Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Teresina

For one person, living is cheaper in Teresina: $704 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $9,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
34

Cost of Living Index in Teresina
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Teresina Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Teresina

🇧🇷 Brazil

$704

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,527 per month in Cape Town vs $704 in Teresina, rent included.

Cape Town $1,527
Teresina $704

A couple spends around $2,417 per month in Cape Town vs $1,155 in Teresina, rent included.

Cape Town $2,417
Teresina $1,155

A family of three spends $3,306 per month in Cape Town vs $1,605 in Teresina, rent included.

Cape Town $3,306
Teresina $1,605

Cape Town costs about 117% more than Teresina, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Cape Town sits 13% above the global median, while Teresina is 48% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 198

$5.39 R$29.59

122.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 707

$18.64 R$102

130.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 101

$5.85 R$32.09

5.13%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 39.04

$1.96 R$10.75

20.92%

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

$1.27 R 20.96

$0.98 R$5.39

29.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.46

$0.71 R$3.89

32.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.77

$1.41 R$7.73

109.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 60.8

$2.92 R$16.00

26.37%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.73

$1.33 R$7.30

-0.75%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.87

$2.14 R$11.75

-43.46%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.26

$1.39 R$7.62

58.27%

Eggs

$3.10 R 51.1

$3.94 R$21.60

-21.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 144

$6.98 R$38.31

25.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 114

$3.87 R$21.26

78.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 153

$6.18 R$33.90

49.84%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.08

$1.74 R$9.54

5.17%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 32.12

$0.85 R$4.64

129.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.32

$0.88 R$4.84

88.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 35.19

$1.20 R$6.58

78.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 26.01

$1.06 R$5.80

49.06%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.29

$0.88 R$4.86

67.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.18

$0.50 R$2.77

170.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.85

$1.41 R$7.74

-19.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 59.0

$3.08 R$16.91

16.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 99.7

$8.53 R$46.81

-29.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.95

$1.29 R$7.08

7.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.90

$2.68 R$14.73

-18.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 23.02

$0.87 R$4.80

60.92%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$40.91 R$224

48.50%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.26

$1.50 R$8.23

-38.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.83

$0.78 R$4.26

15.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 81.7

$6.73 R$36.94

-26.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.37

$1.14 R$6.24

35.09%

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

$35.4K R 582.8K

$21.4K R$117.4K

65.27%

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

$33.4K R 549.9K

$30.2K R$165.9K

10.35%

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

$117 R 1,929

$73.5 R$403

59.39%

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

$25.71 R 424

$9.78 R$53.7

162.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 649

$16.34 R$89.7

141.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 850

$19.75 R$108

161.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 187

$12.07 R$66.2

-5.97%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$7.56 R$41.48

17.59%

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

$308 R 5,069

$538 R$2,952

-42.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 134.2K

$6,591 R$36.2K

23.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 946

$39.57 R$217

45.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 523

$27.34 R$150

16.13%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,911

$71.3 R$391

62.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,660

$46.07 R$253

118.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.2K

$152 R$833

589.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.0K

$142 R$781

369.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.7K

$386 R$2,120

381.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.2K

$395 R$2,166

256.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.7K

$1,248 R$6,845

93.18%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.9K

$701 R$3,846

123.90%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.9K

$366 R$2,011

344.72%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

-1.00%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Teresina: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Teresina

$142 20.2% 78.7% $527

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Teresina

$191 27.1% 14.5% $32

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Teresina

$100 14.1% 45.3% $83

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Teresina

$104 14.7% 40.3% $70

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Teresina

$83 11.8% 39.7% $55

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Teresina

$50 7.1% 30.6% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Teresina

$35 5% 49.7% $35

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,047 in Cape Town versus $152 in Teresina. 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 4.4 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Cape Town versus $19 in Teresina. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $223 vs $191 – making Teresina the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇧🇷 Teresina

🕒 Local time

04:06 4:06 AM

23:06 11:06 PM

5 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

866,300

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

1 BRL = 0.182 USD

1 BRL = 0.162 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, 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 = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 5.49 BRL (1 BRL = 0.182 USD). 1 EUR = 6.16 BRL (1 BRL = 0.162 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Teresina 7,050 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Teresina

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 Teresina: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 117% more than Teresina, 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 $1,057 in Teresina. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Teresina, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $152 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,527 in Cape Town and $704 in Teresina. That makes Teresina about 54% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 33% less in Teresina. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Teresina, where all-in costs run around $704, than in Cape Town at $1,527. In Teresina 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 $704 in Teresina to $1,527 in Cape Town. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Teresina. 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.