Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Tres Cantos

For one person, living costs are similar in Cape Town and in Tres Cantos: $1,527 and $1,528 a month, rent and utilities included.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Tres Cantos
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Tres Cantos Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Tres Cantos

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,528

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cape Town and in Tres Cantos

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

A single person spends $1,527 per month in Cape Town vs $1,528 in Tres Cantos, rent included.

Cape Town $1,527
Tres Cantos $1,528

A couple spends around $2,417 per month in Cape Town vs $2,352 in Tres Cantos, rent included.

Cape Town $2,417
Tres Cantos $2,352

A family of three spends $3,306 per month in Cape Town vs $3,176 in Tres Cantos, rent included.

Cape Town $3,306
Tres Cantos $3,176

Cape Town and Tres Cantos have comparable living costs – the differences are in the details.

Both Cape Town and Tres Cantos sit above the global median – Cape Town by 13%, Tres Cantos by 13%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 198

$15.95 €14.20

-24.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 707

$49.24 €43.84

-12.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 101

$11.00 €9.79

-44.09%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 39.04

$2.30 €2.05

3.04%

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

$1.27 R 20.96

$2.49 €2.21

-49.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.46

$1.61 €1.43

-41.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.77

$2.97 €2.64

-0.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 60.8

$3.49 €3.11

5.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.73

$1.21 €1.07

9.09%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.87

$1.60 €1.42

-24.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.26

$1.37 €1.22

60.58%

Eggs

$3.10 R 51.1

$3.15 €2.80

-1.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 144

$14.47 €12.88

-39.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 114

$8.23 €7.32

-16.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 153

$17.19 €15.31

-46.13%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.08

$2.31 €2.06

-20.78%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 32.12

$1.76 €1.57

10.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.32

$2.23 €1.98

-25.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 35.19

$2.92 €2.60

-26.71%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 26.01

$2.00 €1.78

-21.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.29

$1.87 €1.66

-21.39%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.18

$1.29 €1.15

4.65%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.85

$0.67 €0.60

70.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 59.0

$5.88 €5.24

-39.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 99.7

$5.57 €4.96

8.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.95

$1.26 €1.12

10.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.90

$2.06 €1.84

5.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 23.02

$1.76 €1.57

-20.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$33.87 €30.16

79.36%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.26

$3.89 €3.46

-76.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.83

$1.22 €1.08

-26.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 81.7

$24.09 €21.45

-79.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.37

$1.81 €1.61

-14.92%

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

$35.4K R 582.8K

$38.4K €34.2K

-7.83%

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

$33.4K R 549.9K

$32.8K €29.2K

1.83%

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

$117 R 1,929

$137 €122

-14.85%

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

$25.71 R 424

$16.48 €14.67

56.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 649

$26.50 €23.60

48.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 850

$43.91 €39.10

17.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 187

$15.47 €13.78

-26.63%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$8.58 €7.64

3.61%

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

$308 R 5,069

$508 €452

-39.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 134.2K

$9,119 €8,120

-10.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 946

$78.1 €69.5

-26.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 523

$34.22 €30.47

-7.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,911

$81.7 €72.7

41.99%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,660

$120 €107

-15.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.2K

$1,026 €913

2.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.0K

$595 €530

12.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.7K

$1,356 €1,207

37.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.2K

$1,068 €951

31.78%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.7K

$3,498 €3,115

-31.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.9K

$1,913 €1,704

-17.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.9K

$3,191 €2,841

-48.92%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

3.3

230.00%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Tres Cantos: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Tres Cantos

$595 39% 11% $74

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Tres Cantos

$272 17.8% 22% $49

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Tres Cantos

$180 11.8% 0.9% $1.7

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Tres Cantos

$226 14.8% 30.1% $52

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Tres Cantos

$141 9.2% 2.6% $3.5

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Tres Cantos

$51 3.3% 29.1% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Tres Cantos

$61 4% 12% $8.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,047 in Cape Town versus $1,026 in Tres Cantos. 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 96% higher in Tres Cantos. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Cape Town versus $49 in Tres Cantos. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $223 vs $272 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇪🇸 Tres Cantos

🕒 Local time

09:20 9:20 AM

08:20 8:20 AM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

51,453

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD 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).

Euro exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.89 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Tres Cantos 8,590 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Tres Cantos

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 Tres Cantos: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,291 per month in Cape Town and $2,291 in Tres Cantos. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $1,047 in Cape Town and $1,026 in Tres Cantos. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Groceries cost about 22% more in Tres Cantos, though the gap depends on what you buy.

Kindergarten costs $308 per month in Cape Town and $508 in Tres Cantos. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,527 in Cape Town and $1,528 in Tres Cantos. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Cape Town has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,527 in Cape Town to $1,528 in Tres Cantos. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Cape Town. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Tres Cantos makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.