Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Karlskrona and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $1,663 in Karlskrona, rent and utilities included – about $1,600 less a year. The total is higher in Karlskrona despite lower rent and utilities.

80

Cost of Living Index in Karlskrona
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Karlskrona Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
Learn more

Cape Town Living Index

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Karlskrona

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,663

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,663 per month in Karlskrona vs $1,527 in Cape Town, rent included.

Karlskrona $1,663
Cape Town $1,527

A couple spends around $2,591 per month in Karlskrona vs $2,417 in Cape Town, rent included.

Karlskrona $2,591
Cape Town $2,417

A family of three spends $3,518 per month in Karlskrona vs $3,306 in Cape Town, rent included.

Karlskrona $3,518
Cape Town $3,306

Karlskrona costs about 9% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Karlskrona and Cape Town sit above the global median – Karlskrona by 23%, Cape Town by 13%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.12 SEK 129

$12.01 R 198

9.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.0 SEK 647

$42.92 R 707

53.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.00 SEK 88.3

$6.15 R 101

46.34%

Cappuccino

$3.97 SEK 38.96

$2.37 R 39.04

67.51%

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

$1.35 SEK 13.26

$1.27 R 20.96

6.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.24 SEK 22.01

$0.94 R 15.46

138.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.04 SEK 69.0

$2.96 R 48.77

137.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.00 SEK 49.04

$3.69 R 60.8

35.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 SEK 14.51

$1.32 R 21.73

12.12%

White Bread (500g)

$2.70 SEK 26.50

$1.21 R 19.87

123.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.79 SEK 37.19

$2.20 R 36.26

72.27%

Eggs

$4.44 SEK 43.58

$3.10 R 51.1

43.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.98 SEK 108

$8.73 R 144

25.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.29 SEK 130

$6.89 R 114

92.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.72 SEK 174

$9.26 R 153

91.36%

Apples (1kg)

$3.09 SEK 30.35

$1.83 R 30.08

68.85%

Banana (1kg)

$2.37 SEK 23.22

$1.95 R 32.12

21.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.96 SEK 29.03

$1.66 R 27.32

78.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.51 SEK 44.28

$2.14 R 35.19

110.75%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 SEK 14.81

$1.58 R 26.01

-4.43%

Onion (1kg)

$1.51 SEK 14.83

$1.47 R 24.29

2.72%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.14 SEK 20.99

$1.35 R 22.18

58.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.45 SEK 14.27

$1.14 R 18.85

27.19%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.09 SEK 69.5

$3.58 R 59.0

98.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.52 SEK 123

$6.05 R 99.7

106.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 SEK 19.20

$1.39 R 22.95

41.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.66 SEK 16.26

$2.18 R 35.90

-23.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.04 SEK 29.85

$1.40 R 23.02

117.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.4 SEK 710

$60.8 R 1,001

19.09%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$13.48 SEK 132

$0.93 R 15.26

1349.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.10 SEK 20.56

$0.90 R 14.83

133.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$81.7 SEK 801

$4.96 R 81.7

1546.17%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.78 SEK 17.44

$1.54 R 25.37

15.58%

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

$34.2K SEK 335.3K

$35.4K R 582.8K

-3.36%

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

$33.3K SEK 326.4K

$33.4K R 549.9K

-0.30%

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

$52.0 SEK 510

$117 R 1,929

-55.59%

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

$27.85 SEK 273

$25.71 R 424

8.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$37.15 SEK 364

$39.41 R 649

-5.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.34 SEK 425

$51.6 R 850

-16.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 187

Cinema Ticket

$16.63 SEK 163

$8.89 R 146

87.06%

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

$159 SEK 1,559

$308 R 5,069

-48.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 134.2K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.6 SEK 977

$57.4 R 946

73.61%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$20.22 SEK 198

$31.75 R 523

-36.31%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.8 SEK 812

$116 R 1,911

-28.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$177 SEK 1,733

$101 R 1,660

75.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$671 SEK 6,585

$1,047 R 17.2K

-35.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$589 SEK 5,775

$669 R 11.0K

-12.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,119 SEK 11.0K

$1,861 R 30.7K

-39.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$974 SEK 9,554

$1,407 R 23.2K

-30.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,942 SEK 28.9K

$2,410 R 39.7K

22.07%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,528 SEK 24.8K

$1,570 R 25.9K

61.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,576 SEK 25.3K

$1,630 R 26.9K

58.08%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.22

10.89

-61.25%

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

Last update for Karlskrona: 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

Karlskrona

$589 35.4%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 13.7% $81

Groceries & Markets

Karlskrona

$363 21.8%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 38.5% $140

Eating Out

Karlskrona

$239 14.4%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 27.2% $65

Clothing & Footwear

Karlskrona

$171 10.3%

Cape Town

$138 9% 19.4% $33

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Karlskrona

$117 7%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 55.7% $65

Getting Around

Karlskrona

$108 6.5%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 33.8% $37

Sport & Entertainment

Karlskrona

$77 4.6%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 9.4% $7.2

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $671 in Karlskrona 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.

Salaries run about 58% higher in Karlskrona. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $66 in Karlskrona versus $43 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $363 vs $223 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇸🇪 Karlskrona

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

11:39 11:39 AM

12:39 12:39 PM

1 h ahead of Karlskrona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

35,212

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Swedish Krona SEK kr

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 SEK = 10.19 USD

100 SEK = 9.08 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to SEK – Swedish Krona Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇪 Swedish Krona (kr)

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 9.81 SEK (1 SEK = 0.102 USD). 1 EUR = 11.02 SEK (100 SEK = 9.08 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.51 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to SEK in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Karlskrona Cape Town 10,020 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Karlskrona
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

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

Karlskrona costs about 9% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,495 per month in Karlskrona 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 Karlskrona, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $671 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,663 in Karlskrona and $1,527 in Cape Town. That makes Cape Town about 8% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 16% less in Cape Town. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,663 in Karlskrona and $1,527 in Cape Town. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Cape Town has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,527 in Cape Town to $1,663 in Karlskrona. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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