Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Karlstad and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $1,766 in Karlstad, rent and utilities included – about $2,900 less a year. The total is higher in Karlstad despite lower rent and utilities.

84

Cost of Living Index in Karlstad
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Karlstad Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Karlstad

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,766

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,766 per month in Karlstad vs $1,527 in Cape Town, rent included.

Karlstad $1,766
Cape Town $1,527

A couple spends around $2,710 per month in Karlstad vs $2,417 in Cape Town, rent included.

Karlstad $2,710
Cape Town $2,417

A family of three spends $3,654 per month in Karlstad vs $3,306 in Cape Town, rent included.

Karlstad $3,654
Cape Town $3,306

Karlstad costs about 16% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Karlstad and Cape Town sit above the global median – Karlstad by 31%, Cape Town by 13%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.34 SEK 150

$12.01 R 197

27.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$82.9 SEK 810

$42.92 R 703

93.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.06 SEK 98.3

$6.15 R 101

63.58%

Cappuccino

$4.71 SEK 45.99

$2.37 R 38.81

98.73%

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

$2.58 SEK 25.18

$1.27 R 20.84

103.15%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 SEK 20.98

$0.94 R 15.37

128.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.33 SEK 81.5

$2.96 R 48.48

181.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.56 SEK 64.1

$3.69 R 60.5

77.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.54 SEK 15.02

$1.32 R 21.61

16.67%

White Bread (500g)

$2.91 SEK 28.47

$1.21 R 19.75

140.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.63 SEK 35.49

$2.20 R 36.05

65.00%

Eggs

$4.59 SEK 44.88

$3.10 R 50.8

48.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.37 SEK 101

$8.73 R 143

18.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.46 SEK 141

$6.89 R 113

109.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.51 SEK 181

$9.26 R 152

99.89%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 SEK 28.67

$1.83 R 29.90

60.11%

Banana (1kg)

$2.57 SEK 25.14

$1.95 R 31.94

31.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.09 SEK 30.19

$1.66 R 27.16

86.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.49 SEK 53.7

$2.14 R 34.99

156.54%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 SEK 18.89

$1.58 R 25.86

22.15%

Onion (1kg)

$1.50 SEK 14.61

$1.47 R 24.15

2.04%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.73 SEK 26.64

$1.35 R 22.05

102.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.35 SEK 13.18

$1.14 R 18.75

18.42%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.39 SEK 72.2

$3.58 R 58.6

106.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.04 SEK 98.1

$6.05 R 99.2

65.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.50 SEK 24.48

$1.39 R 22.82

79.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.05 SEK 20.05

$2.18 R 35.69

-5.96%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.22 SEK 31.52

$1.40 R 22.88

130.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$80.6 SEK 788

$60.8 R 995

32.64%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.50 SEK 53.8

$0.93 R 15.18

491.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.30 SEK 12.68

$0.90 R 14.75

44.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$63.3 SEK 619

$4.96 R 81.3

1176.81%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.82 SEK 17.81

$1.54 R 25.23

18.18%

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

$33.7K SEK 328.9K

$35.4K R 579.4K

-4.84%

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

$34.1K SEK 333.0K

$33.4K R 546.7K

2.12%

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

$102 SEK 998

$117 R 1,918

-12.74%

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

$16.03 SEK 157

$25.71 R 421

-37.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.48 SEK 435

$39.41 R 646

12.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.36 SEK 453

$51.6 R 846

-10.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.60 SEK 162

$11.35 R 186

46.26%

Cinema Ticket

$13.91 SEK 136

$8.89 R 146

56.47%

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

$128 SEK 1,251

$308 R 5,040

-58.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 133.4K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$107 SEK 1,042

$57.4 R 940

85.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.24 SEK 403

$31.75 R 520

29.89%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.1 SEK 734

$116 R 1,900

-35.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$143 SEK 1,401

$101 R 1,650

42.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$860 SEK 8,405

$1,047 R 17.1K

-17.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$597 SEK 5,835

$669 R 11.0K

-10.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,228 SEK 12.0K

$1,861 R 30.5K

-34.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$872 SEK 8,523

$1,407 R 23.1K

-38.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,863 SEK 37.7K

$2,410 R 39.5K

60.27%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,875 SEK 28.1K

$1,570 R 25.7K

83.16%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,847 SEK 27.8K

$1,630 R 26.7K

74.71%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.86

10.89

-64.55%

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

Last update for Karlstad: 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

Karlstad

$597 33.8%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 12.1% $72

Groceries & Markets

Karlstad

$379 21.5%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 41.1% $156

Eating Out

Karlstad

$283 16%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 38.5% $109

Clothing & Footwear

Karlstad

$165 9.3%

Cape Town

$138 9% 16.5% $27

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Karlstad

$163 9.2%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 12% $20

Getting Around

Karlstad

$105 6%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 32% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Karlstad

$74 4.2%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 6.5% $4.8

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $860 in Karlstad 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 75% higher in Karlstad. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $83 in Karlstad versus $43 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $379 vs $223 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇸🇪 Karlstad

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

08:36 8:36 AM

09:36 9:36 AM

1 h ahead of Karlstad

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

62,797

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Swedish Krona SEK kr

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 SEK = 10.23 USD

100 SEK = 9.11 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.1 USD

100 ZAR = 5.43 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 = 9.77 SEK (1 SEK = 0.102 USD). 1 EUR = 10.98 SEK (100 SEK = 9.11 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.38 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.1 USD). 1 EUR = 18.4 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.43 EUR).

USD to SEK in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Karlstad Cape Town 10,390 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Karlstad
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

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

Karlstad costs about 16% 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 $2,649 per month in Karlstad 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 Karlstad, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $860 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,766 in Karlstad and $1,527 in Cape Town. That makes Cape Town about 14% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 25% 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 $1,766 in Karlstad 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 $1,766 in Karlstad. 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, Karlstad makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.