Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Taif

For one person, living is cheaper in Taif: $1,239 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $4,200 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
61

Cost of Living Index in Taif
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Taif Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Taif

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,239

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,586 per month in Cape Town vs $1,239 in Taif, rent included.

Cape Town $1,586
Taif $1,239

A couple spends around $2,425 per month in Cape Town vs $1,827 in Taif, rent included.

Cape Town $2,425
Taif $1,827

A family of three spends $3,263 per month in Cape Town vs $2,416 in Taif, rent included.

Cape Town $3,263
Taif $2,416

Cape Town costs about 28% more than Taif, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Taif is 8% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$5.28 SAR 19.82

129.92%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$37.38 SAR 140

21.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$7.31 SAR 27.41

-19.56%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.08 SAR 7.80

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.36 SAR 5.11

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$2.23 SAR 8.37

12.11%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$0.70 SAR 2.64

81.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$0.17 SAR 0.64

476.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 R 49.33

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 R 61.4

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.40

$1.75 SAR 6.57

-25.71%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$0.26 SAR 0.97

380.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$2.34 SAR 8.80

-4.70%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$2.74 SAR 10.26

13.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$5.97 SAR 22.40

51.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$7.11 SAR 26.68

-2.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$9.46 SAR 35.50

-1.69%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$2.38 SAR 8.94

-22.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$1.72 SAR 6.45

13.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$1.84 SAR 6.90

-9.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$1.83 SAR 6.86

18.58%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$1.31 SAR 4.92

19.85%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$1.42 SAR 5.33

4.23%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$0.94 SAR 3.54

38.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$0.82 SAR 3.07

37.80%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$3.20 SAR 11.99

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 SAR 5.32

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.00 SAR 7.50

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$7.36 SAR 27.63

-51.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.15 R 101

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.66

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 R 35.20

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R 24.65

$1.07 SAR 4.03

40.19%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$36.19 SAR 136

67.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.59 R 9.71

$1.30 SAR 4.86

-54.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

$2.05 SAR 7.68

-26.83%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

$9.42 SAR 35.34

-45.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.50

$0.60 SAR 2.26

158.33%

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

$36.2K R 596.5K

$44.6K SAR 167.3K

-18.79%

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

$20.8K SAR 78.1K

50.12%

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

$114 R 1,883

$138 SAR 519

-17.27%

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

$28.91 R 476

$28.04 SAR 105

3.10%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$67.4 SAR 253

-41.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

$145 SAR 543

-66.13%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

$13.23 SAR 49.64

-16.93%

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$19.68 SAR 73.9

-53.51%

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

$259 R 4,264

$185 SAR 693

40.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

$3,342 SAR 12.5K

103.30%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

$42.10 SAR 158

33.44%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

$55.3 SAR 208

-41.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

$95.5 SAR 358

26.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

$86.4 SAR 324

25.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

$583 SAR 2,187

75.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

$368 SAR 1,380

94.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

$803 SAR 3,012

127.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

$566 SAR 2,124

134.37%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

$2,395 SAR 8,986

-0.15%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.4K

$1,368 SAR 5,132

12.74%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

$1,567 SAR 5,880

4.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

5.54

98.01%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Last update for Taif: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Taif

$368 29.7% 48.7% $349

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

Taif

$181 14.6% 19.4% $44

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

Taif

$234 18.9% 27.7% $51

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

Taif

$94 7.6% 46.4% $82

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Taif

$126 10.2% 11.9% $17

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

Taif

$52 4.2% 30.5% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Taif

$184 14.9% 174% $117

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,021 in Cape Town versus $583 in Taif. 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 5% 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 $45.00 in Cape Town versus $37.00 in Taif. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $225 vs $181 – making Taif the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇸🇦 Taif

🕒 Local time

03:23 3:23 AM

04:23 4:23 AM

1 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

579,970

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.22 SAR (1 SAR = 0.237 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Taif 6,570 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Taif

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 Taif: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 28% more than Taif, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from leisure. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,379 per month in Cape Town and $1,859 in Taif. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Taif, 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 $1,586 in Cape Town and $1,239 in Taif. That's a gap of about 28%.

Public transport costs about 68% less in Taif. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Taif, where all-in costs run around $1,239, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Taif 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. Taif costs $1,239 versus $1,586 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 Taif. 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.