Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Tripoli

For one person, living is cheaper in Tripoli: $1,084 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $6,000 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
53

Cost of Living Index in Tripoli
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Tripoli Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Tripoli

🇱🇧 Lebanon

$1,084

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,586 per month in Cape Town vs $1,084 in Tripoli, rent included.

Cape Town $1,586
Tripoli $1,084

A couple spends around $2,425 per month in Cape Town vs $1,637 in Tripoli, rent included.

Cape Town $2,425
Tripoli $1,637

A family of three spends $3,263 per month in Cape Town vs $2,190 in Tripoli, rent included.

Cape Town $3,263
Tripoli $2,190

Cape Town costs about 46% more than Tripoli, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Tripoli is 20% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$5.14 LBP 460.2K

136.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$50.3 LBP 4.5M

-9.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$9.06 LBP 811.2K

-35.10%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$3.93 LBP 351.3K

-36.39%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$1.53 LBP 137.2K

-16.99%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$0.85 LBP 76.4K

15.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 R 49.33

$4.86 LBP 435.3K

-38.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 R 61.4

$4.85 LBP 434.2K

-23.30%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.40

$1.31 LBP 117.6K

-0.76%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$0.78 LBP 69.8K

60.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$1.47 LBP 131.3K

51.70%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$1.17 LBP 104.3K

165.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$11.05 LBP 989.1K

-18.01%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$6.48 LBP 579.7K

6.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$10.80 LBP 966.9K

-13.89%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$3.13 LBP 280.1K

-41.21%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$1.66 LBP 148.8K

18.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$1.69 LBP 151.5K

-1.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$0.48 LBP 42.9K

352.08%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$0.57 LBP 51.4K

175.44%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$1.58 LBP 141.5K

-6.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$0.85 LBP 76.0K

52.94%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$0.44 LBP 39.3K

156.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$3.08 LBP 276.1K

16.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.15 R 101

$10.86 LBP 972.3K

-43.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.66

$1.29 LBP 115.3K

6.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 R 35.20

$2.55 LBP 228.4K

-16.08%

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

$4.96 LBP 443.8K

-88.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

$0.99 LBP 88.2K

51.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

$19.63 LBP 1.8M

-73.97%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.50

$1.05 LBP 93.8K

47.62%

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

$36.2K R 596.5K

$53.7K LBP 4.8B

-32.62%

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

$32.8K LBP 2.9B

-4.75%

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

$114 R 1,883

$237 LBP 21.2M

-51.67%

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

$28.91 R 476

$14.34 LBP 1.3M

101.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$22.12 LBP 2.0M

79.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

$40.40 LBP 3.6M

21.31%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$9.94 LBP 889.3K

-7.95%

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

$259 R 4,264

$676 LBP 60.5M

-61.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

$3,398 LBP 304.2M

99.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

$66.4 LBP 5.9M

-15.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

$48.95 LBP 4.4M

-33.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

$139 LBP 12.4M

-12.98%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

$119 LBP 10.7M

-9.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

$406 LBP 36.3M

151.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

$203 LBP 18.2M

253.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

$725 LBP 64.9M

151.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

$347 LBP 31.0M

282.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

$1,154 LBP 103.3M

107.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.4K

$852 LBP 76.2M

81.06%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

$451 LBP 40.3M

263.68%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

-0.27%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Last update for Tripoli: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Tripoli

$203 18.7% 71.7% $514

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

Tripoli

$211 19.5% 6.2% $14

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

Tripoli

$273 25.2% 49.2% $90

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

Tripoli

$159 14.7% 9.7% $17

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Tripoli

$168 15.5% 17.5% $25

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

Tripoli

$9.9 * 0.9% 86.8% $65

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Tripoli

$60 5.6% 10.5% $7

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,021 in Cape Town versus $406 in Tripoli. 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 264% 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 $50.0 in Tripoli. Groceries tell a different story – $225 in Cape Town vs $211 in Tripoli – so Tripoli wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇱🇧 Tripoli

🕒 Local time

00:47 12:47 AM

01:47 1:47 AM

1 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

999,000

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Lebanese Pound LBP ل.ل

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1,000,000 LBP = 11.17 USD

1,000,000 LBP = 9.94 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Lebanese Pound exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 89,500 LBP (100,000 LBP = 1.12 USD). 1 EUR = 100,618 LBP (1,000,000 LBP = 9.94 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Tripoli 7,820 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Tripoli

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 Tripoli: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 46% more than Tripoli, 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 $1,626 in Tripoli. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Tripoli, 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 $1,084 in Tripoli. That's a gap of about 46%.

Kindergarten costs $259 per month in Cape Town and $676 in Tripoli. 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 Tripoli, where all-in costs run around $1,084, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Tripoli 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. Tripoli costs $1,084 versus $1,586 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 Tripoli. 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.