60%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,504 R 24.8K

$1,362 RON 6,445

10.44%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,649 R 27.2K

$691 RON 3,271

138.49%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

6.75

62.52%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 20, 2026

Last update for Sfantu Gheorghe: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$720 45%

Sfantu Gheorghe

$212 26.1% 70.5% $508

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$226 14.2%

Sfantu Gheorghe

$184 22.6% 18.6% $42

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$188 11.8%

Sfantu Gheorghe

$135 16.6% 28.2% $53

Eating Out

Cape Town

$177 11.1%

Sfantu Gheorghe

$147 18% 17.3% $31

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Sfantu Gheorghe

$64 7.9% 55.4% $79

Getting Around

Cape Town

$76 4.7%

Sfantu Gheorghe

$24 3% 67.7% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.3%

Sfantu Gheorghe

$47 5.8% 31.7% $22

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,028 in Cape Town versus $294 in Sfantu Gheorghe. 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 138% 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 $41.00 in Sfantu Gheorghe. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $226 vs $184 – making Sfantu Gheorghe the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇷🇴 Sfantu Gheorghe

🕒 Local time

03:07 3:07 AM

04:07 4:07 AM

1 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

56,006

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 24, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 24, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Sfantu Gheorghe 8,900 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Sfantu Gheorghe

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 Sfantu Gheorghe: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 97% more than Sfantu Gheorghe, 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 $2,398 per month in Cape Town and $1,220 in Sfantu Gheorghe. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Sfantu Gheorghe, 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 $1,599 in Cape Town and $813 in Sfantu Gheorghe. That's a gap of about 97%.

Public transport costs about 293% less in Sfantu Gheorghe. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Sfantu Gheorghe, where all-in costs run around $813, than in Cape Town at $1,599. In Sfantu Gheorghe 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. Sfantu Gheorghe costs $813 versus $1,599 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 Sfantu Gheorghe. 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.