Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Jeddah and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Jeddah: $1,360 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $2,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cape Town outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

67

Cost of Living Index in Jeddah
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Jeddah Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Jeddah

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,360

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,360 per month in Jeddah vs $1,568 in Cape Town, rent included.

Jeddah $1,360
Cape Town $1,568

A couple spends around $2,168 per month in Jeddah vs $2,438 in Cape Town, rent included.

Jeddah $2,168
Cape Town $2,438

A family of three spends $2,975 per month in Jeddah vs $3,307 in Cape Town, rent included.

Jeddah $2,975
Cape Town $3,307

Jeddah is about 13% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Jeddah and Cape Town sit above the global median – Jeddah by 2%, Cape Town by 17%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.04 SAR 22.68

$11.78 R 194

-48.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.8 SAR 300

$46.55 R 768

71.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.75 SAR 32.85

$5.96 R 98.4

46.81%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.43 SAR 9.11

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 SAR 9.88

Cappuccino

$3.77 SAR 14.16

$2.47 R 40.80

52.63%

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

$0.97 SAR 3.65

$1.33 R 21.91

-27.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.24 SAR 0.90

$1.03 R 16.99

-76.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.01 R 49.72

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 R 60.4

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 SAR 6.28

$1.39 R 22.96

20.14%

White Bread (500g)

$1.33 SAR 4.99

$1.19 R 19.60

11.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.37 SAR 8.89

$2.11 R 34.84

12.32%

Eggs

$2.48 SAR 9.31

$3.01 R 49.58

-17.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.36 SAR 23.89

$8.96 R 148

-29.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.00 SAR 30.02

$6.65 R 110

20.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.31 SAR 49.98

$9.29 R 153

43.27%

Apples (1kg)

$2.10 SAR 7.90

$1.83 R 30.13

14.75%

Banana (1kg)

$1.77 SAR 6.63

$1.90 R 31.31

-6.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.54 SAR 5.80

$1.75 R 28.83

-12.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.69 SAR 6.36

$2.09 R 34.41

-19.14%

Potato (1kg)

$1.13 SAR 4.26

$1.55 R 25.64

-27.10%

Onion (1kg)

$1.29 SAR 4.85

$1.49 R 24.53

-13.42%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 SAR 4.22

$1.30 R 21.41

-13.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.50 SAR 1.87

$1.16 R 19.19

-56.90%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$4.23 SAR 15.90

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.84 SAR 6.92

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.58 SAR 9.70

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.86 SAR 25.77

$3.71 R 61.2

84.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.06 R 100

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.85

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 R 36.32

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.89 SAR 3.35

$1.51 R 24.98

-41.06%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$55.5 SAR 208

$61.0 R 1,006

-9.04%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.11 SAR 11.69

$0.63 R 10.33

393.65%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.77 SAR 6.65

$1.53 R 25.29

15.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$14.12 SAR 53.0

$4.81 R 79.4

193.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.59 SAR 2.21

$1.58 R 26.08

-62.66%

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

$47.7K SAR 179.0K

$35.5K R 585.7K

34.27%

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

$21.4K SAR 80.4K

$31.7K R 523.8K

-32.54%

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

$90.3 SAR 339

$116 R 1,920

-22.39%

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

$39.04 SAR 147

$28.37 R 468

37.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$67.9 SAR 255

$40.69 R 671

66.85%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$79.6 SAR 299

$48.85 R 806

63.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$38.23 SAR 144

$11.13 R 184

243.49%

Cinema Ticket

$12.04 SAR 45.22

$8.83 R 146

36.35%

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

$757 SAR 2,841

$261 R 4,314

189.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.3K SAR 61.1K

$6,702 R 110.6K

142.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$73.8 SAR 277

$55.4 R 914

33.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.0 SAR 210

$32.27 R 532

73.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 SAR 380

$118 R 1,939

-13.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$94.3 SAR 354

$107 R 1,766

-11.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$790 SAR 2,966

$1,015 R 16.7K

-22.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$535 SAR 2,009

$715 R 11.8K

-25.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,418 SAR 5,323

$1,801 R 29.7K

-21.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$817 SAR 3,070

$1,330 R 22.0K

-38.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,777 SAR 6,673

$2,331 R 38.5K

-23.75%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,143 SAR 4,291

$1,513 R 25.0K

-24.46%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,646 SAR 6,180

$1,636 R 27.0K

0.59%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.39

10.97

-50.87%

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

Last update for Jeddah: October 4, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Jeddah

$535 38.8%

Cape Town

$715 45.3% 33.7% $180

Groceries & Markets

Jeddah

$201 14.6%

Cape Town

$222 14.1% 10.9% $22

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Jeddah

$197 14.3%

Cape Town

$185 11.7% 6% $12

Clothing & Footwear

Jeddah

$146 10.6%

Cape Town

$141 8.9% 4% $5.9

Eating Out

Jeddah

$125 9%

Cape Town

$174 11% 39.3% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Jeddah

$104 7.5%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 35.9% $37

Getting Around

Jeddah

$71 5.2%

Cape Town

$75 4.8% 6.1% $4.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $790 in Jeddah versus $1,015 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 1% higher in Jeddah, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $80.0 in Jeddah versus $47.00 in Cape Town. Groceries tell a different story – $201 in Jeddah vs $222 in Cape Town – so Jeddah wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Jeddah

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

08:10 8:10 AM

07:10 7:10 AM

1 h behind Jeddah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,430,697

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to SAR – Saudi Riyal Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇦 Saudi Riyal (ر.س)

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.21 SAR (1 SAR = 0.237 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 SAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Jeddah Cape Town 6,550 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Jeddah
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

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

Cape Town costs about 15% more than Jeddah, 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 $2,040 per month in Jeddah and $2,352 in Cape Town. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Jeddah, 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 $1,360 in Jeddah and $1,568 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 15%.

Public transport costs about 10% less in Jeddah. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Jeddah, where all-in costs run around $1,360, than in Cape Town at $1,568. In Jeddah 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. Jeddah costs $1,360 versus $1,568 in Cape Town. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Jeddah. 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.