Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Veles

For one person, living is cheaper in Veles: $769 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $9,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
37

Cost of Living Index in Veles
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Veles Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Veles

🇲🇰 North Macedonia

$769

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,527 per month in Cape Town vs $769 in Veles, rent included.

Cape Town $1,527
Veles $769

A couple spends around $2,417 per month in Cape Town vs $1,139 in Veles, rent included.

Cape Town $2,417
Veles $1,139

A family of three spends $3,306 per month in Cape Town vs $1,508 in Veles, rent included.

Cape Town $3,306
Veles $1,508

Cape Town costs about 99% more than Veles, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Cape Town sits 13% above the global median, while Veles is 43% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 198

$8.78 MKD 478

36.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 707

$17.85 MKD 973

140.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 101

$5.58 MKD 304

10.22%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 39.04

$1.50 MKD 81.7

58.00%

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

$1.27 R 20.96

$1.31 MKD 71.5

-3.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.46

$0.85 MKD 46.38

10.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.77

$1.47 MKD 80.3

101.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 60.8

$3.01 MKD 164

22.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.73

$1.03 MKD 56.3

28.16%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.87

$0.53 MKD 29.02

128.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.26

$1.46 MKD 79.4

50.68%

Eggs

$3.10 R 51.1

$2.40 MKD 131

29.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 144

$3.05 MKD 166

186.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 114

$3.89 MKD 212

77.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 153

$15.06 MKD 820

-38.51%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.08

$1.41 MKD 76.7

29.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 32.12

$1.38 MKD 75.3

41.30%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.32

$1.39 MKD 75.6

19.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 35.19

$1.94 MKD 106

10.31%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 26.01

$0.88 MKD 47.71

79.55%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.29

$0.84 MKD 45.62

75.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.18

$0.64 MKD 34.71

110.94%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.85

$0.55 MKD 30.14

107.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 59.0

$3.26 MKD 178

9.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 99.7

$6.35 MKD 346

-4.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.95

$1.05 MKD 57.4

32.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.90

$1.44 MKD 78.4

51.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 23.02

$0.77 MKD 41.74

81.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

$23.20 MKD 1,264

161.85%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.26

$1.08 MKD 58.8

-13.89%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.83

$0.62 MKD 33.55

45.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 81.7

$7.51 MKD 409

-33.95%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.37

$1.40 MKD 76.0

10.00%

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

$35.4K R 582.8K

$27.1K MKD 1.5M

30.28%

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

$33.4K R 549.9K

$25.1K MKD 1.4M

32.96%

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

$117 R 1,929

$111 MKD 6,043

5.54%

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

$25.71 R 424

$16.88 MKD 920

52.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 649

$12.16 MKD 663

224.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 850

$25.26 MKD 1,376

104.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 187

$17.07 MKD 930

-33.51%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$3.34 MKD 182

166.17%

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

$308 R 5,069

$219 MKD 11.9K

40.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 134.2K

$5,751 MKD 313.3K

41.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 946

$22.26 MKD 1,213

157.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 523

$18.14 MKD 988

75.03%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,911

$71.7 MKD 3,907

61.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,660

$107 MKD 5,840

-6.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.2K

$223 MKD 12.2K

368.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.0K

$171 MKD 9,322

291.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.7K

$286 MKD 15.6K

551.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.2K

$239 MKD 13.0K

489.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.7K

$1,168 MKD 63.7K

106.27%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.9K

$953 MKD 51.9K

64.63%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.9K

$596 MKD 32.4K

173.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

4.23

157.45%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Veles: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Veles

$171 22.3% 74.4% $498

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Veles

$170 22.1% 24% $53

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Veles

$140 18.2% 23.2% $42

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Veles

$127 16.5% 27% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Veles

$99 12.8% 28.3% $39

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Veles

$30 4% 57.6% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Veles

$32 4.2% 54% $37

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,047 in Cape Town versus $223 in Veles. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Cape Town are about 2.7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Cape Town versus $18 in Veles. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $223 vs $170 – making Veles the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇲🇰 Veles

🕒 Local time

05:23 5:23 AM

04:23 4:23 AM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

43,716

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

North Macedonian Denar MKD ден

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

100 MKD = 1.84 USD

100 MKD = 1.64 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MKD, 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 = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

North Macedonian Denar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 54.48 MKD (100 MKD = 1.84 USD). 1 EUR = 61.16 MKD (100 MKD = 1.64 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Veles 8,420 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Veles

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 Veles: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 99% more than Veles, 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 $1,153 in Veles. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Veles, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $223 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,527 in Cape Town and $769 in Veles. That makes Veles about 50% cheaper.

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

Families tend to lean toward Veles – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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