Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Windsor, NS

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,556 a month against $2,212 in Windsor, NS, rent and utilities included – about $7,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

75

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
112

Cost of Living Index in Windsor, NS
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Windsor, NS Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,556

/mo nomad

Windsor, NS

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,212

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cape Town and in Windsor, NS

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

A single person spends $1,556 per month in Cape Town vs $2,212 in Windsor, NS, rent included.

Cape Town $1,556
Windsor, NS $2,212

A couple spends around $2,432 per month in Cape Town vs $3,268 in Windsor, NS, rent included.

Cape Town $2,432
Windsor, NS $3,268

A family of three spends $3,307 per month in Cape Town vs $4,324 in Windsor, NS, rent included.

Cape Town $3,307
Windsor, NS $4,324

Cape Town is about 30% cheaper than Windsor, NS, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Cape Town and Windsor, NS sit above the global median – Cape Town by 14%, Windsor, NS by 62%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.09 R 202

$18.93 CA$26.57

-36.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.34 R 739

$35.52 CA$49.85

24.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 102

$10.82 CA$15.18

-43.16%

Cappuccino

$2.36 R 39.30

$3.65 CA$5.12

-35.34%

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

$1.26 R 21.06

$2.06 CA$2.89

-38.83%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.00 R 16.59

$1.87 CA$2.62

-46.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.08 R 51.3

$4.39 CA$6.16

-29.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.70 R 61.6

$5.59 CA$7.85

-33.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.34 R 22.41

$2.94 CA$4.12

-54.42%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 R 19.89

$2.84 CA$3.99

-58.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.10 R 35.01

$3.54 CA$4.97

-40.68%

Eggs

$3.05 R 50.8

$3.74 CA$5.25

-18.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 146

$13.70 CA$19.23

-36.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.97 R 116

$15.31 CA$21.48

-54.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.39 R 157

$13.21 CA$18.54

-28.92%

Apples (1kg)

$1.89 R 31.44

$5.76 CA$8.09

-67.19%

Banana (1kg)

$1.88 R 31.32

$1.54 CA$2.17

22.08%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.69 R 28.08

$4.75 CA$6.67

-64.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.04 R 34.07

$5.79 CA$8.13

-64.77%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 26.12

$2.07 CA$2.91

-24.15%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.65

$2.15 CA$3.01

-31.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 R 21.36

$2.49 CA$3.50

-48.59%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 R 19.81

$2.10 CA$2.95

-43.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.63 R 60.5

$14.17 CA$19.89

-74.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.17 R 103

$14.35 CA$20.13

-57.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 23.14

$3.27 CA$4.59

-57.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 36.33

$3.94 CA$5.53

-44.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.37 R 22.83

$2.54 CA$3.56

-46.06%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.3 R 1,021

$64.0 CA$89.8

-4.26%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.57 R 9.58

$2.87 CA$4.03

-80.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 R 24.62

$1.40 CA$1.96

5.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.90 R 81.6

$21.04 CA$29.52

-76.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 R 26.29

$1.22 CA$1.71

29.51%

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

$34.7K R 578.4K

$26.7K CA$37.5K

29.84%

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

$34.1K R 568.2K

$21.3K CA$29.9K

60.20%

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

$117 R 1,948

$125 CA$176

-6.81%

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

$28.35 R 472

$31.80 CA$44.63

-10.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.58 R 676

$36.09 CA$50.6

12.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.54 R 809

$36.05 CA$50.6

34.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.80 R 180

$17.45 CA$24.49

-38.11%

Cinema Ticket

$9.11 R 152

$12.92 CA$18.14

-29.49%

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

$302 R 5,032

$379 CA$531

-20.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,720 R 112.0K

$13.7K CA$19.3K

-51.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.2 R 920

$59.9 CA$84.1

-7.83%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.70 R 545

$35.29 CA$49.52

-7.34%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 R 1,964

$103 CA$145

14.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 R 1,731

$117 CA$165

-11.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,041 R 17.3K

$1,265 CA$1,775

-17.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$691 R 11.5K

$1,025 CA$1,438

-32.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,981 R 33.0K

$1,834 CA$2,573

8.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,388 R 23.1K

$1,749 CA$2,454

-20.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,420 R 40.3K

$4,604 CA$6,461

-47.44%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,552 R 25.9K

$3,447 CA$4,838

-54.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,576 R 26.3K

$940 CA$1,320

67.59%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

4.6

138.48%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 24, 2026

Last update for Windsor, NS: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$691 44.4%

Windsor, NS

$1K 46.3% 48.3% $334

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$224 14.4%

Windsor, NS

$429 19.4% 91.8% $205

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$186 11.9%

Windsor, NS

$193 8.7% 4% $7.5

Eating Out

Cape Town

$175 11.3%

Windsor, NS

$277 12.5% 57.7% $101

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$139 9%

Windsor, NS

$142 6.4% 1.9% $2.7

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.8%

Windsor, NS

$84 3.8% 12.4% $9.3

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.3%

Windsor, NS

$62 2.8% 7.3% $4.9

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,041 in Cape Town versus $1,265 in Windsor, NS. 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 68% higher in Cape Town, 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 $44 in Cape Town versus $36 in Windsor, NS. Groceries tell a different story – $224 in Cape Town vs $429 in Windsor, NS – so Cape Town wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇨🇦 Windsor, NS

🕒 Local time

18:38 6:38 PM

13:38 1:38 PM

5 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

217,188

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

1 CAD = 0.713 USD

1 CAD = 0.64 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 16.66 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6 USD). 1 EUR = 18.55 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.713 USD). 1 EUR = 1.56 CAD (1 CAD = 0.64 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cape Town Windsor, NS 12,070 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Windsor, NS

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 Windsor, NS: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Windsor, NS costs about 42% 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 $2,335 per month in Cape Town and $3,317 in Windsor, NS. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cape Town, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,041 there versus $1,265 in Windsor, NS.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,556 in Cape Town and $2,212 in Windsor, NS. That’s a gap of about 42%.

Public transport costs about 4% 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 $1,556 in Cape Town and $2,212 in Windsor, NS. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

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