Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Ulyanovsk

For one person, living is cheaper in Ulyanovsk: $886 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 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
43

Cost of Living Index in Ulyanovsk
Learn more

Ulyanovsk Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Ulyanovsk

🇷🇺 Russia

$886

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,586 per month in Cape Town vs $886 in Ulyanovsk, rent included.

Cape Town $1,586
Ulyanovsk $886

A couple spends around $2,425 per month in Cape Town vs $1,363 in Ulyanovsk, rent included.

Cape Town $2,425
Ulyanovsk $1,363

A family of three spends $3,263 per month in Cape Town vs $1,840 in Ulyanovsk, rent included.

Cape Town $3,263
Ulyanovsk $1,840

Cape Town costs about 79% more than Ulyanovsk, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Ulyanovsk is 34% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$8.26 ₽690

46.97%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$29.69 ₽2,478

52.71%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$6.32 ₽528

-6.96%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$2.27 ₽190

10.13%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$0.90 ₽75.3

41.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$0.35 ₽29.18

180.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 R 49.33

$1.81 ₽151

65.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 R 61.4

$1.94 ₽162

91.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.40

$1.02 ₽85.4

27.45%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$0.58 ₽48.04

115.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$1.04 ₽86.5

114.42%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$1.40 ₽117

122.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$14.19 ₽1,184

-36.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$7.26 ₽606

-4.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$7.26 ₽606

28.10%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$1.52 ₽127

21.05%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$1.51 ₽126

29.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$3.91 ₽326

-57.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$4.60 ₽384

-52.83%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$1.46 ₽122

7.53%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$0.82 ₽68.3

80.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$0.56 ₽46.50

101.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$3.04 ₽254

18.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.15 R 101

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.66

$1.09 ₽90.9

26.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 R 35.20

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R 24.65

$0.43 ₽36.28

248.84%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.59 R 9.71

$3.53 ₽294

-83.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

$3.64 ₽304

40.38%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.50

$0.83 ₽68.9

86.75%

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

$36.2K R 596.5K

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

$26.0K ₽2.2M

20.25%

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

$114 R 1,883

$139 ₽11.6K

-17.68%

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

$28.91 R 476

$4.73 ₽395

511.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$13.72 ₽1,145

189.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

$36.45 ₽3,042

34.46%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

$24.86 ₽2,075

-55.79%

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$8.30 ₽693

10.24%

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

$259 R 4,264

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

$30.11 ₽2,513

86.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

$35.99 ₽3,004

-9.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

$94.4 ₽7,875

27.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

$59.3 ₽4,951

82.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

$360 ₽30.0K

183.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

$241 ₽20.1K

197.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

$469 ₽39.1K

289.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

$423 ₽35.3K

213.75%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

$2,609 ₽217.8K

-8.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.4K

$1,463 ₽122.1K

5.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

$504 ₽42.1K

224.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

-52.30%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Last update for Ulyanovsk: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Ulyanovsk

$241 27.2% 66.4% $476

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

Ulyanovsk

$200 * 22.6% 11.1% $25

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

Ulyanovsk

$157 17.8% 14% $26

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

Ulyanovsk

$130 14.7% 26% $46

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Ulyanovsk

$99 11.2% 30.7% $44

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

Ulyanovsk

$5.3 * 0.6% 93% $70

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Ulyanovsk

$53 6% 21.2% $14

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 $360 in Ulyanovsk. 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 225% 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 $30.00 in Ulyanovsk. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $225 vs $200 – making Ulyanovsk the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇷🇺 Ulyanovsk

🕒 Local time

11:30 11:30 AM

13:30 1:30 PM

2 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

627,705

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Russian Ruble RUB ₽

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

100 RUB = 1.2 USD

100 RUB = 1.07 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RUB, 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).

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 83.46 RUB (100 RUB = 1.2 USD). 1 EUR = 93.83 RUB (100 RUB = 1.07 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Ulyanovsk 10,230 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Ulyanovsk

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 Ulyanovsk: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 79% more than Ulyanovsk, 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 $1,328 in Ulyanovsk. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Ulyanovsk, 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 $886 in Ulyanovsk. That's a gap of about 79%.

Groceries cost about 13% more in Cape Town, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Ulyanovsk, where all-in costs run around $886, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Ulyanovsk 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. Ulyanovsk costs $886 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 Ulyanovsk. 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.