Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Unaizah

For one person, living is cheaper in Unaizah: $1,130 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $5,500 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
55

Cost of Living Index in Unaizah
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Unaizah Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Unaizah

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,130

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,586 per month in Cape Town vs $1,130 in Unaizah, rent included.

Cape Town $1,586
Unaizah $1,130

A couple spends around $2,425 per month in Cape Town vs $1,681 in Unaizah, rent included.

Cape Town $2,425
Unaizah $1,681

A family of three spends $3,263 per month in Cape Town vs $2,232 in Unaizah, rent included.

Cape Town $3,263
Unaizah $2,232

Cape Town costs about 40% more than Unaizah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Cape Town sits 17% above the global median, while Unaizah is 16% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.14 R 200

$6.27 SAR 23.54

93.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.34 R 747

$40.84 SAR 153

11.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 R 96.9

$7.13 SAR 26.77

-17.53%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.59 SAR 5.96

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.30 SAR 4.88

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.18

$4.05 SAR 15.20

-38.27%

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

$1.27 R 20.94

$0.68 SAR 2.55

86.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 R 16.14

$0.28 SAR 1.06

250.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 R 49.33

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 R 61.4

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.40

$1.53 SAR 5.76

-15.03%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.68

$0.31 SAR 1.17

303.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 R 36.76

$2.26 SAR 8.48

-1.33%

Eggs

$3.11 R 51.2

$2.33 SAR 8.74

33.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.06 R 149

$5.90 SAR 22.13

53.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.92 R 114

$4.60 SAR 17.27

50.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 R 153

$12.83 SAR 48.14

-27.51%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.25

$2.18 SAR 8.17

-15.60%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.29

$1.57 SAR 5.89

24.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.45

$1.66 SAR 6.24

0.60%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.70

$1.56 SAR 5.86

39.10%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 25.81

$1.22 SAR 4.59

28.69%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.45

$2.62 SAR 9.81

-43.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

$1.27 SAR 4.77

2.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 R 18.60

$0.64 SAR 2.41

76.56%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$2.85 SAR 10.70

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.75 SAR 6.55

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.99 SAR 7.49

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 R 59.3

$6.58 SAR 24.69

-45.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.15 R 101

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 R 22.66

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 R 35.20

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R 24.65

$1.04 SAR 3.91

44.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$37.39 SAR 140

62.48%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.59 R 9.71

$2.70 SAR 10.13

-78.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 R 24.65

$1.85 SAR 6.93

-18.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 R 84.2

$13.10 SAR 49.14

-60.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 R 25.50

$0.65 SAR 2.43

138.46%

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

$36.2K R 596.5K

$45.2K SAR 169.7K

-19.95%

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

$31.2K R 514.8K

$21.3K SAR 79.9K

46.72%

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

$114 R 1,883

$106 SAR 397

8.00%

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

$28.91 R 476

$33.29 SAR 125

-13.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 R 654

$65.3 SAR 245

-39.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

$54.2 SAR 203

-9.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

Cinema Ticket

$9.15 R 151

$13.24 SAR 49.70

-30.89%

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

$259 R 4,264

$423 SAR 1,589

-38.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,794 R 111.9K

$8,007 SAR 30.0K

-15.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 R 926

$41.84 SAR 157

34.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.41 R 534

$53.9 SAR 202

-39.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,987

$96.1 SAR 361

25.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,781

$87.7 SAR 329

23.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

$567 SAR 2,127

80.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

$369 SAR 1,386

94.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

$823 SAR 3,086

121.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

$562 SAR 2,109

136.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

$2,362 SAR 8,863

1.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,542 R 25.4K

$1,374 SAR 5,154

12.24%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

$2,543 SAR 9,541

-35.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

5.54

98.01%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Last update for Unaizah: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

Unaizah

$369 32.7% 48.5% $347

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$225 14.2%

Unaizah

$172 15.3% 23.3% $52

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$183 11.5%

Unaizah

$204 18.1% 11.8% $22

Eating Out

Cape Town

$176 11.1%

Unaizah

$124 11% 29.6% $52

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Unaizah

$126 11.1% 11.9% $17

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.7%

Unaizah

$53 4.7% 28.5% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.2%

Unaizah

$81 7.1% 19.8% $13

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,021 in Cape Town versus $567 in Unaizah. 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 55% higher in Unaizah, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $45.00 in Cape Town versus $41.00 in Unaizah. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $225 vs $172 – making Unaizah the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇸🇦 Unaizah

🕒 Local time

00:22 12:22 AM

01:22 1:22 AM

1 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

163,729

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.22 SAR (1 SAR = 0.237 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Unaizah 7,200 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Unaizah

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 Unaizah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 40% more than Unaizah, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. 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 $1,696 in Unaizah. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Unaizah, 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 $1,130 in Unaizah. That's a gap of about 40%.

Public transport costs about 62% less in Unaizah. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Unaizah, where all-in costs run around $1,130, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Unaizah 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. Unaizah costs $1,130 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 Unaizah. 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.