Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cartagena, Spain and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cartagena: $1,404 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $1,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

67

Cost of Living Index in Cartagena
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Cartagena Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Cartagena

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,404

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Cartagena and in Cape Town actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,404 per month in Cartagena vs $1,527 in Cape Town, rent included.

Cartagena $1,404
Cape Town $1,527

A couple spends around $2,078 per month in Cartagena vs $2,417 in Cape Town, rent included.

Cartagena $2,078
Cape Town $2,417

A family of three spends $2,752 per month in Cartagena vs $3,306 in Cape Town, rent included.

Cartagena $2,752
Cape Town $3,306

Cartagena is about 8% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Cartagena and Cape Town sit above the global median – Cartagena by 4%, Cape Town by 13%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.11 €12.63

$12.01 R 199

17.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.0 €51.0

$42.92 R 709

32.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.80 €6.98

$6.15 R 102

26.83%

Cappuccino

$2.56 €2.29

$2.37 R 39.16

8.02%

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

$2.47 €2.21

$1.27 R 21.03

94.49%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.76 €1.57

$0.94 R 15.50

87.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.44 €3.08

$2.96 R 48.92

16.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 €3.43

$3.69 R 61.0

3.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.18 €1.05

$1.32 R 21.80

-10.61%

White Bread (500g)

$1.13 €1.01

$1.21 R 19.93

-6.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.56 €2.30

$2.20 R 36.37

16.36%

Eggs

$3.82 €3.42

$3.10 R 51.3

23.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.85 €11.49

$8.73 R 144

47.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.10 €6.36

$6.89 R 114

3.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.80 €16.82

$9.26 R 153

103.02%

Apples (1kg)

$2.41 €2.16

$1.83 R 30.17

31.69%

Banana (1kg)

$2.46 €2.20

$1.95 R 32.22

26.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 €1.44

$1.66 R 27.40

-3.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.24 €2.90

$2.14 R 35.30

51.40%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 €1.14

$1.58 R 26.09

-18.99%

Onion (1kg)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.47 R 24.37

-11.56%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.60 €1.43

$1.35 R 22.25

18.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.69 €0.61

$1.14 R 18.91

-39.47%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.68 €5.08

$3.58 R 59.1

58.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.18 €5.53

$6.05 R 100

2.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 €1.09

$1.39 R 23.02

-12.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.13 €1.02

$2.18 R 36.01

-48.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.42 €1.27

$1.40 R 23.09

1.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.36 €10.17

$60.8 R 1,004

-81.30%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.53 €4.95

$0.93 R 15.31

494.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.27 €2.03

$0.90 R 14.88

152.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.84 €24.91

$4.96 R 82.0

461.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.78 €1.60

$1.54 R 25.45

15.58%

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

$35.2K €31.5K

$35.4K R 584.6K

-0.35%

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

$30.3K €27.1K

$33.4K R 551.6K

-9.16%

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

$187 €167

$117 R 1,935

59.86%

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

$19.31 €17.28

$25.71 R 425

-24.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.28 €26.20

$39.41 R 651

-25.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.49 €36.23

$51.6 R 853

-21.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.71 €11.37

$11.35 R 188

11.98%

Cinema Ticket

$7.72 €6.91

$8.89 R 147

-13.16%

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

$407 €364

$308 R 5,085

32.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,649 €2,370

$8,141 R 134.6K

-67.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$45.72 €40.91

$57.4 R 948

-20.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.90 €31.23

$31.75 R 525

9.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$60.0 €53.7

$116 R 1,917

-48.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 €92.7

$101 R 1,665

2.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$590 €528

$1,047 R 17.3K

-43.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$490 €438

$669 R 11.1K

-26.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$875 €783

$1,861 R 30.8K

-52.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$706 €632

$1,407 R 23.3K

-49.82%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,745 €1,562

$2,410 R 39.8K

-27.59%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,395 €1,248

$1,570 R 25.9K

-11.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,714 €1,533

$1,630 R 26.9K

5.15%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.06

10.89

-62.72%

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

Last update for Cartagena: November 1, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cartagena

$490 34.9%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 36.7% $180

Groceries & Markets

Cartagena

$270 19.3%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 17.4% $47

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cartagena

$236 16.8%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 22.7% $54

Eating Out

Cartagena

$209 14.9%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 16.6% $35

Clothing & Footwear

Cartagena

$110 7.8%

Cape Town

$138 9% 25.2% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Cartagena

$56 4%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 24.1% $13

Getting Around

Cartagena

$34 2.4%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 112% $38

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $590 in Cartagena versus $1,047 in Cape Town. 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 5% higher in Cartagena, 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 $57 in Cartagena versus $43 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $270 vs $223 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Cartagena

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

23:09 11:09 PM

00:09 12:09 AM

1 h ahead of Cartagena

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

218,050

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ZAR = 6.05 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.895 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.53 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.05 USD). 1 EUR = 18.47 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cartagena Cape Town 8,200 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Cartagena
Cape Town

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

Cartagena vs Cape Town: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 9% more than Cartagena, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,106 per month in Cartagena and $2,291 in Cape Town. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cartagena, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $590 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,404 in Cartagena and $1,527 in Cape Town. That makes Cartagena about 8% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 81% less in Cartagena. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,404 in Cartagena and $1,527 in Cape Town. 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 $1,404 in Cartagena to $1,527 in Cape Town. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.