Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chatham and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,586 a month against $2,956 in Chatham, rent and utilities included – about $16,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

144

Cost of Living Index in Chatham
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Chatham Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Chatham

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,956

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Chatham 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 Chatham and in Cape Town actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $2,956 per month in Chatham vs $1,586 in Cape Town, rent included.

Chatham $2,956
Cape Town $1,586

A couple spends around $4,000 per month in Chatham vs $2,425 in Cape Town, rent included.

Chatham $4,000
Cape Town $2,425

A family of three spends $5,044 per month in Chatham vs $3,263 in Cape Town, rent included.

Chatham $5,044
Cape Town $3,263

Chatham costs about 86% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Chatham and Cape Town sit above the global median – Chatham by 119%, Cape Town by 17%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.44 £10.08

$12.14 R 200

10.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$93.5 £70.2

$45.34 R 747

106.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.77 £7.33

$5.88 R 96.9

66.16%

Cappuccino

$3.58 £2.69

$2.50 R 41.18

43.20%

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

$2.95 £2.22

$1.27 R 20.94

132.28%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 £1.20

$0.98 R 16.14

63.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.26 £4.70

$2.99 R 49.33

109.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.63 £4.97

$3.72 R 61.4

78.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.87 £1.40

$1.30 R 21.40

43.85%

White Bread (500g)

$2.05 £1.54

$1.25 R 20.68

64.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.13 £1.60

$2.23 R 36.76

-4.48%

Eggs

$3.90 £2.93

$3.11 R 51.2

25.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.54 £7.90

$9.06 R 149

16.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.20 £6.90

$6.92 R 114

32.95%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.27 £11.46

$9.30 R 153

64.19%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 £2.20

$1.84 R 30.25

59.24%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 £1.46

$1.96 R 32.29

-0.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.61 £1.96

$1.67 R 27.45

56.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.60 £2.70

$2.17 R 35.70

65.90%

Potato (1kg)

$1.97 £1.48

$1.57 R 25.81

25.48%

Onion (1kg)

$1.88 £1.41

$1.48 R 24.45

27.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 £0.88

$1.30 R 21.41

-9.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 £1.22

$1.13 R 18.60

44.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$21.41 £16.06

$3.60 R 59.3

494.72%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.05 £8.29

$6.15 R 101

79.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.03 £2.27

$1.38 R 22.66

119.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.40 £1.80

$2.14 R 35.20

12.15%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.02 £3.02

$1.50 R 24.65

168.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$112 £84.3

$60.8 R 1,001

84.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.88 £3.66

$0.59 R 9.71

727.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.72 £2.04

$1.50 R 24.65

81.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.84 £14.88

$5.11 R 84.2

288.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.97 £1.48

$1.55 R 25.50

27.10%

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

$38.6K £29.0K

$36.2K R 596.5K

6.72%

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

$36.7K £27.5K

$31.2K R 514.8K

17.44%

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

$279 £209

$114 R 1,883

143.66%

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

$16.97 £12.73

$28.91 R 476

-41.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.03 £19.53

$39.73 R 654

-34.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$113 £85.1

$49.01 R 808

131.52%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.15 £6.87

$10.99 R 181

-16.74%

Cinema Ticket

$17.64 £13.24

$9.15 R 151

92.79%

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

$2,046 £1,535

$259 R 4,264

690.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.6K £22.9K

$6,794 R 111.9K

349.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.0 £67.5

$56.2 R 926

60.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.39 £34.06

$32.41 R 534

40.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 £76.8

$121 R 1,987

-15.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.1 £66.8

$108 R 1,781

-17.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,044 £1,534

$1,021 R 16.8K

100.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,632 £1,224

$717 R 11.8K

127.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,470 £1,853

$1,824 R 30.1K

35.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,092 £1,569

$1,327 R 21.9K

57.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,902 £5,928

$2,391 R 39.4K

230.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,319 £5,491

$1,542 R 25.4K

374.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,938 £2,204

$1,639 R 27.0K

79.30%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.12

10.97

-53.33%

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

Last update for Chatham: October 13, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chatham

$1.6K 55.2%

Cape Town

$717 45.2% 56.1% $915

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chatham

$322 10.9%

Cape Town

$183 11.5% 43.1% $139

Groceries & Markets

Chatham

$318 10.7%

Cape Town

$225 14.2% 29.2% $93

Eating Out

Chatham

$243 8.2%

Cape Town

$176 11.1% 27.4% $66

Sport & Entertainment

Chatham

$149 5%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 54.7% $81

Getting Around

Chatham

$147 5%

Cape Town

$75 4.7% 49.1% $72

Clothing & Footwear

Chatham

$147 5%

Cape Town

$143 9% 2.9% $4.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,044 in Chatham versus $1,021 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 79% higher in Chatham, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $94.0 in Chatham versus $45.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $318 vs $225 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Chatham

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

09:17 9:17 AM

10:17 10:17 AM

1 h ahead of Chatham

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

76,792

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Chatham Cape Town 9,650 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Chatham
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

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

Chatham costs about 86% 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 $4,434 per month in Chatham and $2,379 in Cape Town. 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. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,956 in Chatham and $1,586 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 86%.

Public transport costs about 85% less in Cape Town. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Cape Town, where all-in costs run around $1,586, than in Chatham at $2,956. In Cape Town it covers expenses comfortably, while in Chatham it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cape Town costs $1,586 versus $2,956 in Chatham. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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