Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Iraq and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Iraq: $810 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $9,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

40

Cost of Living Index in Iraq
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Iraq Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

Jump to prices

🇮🇶 Iraq

$810

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

🙂 Solo nomad: Iraq is 34.4% cheaper than Cape Town without rent, and 48.3% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Iraq is 35.4% cheaper than Cape Town without rent, and 50.4% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.50 IQD 6,796

$11.78 R 194

-61.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.34 IQD 36.8K

$46.55 R 768

-47.71%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.53 IQD 11.4K

$5.96 R 98.4

26.34%

Cappuccino

$2.79 IQD 4,219

$2.47 R 40.80

12.96%

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

$0.46 IQD 689

$1.33 R 21.91

-65.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.22 IQD 330

$1.03 R 16.99

-78.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.00 IQD 4,535

$3.01 R 49.72

-0.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.84 IQD 5,796

$3.66 R 60.4

4.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 IQD 1,794

$1.39 R 22.96

-14.39%

White Bread (500g)

$0.85 IQD 1,288

$1.19 R 19.60

-28.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 IQD 2,275

$2.11 R 34.84

-28.44%

Eggs

$1.70 IQD 2,567

$3.01 R 49.58

-43.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.77 IQD 7,208

$8.96 R 148

-46.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.31 IQD 6,510

$6.65 R 110

-35.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.91 IQD 19.5K

$9.29 R 153

38.97%

Apples (1kg)

$1.01 IQD 1,523

$1.83 R 30.13

-44.81%

Banana (1kg)

$1.18 IQD 1,790

$1.90 R 31.31

-37.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.93 IQD 1,408

$1.75 R 28.83

-46.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.69 IQD 1,035

$2.09 R 34.41

-66.99%

Potato (1kg)

$0.63 IQD 947

$1.55 R 25.64

-59.35%

Onion (1kg)

$0.61 IQD 916

$1.49 R 24.53

-59.06%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.60 IQD 907

$1.30 R 21.41

-53.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 IQD 834

$1.16 R 19.19

-52.59%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.89 IQD 2,863

$3.71 R 61.2

-49.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.83 IQD 17.9K

$6.06 R 100

95.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.97 IQD 2,976

$1.39 R 22.85

41.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 IQD 3,256

$2.20 R 36.32

-2.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.37 IQD 559

$1.51 R 24.98

-75.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$24.16 IQD 36.5K

$61.0 R 1,006

-60.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.32 IQD 3,506

$0.63 R 10.33

268.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 IQD 2,378

$1.53 R 25.29

2.61%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.91 IQD 8,925

$4.81 R 79.4

22.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.63 IQD 947

$1.58 R 26.08

-60.13%

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

$17.2K IQD 26.0M

$35.5K R 585.7K

-51.62%

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

$19.5K IQD 29.4M

$31.7K R 523.8K

-38.68%

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

$112 IQD 169.1K

$116 R 1,920

-3.82%

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

$15.21 IQD 23.0K

$28.37 R 468

-46.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.31 IQD 50.3K

$40.69 R 671

-18.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.31 IQD 53.3K

$48.85 R 806

-27.72%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.86 IQD 28.5K

$11.13 R 184

69.45%

Cinema Ticket

$7.69 IQD 11.6K

$8.83 R 146

-12.91%

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

$178 IQD 269.6K

$261 R 4,314

-31.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,762 IQD 4.2M

$6,702 R 110.6K

-58.79%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$21.50 IQD 32.5K

$55.4 R 914

-61.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.96 IQD 39.2K

$32.27 R 532

-19.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$60.0 IQD 90.7K

$118 R 1,939

-48.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$45.63 IQD 68.9K

$107 R 1,766

-57.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$307 IQD 463.8K

$1,015 R 16.7K

-69.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$212 IQD 320.0K

$715 R 11.8K

-70.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$548 IQD 827.3K

$1,801 R 29.7K

-69.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$406 IQD 614.0K

$1,330 R 22.0K

-69.46%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,646 IQD 2.5M

$2,331 R 38.5K

-29.37%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$759 IQD 1.1M

$1,513 R 25.0K

-49.86%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$568 IQD 857.6K

$1,636 R 27.0K

-65.31%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.32

10.97

-42.39%

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

Last update for Iraq: October 6, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Iraq

$212 25.8%

Cape Town

$715 45.3% 238% $504

Groceries & Markets

Iraq

$177 21.5%

Cape Town

$222 14.1% 25.6% $45

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Iraq

$160 19.5%

Cape Town

$185 11.7% 15.6% $25

Eating Out

Iraq

$117 14.3%

Cape Town

$174 11% 47.9% $56

Clothing & Footwear

Iraq

$69 8.4%

Cape Town

$141 8.9% 104% $72

Sport & Entertainment

Iraq

$51 6.2%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 31.2% $16

Getting Around

Iraq

$36 4.4%

Cape Town

$75 4.8% 110% $39

Good to know

🇮🇶 Iraq

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

08:31 8:31 AM

07:31 7:31 AM

1 h behind Iraq

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

38,274,618

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.9 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to IQD – Iraqi Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇶 Iraqi Dinar (ع.د)

Iraqi Dinar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,511 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,695 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.9 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 16.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.06 USD). 1 EUR = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to IQD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Iraq Cape Town 7,950 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Iraq
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

Iraq vs other spots: cost of living compared

Cost of Living Comparison Between Iraq and Cape Town

ZAR, USD, EUR to IQD – Iraqi Dinar Converter

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

Iraq

Cape Town

Iraq

Cape Town

Iraq vs other spots: cost of living compared

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