Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dubendorf and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $3,771 in Dubendorf, rent and utilities included – about $26,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

179

Cost of Living Index in Dubendorf
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Dubendorf Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Dubendorf

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,771

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $3,771 per month in Dubendorf vs $1,527 in Cape Town, rent included.

Dubendorf $3,771
Cape Town $1,527

A couple spends around $5,573 per month in Dubendorf vs $2,417 in Cape Town, rent included.

Dubendorf $5,573
Cape Town $2,417

A family of three spends $7,375 per month in Dubendorf vs $3,306 in Cape Town, rent included.

Dubendorf $7,375
Cape Town $3,306

Dubendorf costs about 147% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Dubendorf and Cape Town sit above the global median – Dubendorf by 179%, Cape Town by 13%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$30.36 CHF 24.76

$12.01 R 198

152.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$122 CHF 99.2

$42.92 R 707

183.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$16.64 CHF 13.57

$6.15 R 101

170.57%

Cappuccino

$5.93 CHF 4.84

$2.37 R 39.04

150.21%

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

$5.48 CHF 4.47

$1.27 R 20.96

331.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.92 CHF 4.01

$0.94 R 15.46

423.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.44 CHF 6.88

$2.96 R 48.77

185.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.55 CHF 5.34

$3.69 R 60.8

77.51%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.23 CHF 1.82

$1.32 R 21.73

68.94%

White Bread (500g)

$3.83 CHF 3.12

$1.21 R 19.87

216.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.51 CHF 3.68

$2.20 R 36.26

105.00%

Eggs

$7.09 CHF 5.78

$3.10 R 51.1

128.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$32.14 CHF 26.21

$8.73 R 144

268.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$25.90 CHF 21.12

$6.89 R 114

275.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$42.48 CHF 34.64

$9.26 R 153

358.75%

Apples (1kg)

$3.46 CHF 2.82

$1.83 R 30.08

89.07%

Banana (1kg)

$2.11 CHF 1.72

$1.95 R 32.12

8.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.17 CHF 2.58

$1.66 R 27.32

90.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.74 CHF 5.49

$2.14 R 35.19

214.95%

Potato (1kg)

$2.29 CHF 1.86

$1.58 R 26.01

44.94%

Onion (1kg)

$2.28 CHF 1.86

$1.47 R 24.29

55.10%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.37 CHF 1.93

$1.35 R 22.18

75.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 CHF 1.13

$1.14 R 18.85

21.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.16 CHF 9.10

$3.58 R 59.0

211.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.32 CHF 10.86

$6.05 R 99.7

120.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.80 CHF 2.28

$1.39 R 22.95

101.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.09 CHF 2.52

$2.18 R 35.90

41.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.46 CHF 2.01

$1.40 R 23.02

75.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$48.17 CHF 39.28

$60.8 R 1,001

-20.71%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.46 CHF 3.64

$0.93 R 15.26

379.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.01 CHF 2.46

$0.90 R 14.83

234.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$61.0 CHF 49.71

$4.96 R 81.7

1128.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.29 CHF 1.86

$1.54 R 25.37

48.70%

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

$39.3K CHF 32.1K

$35.4K R 582.8K

11.22%

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

$39.3K CHF 32.1K

$33.4K R 549.9K

17.79%

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

$235 CHF 192

$117 R 1,929

100.79%

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

$29.24 CHF 23.84

$25.71 R 424

13.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$67.4 CHF 55.0

$39.41 R 649

71.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$120 CHF 98.1

$51.6 R 850

133.06%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$79.2 CHF 64.6

$11.35 R 187

597.97%

Cinema Ticket

$24.07 CHF 19.63

$8.89 R 146

170.75%

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

$1,514 CHF 1,234

$308 R 5,069

392.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.2K CHF 20.6K

$8,141 R 134.2K

209.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$139 CHF 113

$57.4 R 946

142.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$89.7 CHF 73.2

$31.75 R 523

182.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$146 CHF 119

$116 R 1,911

25.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$175 CHF 143

$101 R 1,660

73.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,827 CHF 1,490

$1,047 R 17.2K

74.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,864 CHF 1,520

$669 R 11.0K

178.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,872 CHF 2,342

$1,861 R 30.7K

54.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,880 CHF 2,348

$1,407 R 23.2K

104.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$12.4K CHF 10.1K

$2,410 R 39.7K

413.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,387 CHF 6,024

$1,570 R 25.9K

370.67%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,876 CHF 3,161

$1,630 R 26.9K

137.84%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.36

10.89

-78.33%

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

Last update for Dubendorf: October 31, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dubendorf

$1.9K 49.4%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 64.1% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Dubendorf

$621 16.5%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 64.1% $398

Eating Out

Dubendorf

$461 12.2%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 62.2% $287

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dubendorf

$332 8.8%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 45.1% $150

Clothing & Footwear

Dubendorf

$247 6.6%

Cape Town

$138 9% 44.4% $110

Sport & Entertainment

Dubendorf

$168 4.5%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 58.8% $99

Getting Around

Dubendorf

$78 2.1%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 7.5% $5.8

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,827 in Dubendorf 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 in Dubendorf are about 2.4 times higher, 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 $122 in Dubendorf versus $43 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $621 vs $223 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Dubendorf

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

05:05 5:05 AM

06:05 6:05 AM

1 h ahead of Dubendorf

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

26,759

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.23 USD

1 CHF = 1.09 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.815 CHF (1 CHF = 1.23 USD). 1 EUR = 0.915 CHF (1 CHF = 1.09 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

USD to CHF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Dubendorf Cape Town 9,100 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Dubendorf
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

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

Dubendorf costs about 147% 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 $5,657 per month in Dubendorf 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 Cape Town, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,047 there versus $1,827 in Dubendorf.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $3,771 in Dubendorf and $1,527 in Cape Town. That makes Cape Town about 60% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 21% less in Dubendorf. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $3,771 in Dubendorf and $1,527 in Cape Town. 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.

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