Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Uppsala

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $2,092 in Uppsala, rent and utilities included – about $6,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
101

Cost of Living Index in Uppsala
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Uppsala Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Uppsala

🇸🇪 Sweden

$2,092

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,527 per month in Cape Town vs $2,092 in Uppsala, rent included.

Cape Town $1,527
Uppsala $2,092

A couple spends around $2,417 per month in Cape Town vs $3,282 in Uppsala, rent included.

Cape Town $2,417
Uppsala $3,282

A family of three spends $3,306 per month in Cape Town vs $4,472 in Uppsala, rent included.

Cape Town $3,306
Uppsala $4,472

Cape Town is about 27% cheaper than Uppsala, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Cape Town and Uppsala sit above the global median – Cape Town by 13%, Uppsala by 55%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 197

$15.25 SEK 149

-21.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 703

$80.4 SEK 785

-46.60%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 101

$10.35 SEK 101

-40.58%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 38.81

$5.01 SEK 48.99

-52.69%

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

$1.27 R 20.84

$3.08 SEK 30.10

-58.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.37

$2.39 SEK 23.39

-60.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.48

$8.05 SEK 78.7

-63.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 60.5

$10.28 SEK 100

-64.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.61

$1.78 SEK 17.40

-25.84%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.75

$3.01 SEK 29.38

-59.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.05

$4.72 SEK 46.11

-53.39%

Eggs

$3.10 R 50.8

$4.95 SEK 48.40

-37.37%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 143

$10.23 SEK 100

-14.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 113

$15.01 SEK 147

-54.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 152

$17.92 SEK 175

-48.33%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 29.90

$4.85 SEK 47.44

-62.27%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 31.94

$2.80 SEK 27.37

-30.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.16

$3.69 SEK 36.10

-55.01%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 34.99

$5.31 SEK 51.9

-59.70%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 25.86

$1.97 SEK 19.30

-19.80%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.15

$1.70 SEK 16.62

-13.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.05

$2.74 SEK 26.73

-50.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.75

$1.35 SEK 13.17

-15.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 58.6

$8.14 SEK 79.5

-56.02%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 99.2

$10.05 SEK 98.2

-39.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.82

$2.54 SEK 24.84

-45.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.69

$2.41 SEK 23.53

-9.54%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 22.88

$4.06 SEK 39.63

-65.52%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 995

$112 SEK 1,095

-45.80%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.18

$5.54 SEK 54.2

-83.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.75

$1.37 SEK 13.37

-34.31%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 81.3

$63.5 SEK 620

-92.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.23

$1.85 SEK 18.04

-16.76%

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

$35.4K R 579.4K

$33.1K SEK 323.4K

6.88%

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

$33.4K R 546.7K

$33.9K SEK 331.0K

-1.48%

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

$117 R 1,918

$115 SEK 1,122

1.96%

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

$25.71 R 421

$16.08 SEK 157

59.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 646

$48.83 SEK 477

-19.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 846

$43.48 SEK 425

18.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 186

$24.66 SEK 241

-53.97%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$18.31 SEK 179

-51.45%

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

$308 R 5,040

$131 SEK 1,280

134.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 133.4K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 940

$108 SEK 1,053

-46.76%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 520

$50.6 SEK 494

-37.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,900

$92.2 SEK 901

25.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,650

$206 SEK 2,010

-51.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.1K

$1,063 SEK 10.4K

-1.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.0K

$788 SEK 7,702

-15.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.5K

$1,561 SEK 15.3K

19.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.1K

$1,423 SEK 13.9K

-1.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.5K

$5,371 SEK 52.5K

-55.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.7K

$3,035 SEK 29.7K

-48.29%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.7K

$3,352 SEK 32.8K

-51.38%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

3.86

182.12%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Uppsala: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Uppsala

$788 37.7% 17.8% $119

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Uppsala

$403 19.2% 80.3% $179

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Uppsala

$180 8.6% 1.4% $2.5

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Uppsala

$296 14.1% 70.1% $122

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Uppsala

$205 9.8% 49.2% $68

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Uppsala

$141 6.7% 96.1% $69

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Uppsala

$80 3.8% 15.4% $11

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,047 in Cape Town versus $1,063 in Uppsala. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Uppsala are about 2.1 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Cape Town versus $80 in Uppsala. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $223 vs $403 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇸🇪 Uppsala

🕒 Local time

03:35 3:35 AM

02:35 2:35 AM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

166,698

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.1 USD

100 ZAR = 5.44 EUR

100 SEK = 10.23 USD

100 SEK = 9.12 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SEK, USD, EUR 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 = 16.38 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.1 USD). 1 EUR = 18.39 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.44 EUR).

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 9.77 SEK (1 SEK = 0.102 USD). 1 EUR = 10.97 SEK (100 SEK = 9.12 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

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Between locations

Cape Town Uppsala 10,430 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Uppsala

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 Uppsala: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Uppsala costs about 37% more than Cape Town, 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 $2,291 per month in Cape Town and $3,139 in Uppsala. 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 $1,063 in Uppsala. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,527 in Cape Town and $2,092 in Uppsala. That makes Cape Town about 27% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 46% less in Cape Town. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,527 in Cape Town and $2,092 in Uppsala. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cape Town costs $1,527 versus $2,092 in Uppsala. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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