Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Trabzon

For one person, living is cheaper in Trabzon: $684 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $10,800 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
33

Cost of Living Index in Trabzon
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Trabzon Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Trabzon

🇹🇷 Turkey

$684

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,586 per month in Cape Town vs $684 in Trabzon, rent included.

Cape Town $1,586
Trabzon $684

A couple spends around $2,425 per month in Cape Town vs $1,271 in Trabzon, rent included.

Cape Town $2,425
Trabzon $1,271

A family of three spends $3,263 per month in Cape Town vs $1,858 in Trabzon, rent included.

Cape Town $3,263
Trabzon $1,858

Cape Town costs about 132% more than Trabzon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Trabzon is 49% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$7.97 ₺395

52.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$30.76 ₺1,523

47.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$10.84 ₺536

-45.76%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$4.08 ₺202

-38.73%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$1.56 ₺77.1

-18.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$0.20 ₺10.13

390.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 R 49.33

$1.85 ₺91.7

61.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 R 61.4

$2.05 ₺102

81.46%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.40

$0.97 ₺48.07

34.02%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$1.19 ₺59.1

5.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$2.43 ₺120

-8.23%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$2.46 ₺122

26.42%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$8.18 ₺405

10.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$2.78 ₺138

148.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$17.30 ₺857

-46.24%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$2.04 ₺101

-9.80%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$1.59 ₺78.8

23.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$0.84 ₺41.48

98.81%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$1.07 ₺53.2

102.80%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$0.43 ₺21.12

265.12%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$0.34 ₺16.82

335.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$0.80 ₺39.45

62.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$0.63 ₺31.21

79.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$2.17 ₺107

65.90%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.15 R 101

$9.20 ₺455

-33.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.66

$1.60 ₺79.1

-13.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 R 35.20

$2.29 ₺113

-6.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R 24.65

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.59 R 9.71

$1.98 ₺97.9

-70.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

$0.62 ₺30.60

141.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

$6.64 ₺329

-23.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.50

$1.29 ₺64.0

20.16%

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

$36.2K R 596.5K

$40.6K ₺2.0M

-10.75%

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

$38.8K ₺1.9M

-19.48%

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

$114 R 1,883

$90.9 ₺4,498

25.83%

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

$28.91 R 476

$12.38 ₺613

133.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$12.66 ₺627

213.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

$51.2 ₺2,537

-4.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$5.21 ₺258

75.62%

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

$259 R 4,264

$250 ₺12.4K

3.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

$81.9 ₺4,054

-31.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

$61.7 ₺3,056

-47.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

$91.2 ₺4,515

32.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

$59.7 ₺2,955

81.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

$439 ₺21.7K

315.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

$349 ₺17.3K

280.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

$1,215 ₺60.1K

34.90%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

-77.61%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Last update for Trabzon: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Trabzon

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

Trabzon

$204 29.8% 9.4% $21

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

Trabzon

$116 16.9% 36.7% $67

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

Trabzon

$166 24.2% 6% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Trabzon

$133 19.4% 7.2% $10

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

Trabzon

$5.1 * 0.7% 93.2% $70

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Trabzon

$62 9% 8.4% $5.7

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

Cost Breakdown

Salaries run about 35% 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 $31.00 in Trabzon. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $225 vs $204 – making Trabzon the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇹🇷 Trabzon

🕒 Local time

05:22 5:22 AM

06:22 6:22 AM

1 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

816,684

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 49.51 TRY (100 TRY = 2.02 USD). 1 EUR = 55.66 TRY (100 TRY = 1.8 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Trabzon 8,610 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Trabzon

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 Trabzon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 132% more than Trabzon, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. 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 $1,027 in Trabzon. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,586 in Cape Town and $684 in Trabzon. That's a gap of about 132%.

Kindergarten costs $259 per month in Cape Town and $250 in Trabzon. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Trabzon, where all-in costs run around $684, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Trabzon 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. Trabzon costs $684 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 Trabzon. 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.