Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Vina del Mar

For one person, living is cheaper in Vina del Mar: $1,060 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $5,600 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
51

Cost of Living Index in Vina del Mar
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Vina del Mar Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Vina del Mar

🇨🇱 Chile

$1,060

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cape Town and in Vina del Mar

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 Vina del Mar actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,527 per month in Cape Town vs $1,060 in Vina del Mar, rent included.

Cape Town $1,527
Vina del Mar $1,060

A couple spends around $2,417 per month in Cape Town vs $1,699 in Vina del Mar, rent included.

Cape Town $2,417
Vina del Mar $1,699

A family of three spends $3,306 per month in Cape Town vs $2,339 in Vina del Mar, rent included.

Cape Town $3,306
Vina del Mar $2,339

Cape Town costs about 44% more than Vina del Mar, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Cape Town sits 13% above the global median, while Vina del Mar is 22% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 199

$8.25 CLP 8,075

45.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 709

$58.7 CLP 57.5K

-26.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 102

$7.73 CLP 7,573

-20.44%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 39.16

$3.60 CLP 3,524

-34.17%

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

$1.27 R 21.03

$1.43 CLP 1,401

-11.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.50

$1.08 CLP 1,054

-12.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.92

$3.50 CLP 3,430

-15.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 61.0

$3.23 CLP 3,159

14.24%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.80

$1.27 CLP 1,242

3.94%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.93

$1.22 CLP 1,195

-0.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.37

$1.65 CLP 1,619

33.33%

Eggs

$3.10 R 51.3

$4.05 CLP 3,964

-23.46%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 144

$9.55 CLP 9,351

-8.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 114

$5.11 CLP 5,008

34.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 153

$12.01 CLP 11.8K

-22.90%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.17

$1.47 CLP 1,440

24.49%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 32.22

$1.73 CLP 1,697

12.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.40

$1.24 CLP 1,209

33.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 35.30

$1.11 CLP 1,084

92.79%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 26.09

$1.56 CLP 1,524

1.28%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.37

$1.22 CLP 1,199

20.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.25

$1.03 CLP 1,008

31.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.91

$1.23 CLP 1,205

-7.32%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 59.1

$5.01 CLP 4,901

-28.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 100

$6.56 CLP 6,425

-7.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 23.02

$1.77 CLP 1,731

-21.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 36.01

$2.21 CLP 2,168

-1.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 23.09

$0.52 CLP 510

169.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,004

$38.44 CLP 37.6K

58.04%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.31

$1.52 CLP 1,484

-38.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.88

$1.19 CLP 1,166

-24.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 82.0

$12.41 CLP 12.2K

-60.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.45

$1.39 CLP 1,360

10.79%

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

$35.4K R 584.6K

$18.6K CLP 18.2M

90.45%

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

$33.4K R 551.6K

$17.2K CLP 16.8M

94.19%

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

$117 R 1,935

$108 CLP 105.5K

8.67%

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

$25.71 R 425

$14.75 CLP 14.4K

74.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 651

$17.25 CLP 16.9K

128.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 853

$43.42 CLP 42.5K

18.86%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 188

$24.12 CLP 23.6K

-52.94%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 147

$6.20 CLP 6,068

43.39%

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

$308 R 5,085

$515 CLP 504.0K

-40.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 134.6K

$5,037 CLP 4.9M

61.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 948

$42.35 CLP 41.5K

35.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 525

$32.60 CLP 31.9K

-2.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,917

$55.1 CLP 53.9K

110.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,665

$86.9 CLP 85.0K

15.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.3K

$461 CLP 451.2K

127.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.1K

$334 CLP 326.6K

100.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.8K

$826 CLP 808.6K

125.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.3K

$603 CLP 590.7K

133.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.8K

$2,362 CLP 2.3M

2.02%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.9K

$1,506 CLP 1.5M

4.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.9K

$1,042 CLP 1.0M

56.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

4.83

125.47%

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

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Vina del Mar: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Vina del Mar

$334 31.5% 50.2% $336

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Vina del Mar

$219 20.6% 2.1% $4.6

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Vina del Mar

$140 13.2% 23.3% $42

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Vina del Mar

$166 15.7% 4.4% $7.7

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Vina del Mar

$98 9.2% 29.1% $40

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Vina del Mar

$48 4.5% 33.1% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Vina del Mar

$56 5.3% 19.6% $14

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,047 in Cape Town versus $461 in Vina del Mar. 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 56% higher in Cape Town. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Cape Town versus $59 in Vina del Mar. Groceries tell a different story – $223 in Cape Town vs $219 in Vina del Mar – so Vina del Mar wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇨🇱 Vina del Mar

🕒 Local time

21:10 9:10 PM

16:10 4:10 PM

5 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

332,875

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Chilean Peso CLP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.05 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

10,000 CLP = 10.21 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.09 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CLP, 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 = 16.53 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.05 USD). 1 EUR = 18.56 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR).

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 979 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.02 USD). 1 EUR = 1,100 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.09 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Vina del Mar 8,040 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Vina del Mar

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 Vina del Mar: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 44% more than Vina del Mar, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from clothing. 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 $1,589 in Vina del Mar. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Vina del Mar, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $461 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,527 in Cape Town and $1,060 in Vina del Mar. That makes Vina del Mar about 31% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $308 per month in Cape Town and $515 in Vina del Mar. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,527 in Cape Town and $1,060 in Vina del Mar. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Cape Town has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,060 in Vina del Mar to $1,527 in Cape Town. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Vina del Mar. 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.