Last update: Oct 2026
Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Sierra Leone
For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,568 a month against $1,799 in Sierra Leone, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Sierra Leone outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.
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Cape Town Living Index76Cost of Living Index in Cape TownLearn more -
Sierra Leone Living Index87Cost of Living Index in Sierra LeoneLearn more
😐 Solo nomad: Cape Town is 39.8% more expensive than Sierra Leone without rent, and 12.8% cheaper with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Cape Town is 69.6% more expensive than Sierra Leone without rent, and 161.1% more expensive with rent.
🍽 Eating Out
Cape Town
Sierra Leone
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.78 R 194
$1.95 SLL 44.6K
504.10%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$46.55 R 768
$39.59 SLL 904.5K
17.58%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.96 R 98.4
$11.02 SLL 251.8K
-45.92%
Cappuccino
$2.47 R 40.80
$2.62 SLL 59.9K
-5.73%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.33 R 21.91
$1.56 SLL 35.6K
-14.74%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.03 R 16.99
$0.87 SLL 19.8K
18.39%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.01 R 49.72
$1.94 SLL 44.4K
55.15%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.66 R 60.4
$3.55 SLL 81.1K
3.10%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Cape Town
Sierra Leone
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.39 R 22.96
$2.41 SLL 55.1K
-42.32%
White Bread (500g)
$1.19 R 19.60
$0.65 SLL 14.8K
83.08%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.11 R 34.84
$1.29 SLL 29.4K
63.57%
Eggs
$3.01 R 49.58
$1.83 SLL 41.8K
64.48%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.96 R 148
$6.93 SLL 158.4K
29.29%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.65 R 110
$10.13 SLL 231.5K
-34.35%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$9.29 R 153
$5.33 SLL 121.7K
74.30%
Apples (1kg)
$1.83 R 30.13
$7.08 SLL 161.8K
-74.15%
Banana (1kg)
$1.90 R 31.31
$2.92 SLL 66.7K
-34.93%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.75 R 28.83
$0.74 SLL 16.8K
136.49%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.09 R 34.41
$4.96 SLL 113.4K
-57.86%
Potato (1kg)
$1.55 R 25.64
$2.05 SLL 46.8K
-24.39%
Onion (1kg)
$1.49 R 24.53
$1.59 SLL 36.3K
-6.29%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.30 R 21.41
-
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Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.16 R 19.19
$1.16 SLL 26.5K
-
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.71 R 61.2
$3.06 SLL 69.9K
21.24%
Wine (Bottle)
$6.06 R 100
$8.20 SLL 187.4K
-26.10%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.39 R 22.85
$1.58 SLL 36.1K
-12.03%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.20 R 36.32
$1.95 SLL 44.6K
12.82%
🚌 Getting Around
Cape Town
Sierra Leone
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.51 R 24.98
$0.45 SLL 10.2K
235.56%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$61.0 R 1,006
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Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.63 R 10.33
$0.49 SLL 11.1K
28.57%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.53 R 25.29
$0.48 SLL 11.1K
218.75%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$4.81 R 79.4
-
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Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.58 R 26.08
$1.36 SLL 31.1K
16.18%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$35.5K R 585.7K
$12.1K SLL 277.1M
192.65%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$31.7K R 523.8K
$25.1K SLL 573.3M
26.53%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cape Town
Sierra Leone
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$116 R 1,920
$59.0 SLL 1.3M
97.39%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$28.37 R 468
$17.67 SLL 403.7K
60.55%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$40.69 R 671
$51.6 SLL 1.2M
-21.08%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Cape Town
Sierra Leone
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$48.85 R 806
-
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$11.13 R 184
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$8.83 R 146
-
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🧸 Childcare & Education
Cape Town
Sierra Leone
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$261 R 4,314
-
-
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$6,702 R 110.6K
-
-
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Cape Town
Sierra Leone
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$55.4 R 914
$10.03 SLL 229.3K
452.34%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$32.27 R 532
-
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Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$118 R 1,939
$20.06 SLL 458.2K
485.79%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$107 R 1,766
$49.38 SLL 1.1M
116.79%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Cape Town
Sierra Leone
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,015 R 16.7K
$926 SLL 21.2M
9.60%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$715 R 11.8K
$1,241 SLL 28.4M
-42.36%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,801 R 29.7K
$3,484 SLL 79.6M
-48.30%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,330 R 22.0K
-
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Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,331 R 38.5K
$1,093 SLL 25.0M
113.17%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,513 R 25.0K
$1,085 SLL 24.8M
39.38%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Cape Town
Sierra Leone
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,636 R 27.0K
$1,315 SLL 30.1M
24.38%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
10.97
0
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CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.
Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026
Last update for Sierra Leone: October 4, 2026
Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Share of the monthly basket for a family of three, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Cape Town $715 45.3%
Sierra Leone $1.2K 69.8% 73.5% $526
Groceries & Markets
Cape Town $222 14.1%
Sierra Leone $263 * 14.8% 18.1% $40
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cape Town $185 11.7%
Sierra Leone $128 7.2% 30.9% $57
Eating Out
Cape Town $174 11%
Sierra Leone $107 6% 38.6% $67
Clothing & Footwear
Cape Town $141 8.9%
Sierra Leone $36 * 2% 74.5% $105
Getting Around
Cape Town $75 4.8%
Sierra Leone $4.7 * 0.3% 93.8% $71
Sport & Entertainment
Cape Town $67 4.2%
Sierra Leone - * 0% 100%
Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.
Accommodation & Living
Cape Town $1.3K 40.8%
Sierra Leone - * 0% 100%
Groceries & Markets
Cape Town $516 15.9%
Sierra Leone $617 * 49.4% 19.4% $100
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cape Town $214 6.6%
Sierra Leone $146 11.7% 31.8% $68
Eating Out
Cape Town $587 18%
Sierra Leone $395 31.7% 32.6% $191
Clothing & Footwear
Cape Town $312 9.6%
Sierra Leone $79 * 6.4% 74.5% $233
Getting Around
Cape Town $154 4.7%
Sierra Leone $10 * 0.8% 93.3% $143
Sport & Entertainment
Cape Town $144 4.4%
Sierra Leone - * 0% 100%
Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.
Good to know
🇿🇦 Cape Town
🇸🇱 Sierra Leone
Weather
Population
3,740,026 Capital
7,557,212
Exchange rates and currency converter
On the map
Lowest
Highest
Between locations
- Cape Town Sierra Leone 5,780 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight
From you
- Cape Town
- Sierra Leone
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 other spots: cost of living compared
Cape Town
🇿🇦 South Africa
$1,568
/mo nomad
Johannesburg
🇿🇦 South Africa
$1,406
/mo nomad
Cape Town
🇿🇦 South Africa
$1,568
/mo nomad
Lisbon
🇵🇹 Portugal
$2,203
/mo nomad
Cape Town
🇿🇦 South Africa
$1,568
/mo nomad
Antalya
🇹🇷 Turkey
$1,256
/mo nomad
Cape Town
🇿🇦 South Africa
$1,568
/mo nomad
Denpasar, Bali
🇮🇩 Indonesia
$896
/mo nomad
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