Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Tema

For one person, living is cheaper in Tema: $738 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $10,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
Learn more

Cape Town Living Index
36

Cost of Living Index in Tema
Learn more

Tema Living Index

Jump to prices

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Tema

🇬🇭 Ghana

$738

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,568 per month in Cape Town vs $738 in Tema, rent included.

Cape Town $1,568
Tema $738

A couple spends around $2,438 per month in Cape Town vs $1,173 in Tema, rent included.

Cape Town $2,438
Tema $1,173

A family of three spends $3,307 per month in Cape Town vs $1,608 in Tema, rent included.

Cape Town $3,307
Tema $1,608

Cape Town costs about 112% more than Tema, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Tema is 45% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.78 R 195

$7.03 GHS 82.4

67.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.55 R 772

$27.88 GHS 327

66.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.96 R 98.9

Cappuccino

$2.47 R 41.01

$5.05 GHS 59.2

-51.09%

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

$1.33 R 22.03

$0.90 GHS 10.56

47.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 R 17.08

$0.30 GHS 3.55

243.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.01 R 49.98

$3.29 GHS 38.60

-8.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 R 60.8

$2.61 GHS 30.61

40.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 R 23.08

$3.16 GHS 37.11

-56.01%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 R 19.70

$1.60 GHS 18.81

-25.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.11 R 35.02

$2.07 GHS 24.29

1.93%

Eggs

$3.01 R 49.84

$2.30 GHS 27.02

30.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.96 R 149

$4.38 GHS 51.4

104.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.65 R 110

$3.17 GHS 37.14

109.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.29 R 154

$3.38 GHS 39.66

174.85%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.28

$2.61 GHS 30.66

-29.89%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 R 31.47

$2.13 GHS 25.02

-10.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.75 R 28.98

$2.21 GHS 25.97

-20.81%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.09 R 34.59

$3.49 GHS 40.95

-40.11%

Potato (1kg)

$1.55 R 25.78

$3.40 GHS 39.91

-54.41%

Onion (1kg)

$1.49 R 24.65

$2.82 GHS 33.06

-47.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.53

$0.45 GHS 5.25

188.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 R 19.29

$0.67 GHS 7.84

73.13%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.71 R 61.5

$1.26 GHS 14.83

194.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.06 R 101

$8.54 GHS 100

-29.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.97

$2.10 GHS 24.59

-33.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 R 36.51

$2.96 GHS 34.74

-25.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.51 R 25.11

$1.68 GHS 19.70

-10.12%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.0 R 1,011

$41.17 GHS 483

48.07%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.63 R 10.38

$2.10 GHS 24.69

-70.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 R 25.42

$0.41 GHS 4.82

273.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.81 R 79.8

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 R 26.22

$1.19 GHS 13.96

32.77%

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

$35.5K R 588.7K

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

$31.7K R 526.6K

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

$116 R 1,930

$78.2 GHS 917

48.86%

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

$28.37 R 471

$15.22 GHS 179

86.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.69 R 675

$82.5 GHS 968

-50.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.85 R 810

$24.06 GHS 282

103.03%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.13 R 185

Cinema Ticket

$8.83 R 146

$8.80 GHS 103

0.34%

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

$261 R 4,336

$174 GHS 2,046

49.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,702 R 111.2K

$2,544 GHS 29.8K

163.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.4 R 919

$13.07 GHS 153

323.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.27 R 535

$15.40 GHS 181

109.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 R 1,949

$42.37 GHS 497

177.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 R 1,775

$32.20 GHS 378

232.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,015 R 16.8K

$126 GHS 1,483

703.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$715 R 11.9K

$71.3 GHS 836

903.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,801 R 29.9K

$426 GHS 4,999

322.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,330 R 22.1K

$209 GHS 2,451

536.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,331 R 38.7K

$9,909 GHS 116.2K

-76.48%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,513 R 25.1K

$5,903 GHS 69.2K

-74.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,636 R 27.1K

$419 GHS 4,913

290.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

-68.66%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Last update for Tema: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$715 45.3%

Tema

$71 9.6% 90% $644

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$222 14.1%

Tema

$216 28.9% 3.1% $6.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$185 11.7%

Tema

$176 23.6% 5.1% $9.5

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11%

Tema

$143 * 19.2% 17.5% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$141 8.9%

Tema

$46 6.2% 67% $94

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.8%

Tema

$52 7% 30.9% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Tema

$42 5.6% 37.4% $25

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,015 in Cape Town versus $126 in Tema. 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 291% 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 $47.00 in Cape Town versus $28.00 in Tema. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $222 vs $216 – making Tema the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇬🇭 Tema

🕒 Local time

11:04 11:04 AM

09:04 9:04 AM

2 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

160,000

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Ghanaian Cedi GHS ₵

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.03 USD

100 ZAR = 5.38 EUR

100 GHS = 8.53 USD

100 GHS = 7.6 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 16.59 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.03 USD). 1 EUR = 18.6 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.38 EUR).

Ghanaian Cedi exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 11.73 GHS (100 GHS = 8.53 USD). 1 EUR = 13.16 GHS (100 GHS = 7.6 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Tema 4,810 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Tema

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 Tema: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 112% more than Tema, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from clothing. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,352 per month in Cape Town and $1,107 in Tema. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Tema, 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 $1,568 in Cape Town and $738 in Tema. That's a gap of about 112%.

Public transport costs about 48% less in Tema. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Tema, where all-in costs run around $738, than in Cape Town at $1,568. In Tema 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. Tema costs $738 versus $1,568 in Cape Town. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Tema. 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.