Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Ystad

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,556 a month against $1,646 in Ystad, rent and utilities included – about $1,100 less a year. The total is higher in Ystad despite lower rent and utilities.

75

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Ystad
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Ystad Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,556

/mo nomad

Ystad

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,646

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,556 per month in Cape Town vs $1,646 in Ystad, rent included.

Cape Town $1,556
Ystad $1,646

A couple spends around $2,432 per month in Cape Town vs $2,592 in Ystad, rent included.

Cape Town $2,432
Ystad $2,592

A family of three spends $3,307 per month in Cape Town vs $3,538 in Ystad, rent included.

Cape Town $3,307
Ystad $3,538

Cape Town is about 5% cheaper than Ystad, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Cape Town and Ystad sit above the global median – Cape Town by 14%, Ystad by 21%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.09 R 201

$12.15 SEK 121

-0.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.34 R 738

$86.1 SEK 857

-48.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 102

$10.23 SEK 102

-39.88%

Cappuccino

$2.36 R 39.24

$3.06 SEK 30.48

-22.88%

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

$1.26 R 21.03

$2.98 SEK 29.66

-57.72%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.00 R 16.56

$2.27 SEK 22.57

-55.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.08 R 51.2

$6.99 SEK 69.6

-55.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.70 R 61.5

$7.39 SEK 73.5

-49.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.34 R 22.38

$1.71 SEK 16.98

-21.64%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 R 19.86

$2.80 SEK 27.86

-57.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.10 R 34.96

$3.15 SEK 31.31

-33.33%

Eggs

$3.05 R 50.7

$3.10 SEK 30.82

-1.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 145

$11.51 SEK 115

-24.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.97 R 116

$8.84 SEK 88.0

-21.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.39 R 156

$16.46 SEK 164

-42.95%

Apples (1kg)

$1.89 R 31.39

$2.99 SEK 29.76

-36.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.88 R 31.27

$2.44 SEK 24.32

-22.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.69 R 28.04

$2.93 SEK 29.20

-42.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.04 R 34.02

$4.52 SEK 44.94

-54.87%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 R 26.08

$1.54 SEK 15.36

1.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.61

$1.70 SEK 16.87

-12.94%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 R 21.33

$1.96 SEK 19.46

-34.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 R 19.78

$1.66 SEK 16.50

-28.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.63 R 60.4

$8.19 SEK 81.5

-55.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.17 R 103

$12.05 SEK 120

-48.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 23.10

$2.05 SEK 20.39

-32.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 36.27

$2.28 SEK 22.73

-4.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.37 R 22.79

$3.36 SEK 33.42

-59.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.3 R 1,020

$79.1 SEK 787

-22.49%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.57 R 9.56

$6.05 SEK 60.2

-90.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 R 24.58

$1.74 SEK 17.31

-14.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.90 R 81.5

$59.2 SEK 589

-91.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 R 26.25

$1.77 SEK 17.61

-10.73%

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

$34.7K R 577.5K

$29.9K SEK 297.7K

16.04%

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

$34.1K R 567.4K

$33.3K SEK 331.4K

2.40%

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

$117 R 1,945

$105 SEK 1,044

11.47%

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

$28.35 R 472

$19.69 SEK 196

43.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.58 R 675

$30.14 SEK 300

34.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.54 R 808

$37.44 SEK 373

29.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.80 R 180

$26.36 SEK 262

-59.03%

Cinema Ticket

$9.11 R 152

$12.15 SEK 121

-25.02%

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

$302 R 5,024

$180 SEK 1,789

67.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,720 R 111.8K

$4,351 SEK 43.3K

54.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.2 R 919

$51.3 SEK 510

7.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.70 R 544

$33.38 SEK 332

-2.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 R 1,961

$87.4 SEK 870

34.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 R 1,728

$133 SEK 1,328

-22.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,041 R 17.3K

$792 SEK 7,883

31.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$691 R 11.5K

$612 SEK 6,096

12.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,981 R 33.0K

$1,354 SEK 13.5K

46.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,388 R 23.1K

$1,023 SEK 10.2K

35.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,420 R 40.3K

$4,023 SEK 40.0K

-39.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,552 R 25.8K

$2,767 SEK 27.5K

-43.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,576 R 26.2K

$1,881 SEK 18.7K

-16.21%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

3.06

258.50%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 24, 2026

Last update for Ystad: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$691 44.4%

Ystad

$612 37.2% 11.3% $78

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$224 14.4%

Ystad

$337 20.5% 50.6% $113

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$186 11.9%

Ystad

$155 9.4% 16.7% $31

Eating Out

Cape Town

$175 11.3%

Ystad

$235 14.3% 34.3% $60

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$139 9%

Ystad

$137 8.4% 1.3% $1.9

Getting Around

Cape Town

$75 4.8%

Ystad

$107 6.5% 43.5% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$67 4.3%

Ystad

$62 3.8% 7.5% $5

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,041 in Cape Town versus $792 in Ystad. 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 19% higher in Ystad. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Cape Town versus $86 in Ystad. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $224 vs $337 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇸🇪 Ystad

🕒 Local time

12:59 12:59 PM

11:59 11:59 AM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

18,350

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.01 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

100 SEK = 10.05 USD

100 SEK = 9.03 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 October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 16.64 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.01 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 9.95 SEK (1 SEK = 0.1 USD). 1 EUR = 11.08 SEK (100 SEK = 9.03 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Ystad 9,950 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Ystad

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 Ystad: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ystad costs about 6% 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 $2,469 in Ystad. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Ystad, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $792 there versus $1,041 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,556 in Cape Town and $1,646 in Ystad. That’s a gap of about 6%.

Public transport costs about 22% 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 $1,646 in Ystad. 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 $1,556 in Cape Town to $1,646 in Ystad. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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