Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Szczecinek

For one person, living is cheaper in Szczecinek: $1,477 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $600 less a year. The total is higher in Cape Town despite lower rent and utilities.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
71

Cost of Living Index in Szczecinek
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Szczecinek Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Szczecinek

🇵🇱 Poland

$1,477

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,527 per month in Cape Town vs $1,477 in Szczecinek, rent included.

Cape Town $1,527
Szczecinek $1,477

A couple spends around $2,417 per month in Cape Town vs $2,124 in Szczecinek, rent included.

Cape Town $2,417
Szczecinek $2,124

A family of three spends $3,306 per month in Cape Town vs $2,771 in Szczecinek, rent included.

Cape Town $3,306
Szczecinek $2,771

Cape Town costs about 3% more than Szczecinek, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both Cape Town and Szczecinek sit above the global median – Cape Town by 13%, Szczecinek by 9%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 199

$11.27 zł 44.33

6.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 709

$43.17 zł 170

-0.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 102

$9.11 zł 35.85

-32.49%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 39.16

$3.44 zł 13.52

-31.10%

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

$1.27 R 21.03

$1.10 zł 4.32

15.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.50

$0.88 zł 3.44

6.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.92

$3.02 zł 11.87

-1.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 61.0

$1.36 zł 5.37

171.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.80

$0.95 zł 3.75

38.95%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.93

$1.21 zł 4.74

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.37

$1.40 zł 5.52

57.14%

Eggs

$3.10 R 51.3

$3.63 zł 14.26

-14.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 144

$7.45 zł 29.31

17.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 114

$5.94 zł 23.34

15.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 153

$13.15 zł 51.7

-29.58%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.17

$1.23 zł 4.82

48.78%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 32.22

$1.15 zł 4.53

69.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.40

$1.70 zł 6.68

-2.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 35.30

$2.43 zł 9.56

-11.93%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 26.09

$0.76 zł 2.98

107.89%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.37

$0.83 zł 3.27

77.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.25

$1.23 zł 4.85

9.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.91

$0.65 zł 2.54

75.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 59.1

$5.63 zł 22.12

-36.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 100

$7.84 zł 30.82

-22.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 23.02

$1.14 zł 4.50

21.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 36.01

$1.41 zł 5.53

54.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 23.09

$1.08 zł 4.26

29.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,004

$30.22 zł 119

101.03%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.31

$2.30 zł 9.03

-59.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.88

$1.00 zł 3.94

-10.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 82.0

$11.33 zł 44.54

-56.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.45

$1.49 zł 5.87

3.36%

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

$35.4K R 584.6K

$31.0K zł 121.7K

14.25%

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

$33.4K R 551.6K

$28.1K zł 110.4K

18.86%

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

$117 R 1,935

$294 zł 1,155

-60.14%

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

$25.71 R 425

$7.59 zł 29.84

238.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 651

$18.40 zł 72.4

114.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 853

$38.70 zł 152

33.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 188

$22.00 zł 86.5

-48.41%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 147

$7.48 zł 29.43

18.85%

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

$308 R 5,085

$200 zł 787

53.71%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 134.6K

$7,466 zł 29.4K

9.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 948

$77.8 zł 306

-26.28%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 525

$37.17 zł 146

-14.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,917

$86.2 zł 339

34.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,665

$106 zł 416

-4.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.3K

$545 zł 2,144

91.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.1K

$533 zł 2,097

25.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.8K

$1,031 zł 4,055

80.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.3K

$851 zł 3,345

65.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.8K

$2,889 zł 11.4K

-16.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.9K

$2,160 zł 8,495

-27.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.9K

$1,277 zł 5,020

27.67%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

4.2

159.29%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Szczecinek: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Szczecinek

$533 36.1% 20.3% $136

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Szczecinek

$206 14% 7.7% $17

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Szczecinek

$320 21.7% 75.5% $138

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Szczecinek

$185 12.5% 6% $10

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Szczecinek

$138 9.4% 0.4% $0.5

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Szczecinek

$42 2.8% 41.7% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Szczecinek

$54 3.6% 22.7% $16

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,047 in Cape Town versus $545 in Szczecinek. 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 28% higher in Cape Town. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Cape Town versus $43 in Szczecinek. Groceries tell a different story – $223 in Cape Town vs $206 in Szczecinek – so Szczecinek wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇵🇱 Szczecinek

🕒 Local time

23:36 11:36 PM

22:36 10:36 PM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

39,705

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Polish Złoty PLN zł

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.05 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

1 PLN = 0.254 USD

1 PLN = 0.228 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.53 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.05 USD). 1 EUR = 18.47 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

Polish Złoty exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3.93 PLN (1 PLN = 0.254 USD). 1 EUR = 4.4 PLN (1 PLN = 0.228 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Szczecinek 9,750 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Szczecinek

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 Szczecinek: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 3% more than Szczecinek, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from utilities. 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 $2,216 in Szczecinek. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Szczecinek, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $545 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,527 in Cape Town and $1,477 in Szczecinek. That makes Szczecinek about 3% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $308 per month in Cape Town and $200 in Szczecinek. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,527 in Cape Town and $1,477 in Szczecinek, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Szczecinek – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Szczecinek. 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.