Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Stip

For one person, living is cheaper in Stip: $805 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $8,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
Learn more

Cape Town Living Index
39

Cost of Living Index in Stip
Learn more

Stip Living Index

Jump to prices

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Stip

🇲🇰 North Macedonia

$805

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,527 per month in Cape Town vs $805 in Stip, rent included.

Cape Town $1,527
Stip $805

A couple spends around $2,417 per month in Cape Town vs $1,204 in Stip, rent included.

Cape Town $2,417
Stip $1,204

A family of three spends $3,306 per month in Cape Town vs $1,602 in Stip, rent included.

Cape Town $3,306
Stip $1,602

Cape Town costs about 90% more than Stip, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Cape Town sits 13% above the global median, while Stip is 40% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 197

$7.36 MKD 401

63.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 703

$23.23 MKD 1,265

84.76%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 101

$6.19 MKD 337

-0.65%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 38.81

$1.80 MKD 98.0

31.67%

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

$1.27 R 20.84

$1.42 MKD 77.1

-10.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.37

$1.10 MKD 60.0

-14.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.48

$1.80 MKD 98.2

64.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 60.5

$2.66 MKD 145

38.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.61

$1.27 MKD 69.2

3.94%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.75

$0.79 MKD 42.92

53.16%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.05

$1.07 MKD 58.1

105.61%

Eggs

$3.10 R 50.8

$2.39 MKD 130

29.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 143

$7.71 MKD 420

13.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 113

$7.41 MKD 403

-7.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 152

$7.06 MKD 384

31.16%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 29.90

$0.87 MKD 47.63

110.34%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 31.94

$1.36 MKD 74.3

43.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.16

$1.37 MKD 74.7

21.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 34.99

$1.60 MKD 86.9

33.75%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 25.86

$0.84 MKD 45.79

88.10%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.15

$0.84 MKD 45.74

75.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.05

$0.57 MKD 30.95

136.84%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.75

$0.39 MKD 21.44

192.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 58.6

$3.21 MKD 175

11.53%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 99.2

$7.39 MKD 402

-18.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.82

$1.10 MKD 59.8

26.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.69

$1.51 MKD 82.0

44.37%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 22.88

$0.67 MKD 36.31

108.96%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 995

$23.80 MKD 1,295

155.25%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.18

$1.06 MKD 57.6

-12.26%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.75

$0.63 MKD 34.20

42.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 81.3

$5.37 MKD 292

-7.64%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.23

$1.45 MKD 78.9

6.21%

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

$35.4K R 579.4K

$33.6K MKD 1.8M

5.32%

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

$33.4K R 546.7K

$26.1K MKD 1.4M

27.80%

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

$117 R 1,918

$154 MKD 8,408

-24.20%

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

$25.71 R 421

$8.85 MKD 482

190.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 646

$16.06 MKD 874

145.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 846

$27.31 MKD 1,487

88.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 186

$17.23 MKD 938

-34.13%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$6.54 MKD 356

35.93%

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

$308 R 5,040

$369 MKD 20.1K

-16.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 133.4K

$3,326 MKD 181.0K

144.81%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 940

$36.31 MKD 1,977

58.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 520

$30.29 MKD 1,649

4.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,900

$102 MKD 5,556

13.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,650

$111 MKD 6,057

-9.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.1K

$197 MKD 10.7K

430.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.0K

$129 MKD 7,020

418.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.5K

$329 MKD 17.9K

465.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.1K

$200 MKD 10.9K

602.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.5K

$1,192 MKD 64.9K

102.12%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.7K

$975 MKD 53.1K

61.05%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.7K

$452 MKD 24.6K

260.71%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

4.23

157.45%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Stip: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Stip

$129 16% 80.7% $540

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Stip

$176 21.9% 21% $47

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Stip

$179 22.3% 1.6% $2.8

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Stip

$123 15.3% 29% $51

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Stip

$126 15.7% 8.5% $12

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Stip

$31 3.8% 57.3% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Stip

$40 5% 41.8% $29

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,047 in Cape Town versus $197 in Stip. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Cape Town are about 3.6 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Cape Town versus $23 in Stip. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $223 vs $176 – making Stip the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇲🇰 Stip

🕒 Local time

23:50 11:50 PM

22:50 10:50 PM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

65,000

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

North Macedonian Denar MKD ден

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.1 USD

100 ZAR = 5.44 EUR

100 MKD = 1.84 USD

100 MKD = 1.64 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MKD, 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 = 18.39 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.44 EUR).

North Macedonian Denar exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 54.44 MKD (100 MKD = 1.84 USD). 1 EUR = 61.11 MKD (100 MKD = 1.64 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Stip 8,420 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Stip

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 Stip: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 90% more than Stip, 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 $2,291 per month in Cape Town and $1,208 in Stip. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Stip, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $197 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,527 in Cape Town and $805 in Stip. That makes Stip about 47% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 61% less in Stip. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Stip, where all-in costs run around $805, than in Cape Town at $1,527. In Stip it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cape Town it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Cape Town has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $805 in Stip to $1,527 in Cape Town. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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