Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Exeter and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,586 a month against $2,396 in Exeter, rent and utilities included – about $9,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

117

Cost of Living Index in Exeter
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Exeter Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Exeter

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,396

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,396 per month in Exeter vs $1,586 in Cape Town, rent included.

Exeter $2,396
Cape Town $1,586

A couple spends around $3,801 per month in Exeter vs $2,425 in Cape Town, rent included.

Exeter $3,801
Cape Town $2,425

A family of three spends $5,206 per month in Exeter vs $3,263 in Cape Town, rent included.

Exeter $5,206
Cape Town $3,263

Exeter costs about 51% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Exeter and Cape Town sit above the global median – Exeter by 78%, Cape Town by 17%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.02 £15.02

$12.14 R 200

64.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$98.9 £74.2

$45.34 R 747

118.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.12 £6.84

$5.88 R 96.9

55.10%

Cappuccino

$4.73 £3.55

$2.50 R 41.18

89.20%

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

$3.12 £2.34

$1.27 R 20.94

145.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.40 £1.80

$0.98 R 16.14

144.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.13 £5.35

$2.99 R 49.33

138.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.20 £4.65

$3.72 R 61.4

66.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 £1.13

$1.30 R 21.40

15.38%

White Bread (500g)

$1.60 £1.20

$1.25 R 20.68

28.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.78 £1.33

$2.23 R 36.76

-20.18%

Eggs

$4.31 £3.23

$3.11 R 51.2

38.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.95 £6.72

$9.06 R 149

-1.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.41 £6.31

$6.92 R 114

21.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.94 £17.21

$9.30 R 153

146.67%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 £2.26

$1.84 R 30.25

63.59%

Banana (1kg)

$1.42 £1.07

$1.96 R 32.29

-27.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.29 £1.72

$1.67 R 27.45

37.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.06 £2.30

$2.17 R 35.70

41.01%

Potato (1kg)

$2.27 £1.70

$1.57 R 25.81

44.59%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 £1.52

$1.48 R 24.45

36.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.50 £1.12

$1.30 R 21.41

15.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.89 £1.42

$1.13 R 18.60

67.26%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.33 £17.51

$3.60 R 59.3

548.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.21 £6.91

$6.15 R 101

49.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.52 £2.64

$1.38 R 22.66

155.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 £3.31

$2.14 R 35.20

106.07%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.00 £3.00

$1.50 R 24.65

166.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$104 £78.2

$60.8 R 1,001

71.54%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.96 £4.47

$0.59 R 9.71

910.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.43 £1.83

$1.50 R 24.65

62.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.16 £18.12

$5.11 R 84.2

372.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.94 £1.46

$1.55 R 25.50

25.16%

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

$38.8K £29.1K

$36.2K R 596.5K

7.19%

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

$40.2K £30.2K

$31.2K R 514.8K

28.73%

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

$469 £352

$114 R 1,883

310.67%

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

$15.80 £11.85

$28.91 R 476

-45.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$46.56 £34.93

$39.73 R 654

17.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.93 £32.96

$49.01 R 808

-10.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.13 £9.85

$10.99 R 181

19.47%

Cinema Ticket

$12.73 £9.55

$9.15 R 151

39.13%

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

$1,413 £1,060

$259 R 4,264

445.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.5K £13.1K

$6,794 R 111.9K

157.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$67.1 £50.3

$56.2 R 926

19.38%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.64 £23.74

$32.41 R 534

-2.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 £76.6

$121 R 1,987

-15.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$75.1 £56.3

$108 R 1,781

-30.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,137 £853

$1,021 R 16.8K

11.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$893 £670

$717 R 11.8K

24.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,384 £1,788

$1,824 R 30.1K

30.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,063 £1,547

$1,327 R 21.9K

55.46%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,317 £3,989

$2,391 R 39.4K

122.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,618 £4,965

$1,542 R 25.4K

329.22%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,096 £2,323

$1,639 R 27.0K

88.92%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.11

10.97

-53.42%

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

Last update for Exeter: October 10, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Exeter

$893 37.3%

Cape Town

$717 45.2% 19.7% $176

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Exeter

$532 22.2%

Cape Town

$183 11.5% 65.6% $349

Groceries & Markets

Exeter

$326 13.6%

Cape Town

$225 14.2% 30.9% $101

Eating Out

Exeter

$314 13.1%

Cape Town

$176 11.1% 44% $138

Getting Around

Exeter

$138 5.8%

Cape Town

$75 4.7% 45.9% $64

Clothing & Footwear

Exeter

$124 5.2%

Cape Town

$143 9% 15% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Exeter

$69 2.9%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 3% $2.1

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,137 in Exeter 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 89% higher in Exeter, 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 $99.0 in Exeter versus $45.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $326 vs $225 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Exeter

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

19:27 7:27 PM

20:27 8:27 PM

1 h ahead of Exeter

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

130,800

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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Between locations

Exeter Cape Town 9,660 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Exeter
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

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

Exeter costs about 51% 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 $3,595 per month in Exeter 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 $2,396 in Exeter and $1,586 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 51%.

Public transport costs about 72% 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 Exeter at $2,396. In Cape Town it covers expenses comfortably, while in Exeter it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cape Town costs $1,586 versus $2,396 in Exeter. 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, Exeter makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.