Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hamar and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $2,460 in Hamar, rent and utilities included – about $11,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

118

Cost of Living Index in Hamar
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Hamar Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Hamar

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,460

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,460 per month in Hamar vs $1,527 in Cape Town, rent included.

Hamar $2,460
Cape Town $1,527

A couple spends around $3,844 per month in Hamar vs $2,417 in Cape Town, rent included.

Hamar $3,844
Cape Town $2,417

A family of three spends $5,229 per month in Hamar vs $3,306 in Cape Town, rent included.

Hamar $5,229
Cape Town $3,306

Hamar costs about 61% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Hamar and Cape Town sit above the global median – Hamar by 82%, Cape Town by 13%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.52 NOK 200

$12.01 R 197

79.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$126 NOK 1,174

$42.92 R 703

194.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$16.03 NOK 149

$6.15 R 101

160.65%

Cappuccino

$5.89 NOK 54.7

$2.37 R 38.81

148.52%

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

$4.60 NOK 42.69

$1.27 R 20.84

262.20%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.54 NOK 32.83

$0.94 R 15.37

276.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$12.04 NOK 112

$2.96 R 48.48

306.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.31 NOK 77.1

$3.69 R 60.5

125.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.53 NOK 23.45

$1.32 R 21.61

91.67%

White Bread (500g)

$3.16 NOK 29.36

$1.21 R 19.75

161.16%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.13 NOK 19.76

$2.20 R 36.05

-3.18%

Eggs

$6.01 NOK 55.7

$3.10 R 50.8

93.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.23 NOK 104

$8.73 R 143

28.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.68 NOK 118

$6.89 R 113

84.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$32.04 NOK 297

$9.26 R 152

246.00%

Apples (1kg)

$3.49 NOK 32.40

$1.83 R 29.90

90.71%

Banana (1kg)

$2.65 NOK 24.64

$1.95 R 31.94

35.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.20 NOK 29.67

$1.66 R 27.16

92.77%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.10 NOK 56.6

$2.14 R 34.99

185.05%

Potato (1kg)

$2.59 NOK 24.08

$1.58 R 25.86

63.92%

Onion (1kg)

$2.65 NOK 24.59

$1.47 R 24.15

80.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.18 NOK 20.24

$1.35 R 22.05

61.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.00 NOK 18.60

$1.14 R 18.75

75.44%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$18.96 NOK 176

$3.58 R 58.6

429.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.96 NOK 148

$6.05 R 99.2

163.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.52 NOK 32.69

$1.39 R 22.82

153.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.34 NOK 40.24

$2.18 R 35.69

99.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.81 NOK 44.60

$1.40 R 22.88

243.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$68.2 NOK 633

$60.8 R 995

12.21%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$12.30 NOK 114

$0.93 R 15.18

1222.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.93 NOK 17.93

$0.90 R 14.75

114.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$72.7 NOK 674

$4.96 R 81.3

1365.12%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.41 NOK 22.40

$1.54 R 25.23

56.49%

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

$50.3K NOK 467.2K

$35.4K R 579.4K

42.37%

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

$45.0K NOK 417.2K

$33.4K R 546.7K

34.72%

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

$229 NOK 2,124

$117 R 1,918

95.55%

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

$34.26 NOK 318

$25.71 R 421

33.26%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.3 NOK 513

$39.41 R 646

40.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.9 NOK 537

$51.6 R 846

12.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$30.09 NOK 279

$11.35 R 186

165.11%

Cinema Ticket

$19.03 NOK 177

$8.89 R 146

114.06%

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

$217 NOK 2,018

$308 R 5,040

-29.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.5K NOK 162.7K

$8,141 R 133.4K

115.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$103 NOK 958

$57.4 R 940

79.99%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$61.3 NOK 569

$31.75 R 520

93.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 NOK 1,252

$116 R 1,900

16.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 NOK 993

$101 R 1,650

6.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,253 NOK 11.6K

$1,047 R 17.1K

19.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$889 NOK 8,253

$669 R 11.0K

32.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,579 NOK 14.7K

$1,861 R 30.5K

-15.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,517 NOK 14.1K

$1,407 R 23.1K

7.81%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,404 NOK 40.9K

$2,410 R 39.5K

82.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,561 NOK 33.0K

$1,570 R 25.7K

126.88%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,330 NOK 40.2K

$1,630 R 26.7K

165.66%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.94

10.89

-54.64%

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

Last update for Hamar: November 1, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Hamar

$889 36.1%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 24.8% $220

Groceries & Markets

Hamar

$463 18.8%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 51.8% $240

Eating Out

Hamar

$400 16.3%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 56.5% $226

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hamar

$318 13%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 42.8% $136

Clothing & Footwear

Hamar

$183 7.4%

Cape Town

$138 9% 24.8% $45

Getting Around

Hamar

$109 4.5%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 34.4% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Hamar

$96 3.9%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 27.7% $27

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,253 in Hamar 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 Hamar are about 2.7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $126 in Hamar versus $43 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $463 vs $223 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Hamar

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

01:50 1:50 AM

02:50 2:50 AM

1 h ahead of Hamar

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

33,059

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 NOK = 10.78 USD

100 NOK = 9.6 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.1 USD

100 ZAR = 5.44 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to NOK – Norwegian Krone Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇴 Norwegian Krone (kr)

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 9.28 NOK (1 NOK = 0.108 USD). 1 EUR = 10.42 NOK (100 NOK = 9.6 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.38 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.1 USD). 1 EUR = 18.39 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.44 EUR).

USD to NOK in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Hamar Cape Town 10,580 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Hamar
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

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

Hamar costs about 61% 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 $3,690 per month in Hamar 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 $1,253 in Hamar.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,460 in Hamar and $1,527 in Cape Town. That makes Cape Town about 38% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 11% less in Cape Town. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $2,460 in Hamar and $1,527 in Cape Town. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Cape Town has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,527 in Cape Town to $2,460 in Hamar. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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