Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Eritrea and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Eritrea: $1,352 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $2,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cape Town outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

67

Cost of Living Index in Eritrea
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Eritrea Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
Learn more

Cape Town Living Index

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🇪🇷 Eritrea

$1,352

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

😐 Solo nomad: Eritrea is 60.8% more expensive than Cape Town without rent, and 13.7% cheaper with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Eritrea is 18.8% more expensive than Cape Town without rent, and 9.1% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.96 ERN 315

$11.78 R 194

77.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$33.58 ERN 504

$46.55 R 768

-27.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.41 ERN 81.3

$5.96 R 98.4

-9.23%

Cappuccino

$0.69 ERN 10.33

$2.47 R 40.80

-72.06%

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

$0.98 ERN 14.69

$1.33 R 21.91

-26.32%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.02 ERN 15.38

$1.03 R 16.99

-0.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.98 ERN 14.72

$3.01 R 49.72

-67.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 R 60.4

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ERN 23.48

$1.39 R 22.96

12.23%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 R 19.60

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.27 ERN 34.10

$2.11 R 34.84

7.58%

Eggs

$4.48 ERN 67.3

$3.01 R 49.58

48.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.03 ERN 45.56

$8.96 R 148

-66.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$27.34 ERN 411

$6.65 R 110

311.13%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.04 ERN 151

$9.29 R 153

8.07%

Apples (1kg)

$12.12 ERN 182

$1.83 R 30.13

562.30%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 ERN 18.89

$1.90 R 31.31

-33.68%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.95 ERN 29.34

$1.75 R 28.83

11.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.15 ERN 17.32

$2.09 R 34.41

-44.98%

Potato (1kg)

$1.76 ERN 26.50

$1.55 R 25.64

13.55%

Onion (1kg)

$0.96 ERN 14.45

$1.49 R 24.53

-35.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.41

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.17 ERN 32.64

$1.16 R 19.19

87.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.71 R 61.2

Wine (Bottle)

$12.23 ERN 184

$6.06 R 100

101.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 ERN 14.75

$1.39 R 22.85

-29.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 ERN 14.68

$2.20 R 36.32

-55.45%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.11 ERN 1.68

$1.51 R 24.98

-92.72%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.88 ERN 118

$61.0 R 1,006

-87.07%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.63 R 10.33

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.57 ERN 8.57

$1.53 R 25.29

-62.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.84 ERN 148

$4.81 R 79.4

104.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.53 ERN 38.01

$1.58 R 26.08

60.13%

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

$68.0K ERN 1.0M

$35.5K R 585.7K

91.43%

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

$70.8K ERN 1.1M

$31.7K R 523.8K

122.99%

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

$25.19 ERN 378

$116 R 1,920

-78.36%

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

$67.3 ERN 1,010

$28.37 R 468

137.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$203 ERN 3,051

$40.69 R 671

399.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.53 ERN 399

$48.85 R 806

-45.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.95 ERN 74.3

$11.13 R 184

-55.53%

Cinema Ticket

$1.19 ERN 17.87

$8.83 R 146

-86.52%

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

$25.19 ERN 378

$261 R 4,314

-90.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,624 ERN 39.4K

$6,702 R 110.6K

-60.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$138 ERN 2,065

$55.4 R 914

148.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$120 ERN 1,806

$32.27 R 532

272.64%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$200 ERN 3,009

$118 R 1,939

70.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$151 ERN 2,267

$107 R 1,766

41.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$251 ERN 3,774

$1,015 R 16.7K

-75.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$198 ERN 2,970

$715 R 11.8K

-72.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$450 ERN 6,764

$1,801 R 29.7K

-74.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$433 ERN 6,503

$1,330 R 22.0K

-67.46%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,272 ERN 19.1K

$2,331 R 38.5K

-45.44%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,215 ERN 33.3K

$1,513 R 25.0K

46.41%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$510 ERN 7,656

$1,636 R 27.0K

-68.85%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

18.5

10.97

68.64%

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

Last update for Eritrea: October 6, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Eritrea

$365 * 26.5%

Cape Town

$222 14.1% 39.1% $143

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Eritrea

$296 21.5%

Cape Town

$185 11.7% 37.3% $110

Clothing & Footwear

Eritrea

$274 19.9%

Cape Town

$141 8.9% 48.7% $134

Eating Out

Eritrea

$205 * 14.9%

Cape Town

$174 11% 15.3% $31

Accommodation & Living

Eritrea

$198 14.4%

Cape Town

$715 45.3% 262% $518

Sport & Entertainment

Eritrea

$29 2.1%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 130% $38

Getting Around

Eritrea

$11 * 0.8%

Cape Town

$75 4.8% 574% $64

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Good to know

🇪🇷 Eritrea

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

10:04 10:04 AM

09:04 9:04 AM

1 h behind Eritrea

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,497,000

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Eritrean Nakfa ERN ናቕፋ

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 ERN = 6.66 USD

100 ERN = 5.94 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to ERN – Eritrean Nakfa Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇷 Eritrean Nakfa (ናቕፋ)

Eritrean Nakfa exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 15.02 ERN (100 ERN = 6.66 USD). 1 EUR = 16.85 ERN (100 ERN = 5.94 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 ERN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Eritrea Cape Town 5,890 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Eritrea
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

Eritrea vs other spots: cost of living compared

Cost of Living Comparison Between Eritrea and Cape Town

ZAR, USD, EUR to ERN – Eritrean Nakfa Converter

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

Eritrea

Cape Town

Eritrea

Cape Town

Eritrea vs other spots: cost of living compared

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