Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Derby and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,568 a month against $2,167 in Derby, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

106

Cost of Living Index in Derby
Learn more

Derby Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
Learn more

Cape Town Living Index

Jump to prices

Derby

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,167

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,167 per month in Derby vs $1,568 in Cape Town, rent included.

Derby $2,167
Cape Town $1,568

A couple spends around $3,327 per month in Derby vs $2,438 in Cape Town, rent included.

Derby $3,327
Cape Town $2,438

A family of three spends $4,486 per month in Derby vs $3,307 in Cape Town, rent included.

Derby $4,486
Cape Town $3,307

Derby costs about 38% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Derby and Cape Town sit above the global median – Derby by 62%, Cape Town by 17%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.91 £20.33

$11.78 R 194

128.44%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$94.2 £71.2

$46.55 R 768

102.32%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.43 £7.88

$5.96 R 98.4

75.00%

Cappuccino

$4.99 £3.77

$2.47 R 40.80

102.02%

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

$2.61 £1.98

$1.33 R 21.91

96.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.96 £1.48

$1.03 R 16.99

90.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.44 £4.87

$3.01 R 49.72

113.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.27 £5.49

$3.66 R 60.4

98.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.55 £1.18

$1.39 R 22.96

11.51%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 £1.08

$1.19 R 19.60

20.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.38 £1.79

$2.11 R 34.84

12.80%

Eggs

$3.79 £2.87

$3.01 R 49.58

25.91%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.33 £6.30

$8.96 R 148

-7.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.28 £6.26

$6.65 R 110

24.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$23.21 £17.54

$9.29 R 153

149.84%

Apples (1kg)

$5.35 £4.04

$1.83 R 30.13

192.35%

Banana (1kg)

$2.82 £2.13

$1.90 R 31.31

48.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.08 £2.33

$1.75 R 28.83

76.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.66 £2.76

$2.09 R 34.41

75.12%

Potato (1kg)

$1.47 £1.11

$1.55 R 25.64

-5.16%

Onion (1kg)

$1.60 £1.21

$1.49 R 24.53

7.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.05 £0.79

$1.30 R 21.41

-19.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 £1.03

$1.16 R 19.19

17.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.53 £17.78

$3.71 R 61.2

534.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.47 £7.91

$6.06 R 100

72.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.13 £2.37

$1.39 R 22.85

125.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.55 £2.68

$2.20 R 36.32

61.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 £2.20

$1.51 R 24.98

92.72%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$90.0 £68.0

$61.0 R 1,006

47.64%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.38 £3.31

$0.63 R 10.33

595.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.66 £1.25

$1.53 R 25.29

8.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.34 £24.44

$4.81 R 79.4

572.35%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.01 £1.52

$1.58 R 26.08

27.22%

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

$38.0K £28.7K

$35.5K R 585.7K

6.92%

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

$39.7K £30.0K

$31.7K R 523.8K

25.05%

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

$367 £277

$116 R 1,920

215.28%

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

$19.46 £14.70

$28.37 R 468

-31.41%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.48 £30.59

$40.69 R 671

-0.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.27 £33.45

$48.85 R 806

-9.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.00 £19.65

$11.13 R 184

133.60%

Cinema Ticket

$15.41 £11.64

$8.83 R 146

74.52%

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

$1,808 £1,366

$261 R 4,314

591.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$20.3K £15.4K

$6,702 R 110.6K

203.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$113 £85.7

$55.4 R 914

104.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.6 £42.78

$32.27 R 532

75.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.4 £63.8

$118 R 1,939

-28.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.5 £74.5

$107 R 1,766

-7.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$804 £608

$1,015 R 16.7K

-20.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$720 £544

$715 R 11.8K

0.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,576 £1,191

$1,801 R 29.7K

-12.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,345 £1,016

$1,330 R 22.0K

1.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,789 £4,375

$2,331 R 38.5K

148.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,100 £2,343

$1,513 R 25.0K

104.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,570 £2,698

$1,636 R 27.0K

118.23%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.88

10.97

-55.52%

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

Last update for Derby: October 5, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Derby

$720 32.7%

Cape Town

$715 45.3% 0.6% $4.5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Derby

$427 19.4%

Cape Town

$185 11.7% 56.6% $241

Eating Out

Derby

$371 16.9%

Cape Town

$174 11% 53.2% $198

Groceries & Markets

Derby

$337 15.3%

Cape Town

$222 14.1% 33.9% $114

Clothing & Footwear

Derby

$159 7.2%

Cape Town

$141 8.9% 11.6% $18

Getting Around

Derby

$114 5.2%

Cape Town

$75 4.8% 34.1% $39

Sport & Entertainment

Derby

$75 3.4%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 11.4% $8.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $804 in Derby versus $1,015 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 118% higher in Derby, 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 Derby versus $47.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $337 vs $222 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Derby

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

06:05 6:05 AM

07:05 7:05 AM

1 h ahead of Derby

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

233,700

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.06 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 16.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.06 USD). 1 EUR = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Derby Cape Town 9,850 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Derby
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

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

Derby costs about 38% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,250 per month in Derby and $2,352 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 $2,167 in Derby and $1,568 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 38%.

Public transport costs about 48% 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 $1,568, than in Derby at $2,167. In Cape Town it covers expenses comfortably, while in Derby it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cape Town costs $1,568 versus $2,167 in Derby. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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