Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Stavanger

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $3,259 in Stavanger, rent and utilities included – about $20,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
155

Cost of Living Index in Stavanger
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Stavanger Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Stavanger

🇳🇴 Norway

$3,259

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,527 per month in Cape Town vs $3,259 in Stavanger, rent included.

Cape Town $1,527
Stavanger $3,259

A couple spends around $2,417 per month in Cape Town vs $4,736 in Stavanger, rent included.

Cape Town $2,417
Stavanger $4,736

A family of three spends $3,306 per month in Cape Town vs $6,213 in Stavanger, rent included.

Cape Town $3,306
Stavanger $6,213

Cape Town is about 53% cheaper than Stavanger, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Cape Town and Stavanger sit above the global median – Cape Town by 13%, Stavanger by 141%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 197

$24.14 NOK 224

-50.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 703

$98.3 NOK 913

-56.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 101

$15.94 NOK 148

-61.42%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 38.81

$6.41 NOK 59.5

-63.03%

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

$1.27 R 20.84

$5.61 NOK 52.1

-77.36%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.37

$4.73 NOK 43.92

-80.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.48

$13.82 NOK 128

-78.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 60.5

$10.69 NOK 99.2

-65.48%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.61

$2.47 NOK 22.91

-46.56%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.75

$3.56 NOK 33.02

-66.01%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.05

$3.98 NOK 36.96

-44.72%

Eggs

$3.10 R 50.8

$4.88 NOK 45.27

-36.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 143

$14.99 NOK 139

-41.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 113

$17.54 NOK 163

-60.72%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 152

$35.30 NOK 328

-73.77%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 29.90

$3.59 NOK 33.30

-49.03%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 31.94

$2.85 NOK 26.49

-31.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.16

$3.61 NOK 33.49

-54.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 34.99

$4.82 NOK 44.76

-55.60%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 25.86

$2.53 NOK 23.44

-37.55%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.15

$3.09 NOK 28.64

-52.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.05

$2.82 NOK 26.15

-52.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.75

$2.34 NOK 21.74

-51.28%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 58.6

$18.25 NOK 169

-80.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 99.2

$19.05 NOK 177

-68.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.82

$3.76 NOK 34.87

-63.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.69

$4.63 NOK 42.93

-52.92%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 22.88

$4.91 NOK 45.57

-71.49%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 995

$88.2 NOK 819

-31.14%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.18

$6.51 NOK 60.5

-85.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.75

$1.75 NOK 16.21

-48.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 81.3

$105 NOK 974

-95.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.23

$2.56 NOK 23.75

-39.84%

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

$35.4K R 579.4K

$48.9K NOK 454.3K

-27.75%

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

$33.4K R 546.7K

$42.0K NOK 389.8K

-20.56%

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

$117 R 1,918

$268 NOK 2,488

-56.33%

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

$25.71 R 421

$35.09 NOK 326

-26.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 646

$82.3 NOK 764

-52.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 846

$53.8 NOK 499

-4.09%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 186

$37.71 NOK 350

-69.90%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$21.86 NOK 203

-59.33%

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

$308 R 5,040

$322 NOK 2,987

-4.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 133.4K

$11.8K NOK 109.9K

-31.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 940

$131 NOK 1,217

-56.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 520

$60.2 NOK 559

-47.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,900

$150 NOK 1,391

-22.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,650

$207 NOK 1,918

-51.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.1K

$1,768 NOK 16.4K

-40.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.0K

$1,429 NOK 13.3K

-53.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.5K

$2,917 NOK 27.1K

-36.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.1K

$2,162 NOK 20.1K

-34.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.5K

$6,490 NOK 60.2K

-62.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.7K

$5,330 NOK 49.5K

-70.55%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.7K

$5,344 NOK 49.6K

-69.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

5.24

107.82%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Stavanger: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Stavanger

$1.4K 43.9% 114% $760

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Stavanger

$527 16.2% 136% $304

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Stavanger

$385 11.8% 112% $203

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Stavanger

$450 13.8% 159% $276

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Stavanger

$247 7.6% 79.2% $109

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Stavanger

$123 3.8% 71.6% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Stavanger

$98 3% 40.5% $28

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,047 in Cape Town versus $1,768 in Stavanger. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Stavanger are about 3.3 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Cape Town versus $98 in Stavanger. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $223 vs $527 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇳🇴 Stavanger

🕒 Local time

20:18 8:18 PM

19:18 7:18 PM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

149,330

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.1 USD

100 ZAR = 5.43 EUR

100 NOK = 10.78 USD

100 NOK = 9.59 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 16.38 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.1 USD). 1 EUR = 18.41 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.43 EUR).

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 9.28 NOK (1 NOK = 0.108 USD). 1 EUR = 10.43 NOK (100 NOK = 9.59 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Stavanger 10,400 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Stavanger

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 Stavanger: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Stavanger costs about 113% more than Cape Town, 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 $2,291 per month in Cape Town and $4,888 in Stavanger. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cape Town, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,047 there versus $1,768 in Stavanger.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,527 in Cape Town and $3,259 in Stavanger. That makes Cape Town about 53% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 31% less in Cape Town. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,527 in Cape Town and $3,259 in Stavanger. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cape Town costs $1,527 versus $3,259 in Stavanger. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Cape Town. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Stavanger makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.