Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hastings and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,586 a month against $2,667 in Hastings, rent and utilities included – about $13,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

129

Cost of Living Index in Hastings
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Hastings Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Hastings

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,667

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,667 per month in Hastings vs $1,586 in Cape Town, rent included.

Hastings $2,667
Cape Town $1,586

A couple spends around $3,558 per month in Hastings vs $2,425 in Cape Town, rent included.

Hastings $3,558
Cape Town $2,425

A family of three spends $4,449 per month in Hastings vs $3,263 in Cape Town, rent included.

Hastings $4,449
Cape Town $3,263

Hastings costs about 68% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Hastings and Cape Town sit above the global median – Hastings by 98%, Cape Town by 17%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.82 £18.62

$12.14 R 200

104.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$80.3 £60.3

$45.34 R 747

77.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.28 £8.46

$5.88 R 96.9

91.84%

Cappuccino

$4.43 £3.33

$2.50 R 41.18

77.20%

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

$2.96 £2.22

$1.27 R 20.94

133.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.34 £1.01

$0.98 R 16.14

36.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.78 £5.09

$2.99 R 49.33

126.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.78 £5.08

$3.72 R 61.4

82.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.72 £0.54

$1.30 R 21.40

-44.62%

White Bread (500g)

$1.71 £1.29

$1.25 R 20.68

36.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.62 £1.96

$2.23 R 36.76

17.49%

Eggs

$3.19 £2.40

$3.11 R 51.2

2.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.70 £7.28

$9.06 R 149

7.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.68 £7.26

$6.92 R 114

39.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.27 £9.96

$9.30 R 153

42.69%

Apples (1kg)

$2.82 £2.12

$1.84 R 30.25

53.26%

Banana (1kg)

$1.74 £1.31

$1.96 R 32.29

-11.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.89 £2.17

$1.67 R 27.45

73.05%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.42 £2.57

$2.17 R 35.70

57.60%

Potato (1kg)

$1.84 £1.38

$1.57 R 25.81

17.20%

Onion (1kg)

$1.54 £1.16

$1.48 R 24.45

4.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.20 £0.90

$1.30 R 21.41

-7.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.75 £1.32

$1.13 R 18.60

54.87%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$17.49 £13.12

$3.60 R 59.3

385.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.75 £5.07

$6.15 R 101

9.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.88 £2.16

$1.38 R 22.66

108.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.39 £2.54

$2.14 R 35.20

58.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.50 £2.63

$1.50 R 24.65

133.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$95.9 £71.9

$60.8 R 1,001

57.79%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.35 £3.26

$0.59 R 9.71

637.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 £0.82

$1.50 R 24.65

-27.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$31.53 £23.65

$5.11 R 84.2

517.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 £1.47

$1.55 R 25.50

26.45%

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

$38.8K £29.1K

$36.2K R 596.5K

7.12%

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

$40.2K £30.1K

$31.2K R 514.8K

28.59%

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

$324 £243

$114 R 1,883

183.20%

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

$19.77 £14.83

$28.91 R 476

-31.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.7 £40.27

$39.73 R 654

35.11%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.83 £33.63

$49.01 R 808

-8.53%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

Cinema Ticket

$15.81 £11.86

$9.15 R 151

72.79%

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

$1,572 £1,180

$259 R 4,264

507.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.5K £13.1K

$6,794 R 111.9K

157.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 £78.0

$56.2 R 926

85.10%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.9 £38.92

$32.41 R 534

60.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 £76.9

$121 R 1,987

-15.02%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 £100

$108 R 1,781

23.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,465 £1,099

$1,021 R 16.8K

43.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,259 £945

$717 R 11.8K

75.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,071 £1,553

$1,824 R 30.1K

13.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,464 £1,098

$1,327 R 21.9K

10.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,994 £3,747

$2,391 R 39.4K

108.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,809 £2,857

$1,542 R 25.4K

147.04%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,279 £2,460

$1,639 R 27.0K

100.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.96

10.97

-54.79%

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

Last update for Hastings: 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

Hastings

$1.3K 47.2%

Cape Town

$717 45.2% 43.1% $543

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hastings

$397 14.9%

Cape Town

$183 11.5% 53.9% $214

Eating Out

Hastings

$350 13.1%

Cape Town

$176 11.1% 49.7% $174

Groceries & Markets

Hastings

$287 10.8%

Cape Town

$225 14.2% 21.7% $62

Clothing & Footwear

Hastings

$176 6.6%

Cape Town

$143 9% 19.1% $34

Getting Around

Hastings

$120 4.5%

Cape Town

$75 4.7% 37.5% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Hastings

$76 2.9%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 12% $9.1

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,465 in Hastings 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 100% higher in Hastings, 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 $80.0 in Hastings versus $45.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $287 vs $225 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Hastings

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

15:22 3:22 PM

16:22 4:22 PM

1 h ahead of Hastings

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

92,855

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

Hastings Cape Town 9,590 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Hastings
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

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

Hastings costs about 68% 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 $4,000 per month in Hastings 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 $2,667 in Hastings and $1,586 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 68%.

Public transport costs about 58% 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 Hastings at $2,667. In Cape Town it covers expenses comfortably, while in Hastings it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cape Town costs $1,586 versus $2,667 in Hastings. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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