Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hawassa and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Hawassa: $834 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $9,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

41

Cost of Living Index in Hawassa
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Hawassa Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Hawassa

🇪🇹 Ethiopia

$834

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $834 per month in Hawassa vs $1,586 in Cape Town, rent included.

Hawassa $834
Cape Town $1,586

A couple spends around $1,199 per month in Hawassa vs $2,425 in Cape Town, rent included.

Hawassa $1,199
Cape Town $2,425

A family of three spends $1,564 per month in Hawassa vs $3,263 in Cape Town, rent included.

Hawassa $1,564
Cape Town $3,263

Hawassa is about 47% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Hawassa sits 38% below the global median, while Cape Town is 17% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.90 ETB 625

$12.14 R 200

-67.87%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.11 ETB 6,758

$45.34 R 747

-7.12%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.56 ETB 1,054

$5.88 R 96.9

11.56%

Cappuccino

$0.95 ETB 153

$2.50 R 41.18

-62.00%

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

$0.63 ETB 102

$1.27 R 20.94

-50.39%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.69 ETB 110

$0.98 R 16.14

-29.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.83 ETB 133

$2.99 R 49.33

-72.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 ETB 370

$3.72 R 61.4

-38.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.07 ETB 172

$1.30 R 21.40

-17.69%

White Bread (500g)

$1.17 ETB 188

$1.25 R 20.68

-6.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.01 ETB 163

$2.23 R 36.76

-54.71%

Eggs

$1.58 ETB 253

$3.11 R 51.2

-49.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.40 ETB 1,188

$9.06 R 149

-18.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.07 ETB 1,616

$6.92 R 114

45.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.09 ETB 1,458

$9.30 R 153

-2.26%

Apples (1kg)

$5.35 ETB 859

$1.84 R 30.25

190.76%

Banana (1kg)

$0.68 ETB 109

$1.96 R 32.29

-65.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.13 ETB 341

$1.67 R 27.45

27.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.66 ETB 106

$2.17 R 35.70

-69.59%

Potato (1kg)

$0.50 ETB 80.5

$1.57 R 25.81

-68.15%

Onion (1kg)

$1.06 ETB 169

$1.48 R 24.45

-28.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.69 ETB 110

$1.30 R 21.41

-46.92%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.57 ETB 91.3

$1.13 R 18.60

-49.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.18 ETB 1,312

$3.60 R 59.3

127.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.55 ETB 891

$6.15 R 101

-9.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 ETB 106

$1.38 R 22.66

-52.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.28 ETB 206

$2.14 R 35.20

-40.19%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R 24.65

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.31 ETB 210

$0.59 R 9.71

122.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.27 ETB 42.86

$1.50 R 24.65

-82.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.03 ETB 326

$5.11 R 84.2

-60.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.92 ETB 147

$1.55 R 25.50

-40.65%

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

$54.6K ETB 8.8M

$36.2K R 596.5K

50.82%

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

$56.4K ETB 9.0M

$31.2K R 514.8K

80.40%

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

$202 ETB 32.5K

$114 R 1,883

76.85%

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

$7.21 ETB 1,158

$28.91 R 476

-75.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$213 ETB 34.2K

$39.73 R 654

436.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 R 808

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 R 181

Cinema Ticket

$3.84 ETB 616

$9.15 R 151

-58.03%

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

$136 ETB 21.9K

$259 R 4,264

-47.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K ETB 4.9M

$6,794 R 111.9K

345.12%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$33.37 ETB 5,356

$56.2 R 926

-40.60%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$70.7 ETB 11.3K

$32.41 R 534

118.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.6 ETB 12.6K

$121 R 1,987

-34.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$83.6 ETB 13.4K

$108 R 1,781

-22.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 R 16.8K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 R 11.8K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 R 30.1K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,327 R 21.9K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 R 39.4K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$494 ETB 79.3K

$1,542 R 25.4K

-67.96%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

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 Hawassa: October 10, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hawassa

$423 50.6%

Cape Town

$183 11.5% 56.7% $240

Groceries & Markets

Hawassa

$205 24.6%

Cape Town

$225 14.2% 9.5% $20

Clothing & Footwear

Hawassa

$120 14.4%

Cape Town

$143 9% 19.2% $23

Eating Out

Hawassa

$76 9.2%

Cape Town

$176 11.1% 131% $100

Sport & Entertainment

Hawassa

$7.7 * 0.9%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 778% $60

Getting Around

Hawassa

$2.6 * 0.3%

Cape Town

$75 4.7% 2734% $72

Accommodation & Living

Hawassa

- * 0%

Cape Town

$717 45.2%

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $42.00 in Hawassa versus $45.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $205 vs $225 – making Hawassa the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇪🇹 Hawassa

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

07:57 7:57 AM

06:57 6:57 AM

1 h behind Hawassa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

160,000

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Ethiopian Birr ETB Br

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 ETB = 6.23 USD

1,000 ETB = 5.54 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to ETB – Ethiopian Birr Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇹 Ethiopian Birr (Br)

Ethiopian Birr exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 160 ETB (1,000 ETB = 6.23 USD). 1 EUR = 180 ETB (1,000 ETB = 5.54 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to ETB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Hawassa Cape Town 5,020 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Hawassa
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

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

Cape Town costs about 90% more than Hawassa, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from utilities. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,252 per month in Hawassa and $2,379 in Cape Town. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $834 in Hawassa and $1,586 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 90%.

Kindergarten costs $136 per month in Hawassa and $259 in Cape Town. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Hawassa, where all-in costs run around $834, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Hawassa 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. Hawassa costs $834 versus $1,586 in Cape Town. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Hawassa. 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.