Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hillcrest and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Hillcrest: $1,081 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $5,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

52

Cost of Living Index in Hillcrest
Learn more

Hillcrest Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
Learn more

Cape Town Living Index

Jump to prices

Hillcrest

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,081

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,081 per month in Hillcrest vs $1,527 in Cape Town, rent included.

Hillcrest $1,081
Cape Town $1,527

A couple spends around $1,686 per month in Hillcrest vs $2,417 in Cape Town, rent included.

Hillcrest $1,686
Cape Town $2,417

A family of three spends $2,292 per month in Hillcrest vs $3,306 in Cape Town, rent included.

Hillcrest $2,292
Cape Town $3,306

Hillcrest is about 29% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Hillcrest sits 20% below the global median, while Cape Town is 13% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.87 R 131

$12.01 R 200

-34.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$38.34 R 639

$42.92 R 715

-10.67%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.01 R 100

$6.15 R 103

-2.28%

Cappuccino

$2.71 R 45.23

$2.37 R 39.48

14.35%

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

$1.14 R 18.99

$1.27 R 21.20

-10.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.90 R 14.94

$0.94 R 15.63

-4.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.45 R 40.86

$2.96 R 49.31

-17.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 R 41.69

$3.69 R 61.5

-32.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.18 R 19.58

$1.32 R 21.98

-10.61%

White Bread (500g)

$0.98 R 16.38

$1.21 R 20.09

-19.01%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 R 24.97

$2.20 R 36.66

-31.82%

Eggs

$2.32 R 38.70

$3.10 R 51.7

-25.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.19 R 136

$8.73 R 146

-6.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.05 R 84.1

$6.89 R 115

-26.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.27 R 121

$9.26 R 154

-21.49%

Apples (1kg)

$1.29 R 21.55

$1.83 R 30.41

-29.51%

Banana (1kg)

$1.93 R 32.09

$1.95 R 32.49

-1.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.95 R 32.43

$1.66 R 27.63

17.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.73 R 28.87

$2.14 R 35.58

-19.16%

Potato (1kg)

$1.46 R 24.36

$1.58 R 26.30

-7.59%

Onion (1kg)

$1.44 R 24.04

$1.47 R 24.57

-2.04%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.21 R 20.08

$1.35 R 22.43

-10.37%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 19.01

$1.14 R 19.07

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.71 R 61.7

$3.58 R 59.6

3.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.80 R 79.9

$6.05 R 101

-20.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 R 23.46

$1.39 R 23.21

1.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.96 R 32.70

$2.18 R 36.31

-10.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.54 R 25.58

$1.40 R 23.27

10.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,012

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.44 R 7.25

$0.93 R 15.43

-52.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 R 11.79

$0.90 R 15.00

-21.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.70 R 128

$4.96 R 82.7

55.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 R 24.22

$1.54 R 25.66

-5.84%

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

$35.2K R 586.7K

$35.4K R 589.3K

-0.44%

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

$33.1K R 550.8K

$33.4K R 556.1K

-0.95%

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

$153 R 2,550

$117 R 1,951

30.72%

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

$35.61 R 593

$25.71 R 428

38.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.04 R 651

$39.41 R 657

-0.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.00 R 550

$51.6 R 860

-36.06%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.55 R 226

$11.35 R 189

19.38%

Cinema Ticket

$7.29 R 122

$8.89 R 148

-18.00%

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

$310 R 5,172

$308 R 5,126

0.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,429 R 123.8K

$8,141 R 135.7K

-8.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.6 R 860

$57.4 R 956

-10.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.96 R 466

$31.75 R 529

-11.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$97.0 R 1,616

$116 R 1,932

-16.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.2 R 1,319

$101 R 1,678

-21.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$377 R 6,276

$1,047 R 17.4K

-64.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$353 R 5,876

$669 R 11.2K

-47.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$640 R 10.7K

$1,861 R 31.0K

-65.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$732 R 12.2K

$1,407 R 23.4K

-47.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$764 R 12.7K

$2,410 R 40.2K

-68.32%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$575 R 9,578

$1,570 R 26.2K

-63.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 27.2K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.78

10.89

8.17%

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

Last update for Hillcrest: 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

Hillcrest

$353 32.6%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 89.8% $317

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hillcrest

$228 21.1%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 20% $45

Groceries & Markets

Hillcrest

$189 17.5%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 17.9% $34

Eating Out

Hillcrest

$139 12.9%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 25.2% $35

Clothing & Footwear

Hillcrest

$115 10.6%

Cape Town

$138 9% 19.6% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Hillcrest

$48 4.4%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 45.8% $22

Getting Around

Hillcrest

$10 * 0.9%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 610% $62

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $377 in Hillcrest 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $38 in Hillcrest versus $43 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $189 vs $223 – making Hillcrest the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Hillcrest

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

04:52 4:52 AM

Same time as Hillcrest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6 USD

100 ZAR = 5.37 EUR

100 ZAR = 6 USD

100 ZAR = 5.37 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Hillcrest Cape Town 1,250 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Hillcrest
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

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

Cape Town costs about 41% more than Hillcrest, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,622 per month in Hillcrest 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 Hillcrest, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $377 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,081 in Hillcrest and $1,527 in Cape Town. That makes Hillcrest about 29% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $310 per month in Hillcrest and $308 in Cape Town. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,081 in Hillcrest and $1,527 in Cape Town, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Hillcrest costs $1,081 versus $1,527 in Cape Town. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.