Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between El Jadida and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in El Jadida: $621 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $11,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

30

Cost of Living Index in El Jadida
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El Jadida Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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El Jadida

🇲🇦 Morocco

$621

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $621 per month in El Jadida vs $1,586 in Cape Town, rent included.

El Jadida $621
Cape Town $1,586

A couple spends around $935 per month in El Jadida vs $2,425 in Cape Town, rent included.

El Jadida $935
Cape Town $2,425

A family of three spends $1,250 per month in El Jadida vs $3,263 in Cape Town, rent included.

El Jadida $1,250
Cape Town $3,263

El Jadida is about 61% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

El Jadida sits 54% below the global median, while Cape Town is 17% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.83 MAD 27.58

$12.14 R 200

-76.69%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$20.87 MAD 203

$45.34 R 747

-53.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.08 MAD 59.3

$5.88 R 96.9

3.40%

Cappuccino

$1.52 MAD 14.80

$2.50 R 41.18

-39.20%

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

$0.42 MAD 4.13

$1.27 R 20.94

-66.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.28 MAD 2.72

$0.98 R 16.14

-71.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 MAD 25.80

$2.99 R 49.33

-11.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.60 MAD 25.32

$3.72 R 61.4

-30.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.93 MAD 9.04

$1.30 R 21.40

-28.46%

White Bread (500g)

$0.38 MAD 3.67

$1.25 R 20.68

-69.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.98 MAD 19.33

$2.23 R 36.76

-11.21%

Eggs

$1.84 MAD 17.94

$3.11 R 51.2

-40.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.33 MAD 61.7

$9.06 R 149

-30.13%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.89 MAD 37.95

$6.92 R 114

-43.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.61 MAD 74.2

$9.30 R 153

-18.17%

Apples (1kg)

$1.57 MAD 15.34

$1.84 R 30.25

-14.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 MAD 13.70

$1.96 R 32.29

-28.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.65 MAD 6.31

$1.67 R 27.45

-61.08%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.70 MAD 6.80

$2.17 R 35.70

-67.74%

Potato (1kg)

$0.72 MAD 7.06

$1.57 R 25.81

-54.14%

Onion (1kg)

$0.51 MAD 4.97

$1.48 R 24.45

-65.54%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.30 MAD 2.90

$1.30 R 21.41

-76.92%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 MAD 5.09

$1.13 R 18.60

-53.98%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 MAD 38.64

$3.60 R 59.3

10.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.18 MAD 40.77

$6.15 R 101

-32.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.51 MAD 24.46

$1.38 R 22.66

81.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.95 MAD 28.78

$2.14 R 35.20

37.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.48 MAD 4.68

$1.50 R 24.65

-68.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.82 MAD 164

$60.8 R 1,001

-72.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.02 MAD 9.94

$0.59 R 9.71

72.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.01 MAD 9.80

$1.50 R 24.65

-32.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.26 MAD 51.3

$5.11 R 84.2

2.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 MAD 14.33

$1.55 R 25.50

-5.16%

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

$34.4K MAD 335.2K

$36.2K R 596.5K

-5.04%

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

$31.0K MAD 302.3K

$31.2K R 514.8K

-0.78%

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

$29.18 MAD 285

$114 R 1,883

-74.48%

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

$10.38 MAD 101

$28.91 R 476

-64.10%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.70 MAD 299

$39.73 R 654

-22.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.75 MAD 280

$49.01 R 808

-41.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.84 MAD 115

$10.99 R 181

7.73%

Cinema Ticket

$6.34 MAD 61.8

$9.15 R 151

-30.71%

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

$114 MAD 1,112

$259 R 4,264

-55.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,165 MAD 30.9K

$6,794 R 111.9K

-53.41%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$27.58 MAD 269

$56.2 R 926

-50.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.84 MAD 359

$32.41 R 534

13.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$65.3 MAD 637

$121 R 1,987

-45.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$69.5 MAD 677

$108 R 1,781

-35.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$210 MAD 2,050

$1,021 R 16.8K

-79.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$165 MAD 1,606

$717 R 11.8K

-77.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$359 MAD 3,498

$1,824 R 30.1K

-80.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$229 MAD 2,230

$1,327 R 21.9K

-82.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,533 MAD 14.9K

$2,391 R 39.4K

-35.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$782 MAD 7,628

$1,542 R 25.4K

-49.26%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$470 MAD 4,581

$1,639 R 27.0K

-71.32%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.5

10.97

-49.86%

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

Last update for El Jadida: October 11, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

El Jadida

$165 26.6%

Cape Town

$717 45.2% 335% $552

Groceries & Markets

El Jadida

$149 24.1%

Cape Town

$225 14.2% 50.5% $76

Clothing & Footwear

El Jadida

$90 14.4%

Cape Town

$143 9% 59.3% $53

Eating Out

El Jadida

$80 12.9%

Cape Town

$176 11.1% 119% $96

Monthly Utilities & Internet

El Jadida

$70 11.3%

Cape Town

$183 11.5% 160% $113

Sport & Entertainment

El Jadida

$41 6.7%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 62.5% $26

Getting Around

El Jadida

$25 4%

Cape Town

$75 4.7% 202% $50

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $210 in El Jadida 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 249% higher in Cape Town, 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 $21.00 in El Jadida versus $45.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $149 vs $225 – making El Jadida the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇦 El Jadida

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

16:39 4:39 PM

17:39 5:39 PM

1 h ahead of El Jadida

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

237,464

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Moroccan Dirham MAD د.م.

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 MAD = 10.26 USD

100 MAD = 9.12 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to MAD – Moroccan Dirham Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇦 Moroccan Dirham (د.م.)

Moroccan Dirham exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 9.75 MAD (1 MAD = 0.103 USD). 1 EUR = 10.96 MAD (100 MAD = 9.12 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to MAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

El Jadida Cape Town 7,980 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

El Jadida
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

El Jadida vs Cape Town: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 156% more than El Jadida, 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 $931 per month in El Jadida 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 El Jadida, 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 $621 in El Jadida and $1,586 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 156%.

Public transport costs about 261% less in El Jadida. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in El Jadida, where all-in costs run around $621, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In El Jadida it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cape Town it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. El Jadida costs $621 versus $1,586 in Cape Town. 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 El Jadida. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Cape Town makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.