Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kista and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $1,683 in Kista, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 less a year. The total is higher in Kista despite lower rent and utilities.

84

Cost of Living Index in Kista
Learn more

Kista Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
Learn more

Cape Town Living Index

Jump to prices

Kista

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,683

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,683 per month in Kista vs $1,527 in Cape Town, rent included.

Kista $1,683
Cape Town $1,527

A couple spends around $2,678 per month in Kista vs $2,417 in Cape Town, rent included.

Kista $2,678
Cape Town $2,417

A family of three spends $3,674 per month in Kista vs $3,306 in Cape Town, rent included.

Kista $3,674
Cape Town $3,306

Kista costs about 10% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Kista and Cape Town sit above the global median – Kista by 24%, Cape Town by 13%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.69 SEK 135

$12.01 R 199

13.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$78.5 SEK 775

$42.92 R 709

82.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.26 SEK 101

$6.15 R 102

66.83%

Cappuccino

$4.63 SEK 45.73

$2.37 R 39.16

95.36%

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

$2.70 SEK 26.70

$1.27 R 21.03

112.60%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 SEK 22.47

$0.94 R 15.50

142.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.39 SEK 73.0

$2.96 R 48.92

149.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.95 SEK 68.6

$3.69 R 61.0

88.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 SEK 16.73

$1.32 R 21.80

28.79%

White Bread (500g)

$2.78 SEK 27.45

$1.21 R 19.93

129.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.88 SEK 38.29

$2.20 R 36.37

76.36%

Eggs

$4.21 SEK 41.52

$3.10 R 51.3

35.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.16 SEK 110

$8.73 R 144

27.84%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.61 SEK 124

$6.89 R 114

83.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.78 SEK 176

$9.26 R 153

92.01%

Apples (1kg)

$3.43 SEK 33.83

$1.83 R 30.17

87.43%

Banana (1kg)

$2.48 SEK 24.48

$1.95 R 32.22

27.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.02 SEK 29.84

$1.66 R 27.40

81.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.55 SEK 44.90

$2.14 R 35.30

112.62%

Potato (1kg)

$1.48 SEK 14.60

$1.58 R 26.09

-6.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.56 SEK 15.42

$1.47 R 24.37

6.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.13 SEK 21.00

$1.35 R 22.25

57.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 SEK 13.92

$1.14 R 18.91

23.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.74 SEK 76.4

$3.58 R 59.1

116.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.61 SEK 94.8

$6.05 R 100

58.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.94 SEK 19.11

$1.39 R 23.02

39.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 SEK 21.49

$2.18 R 36.01

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.26 SEK 32.14

$1.40 R 23.09

132.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.7 SEK 757

$60.8 R 1,004

26.26%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.75 SEK 56.7

$0.93 R 15.31

518.28%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.91 SEK 18.89

$0.90 R 14.88

112.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$53.7 SEK 530

$4.96 R 82.0

982.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.92 SEK 18.97

$1.54 R 25.45

24.68%

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

$35.0K SEK 345.8K

$35.4K R 584.6K

-0.92%

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

$38.7K SEK 381.7K

$33.4K R 551.6K

15.91%

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

$105 SEK 1,031

$117 R 1,935

-10.74%

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

$23.32 SEK 230

$25.71 R 425

-9.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.95 SEK 394

$39.41 R 651

1.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.57 SEK 361

$51.6 R 853

-29.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.57 SEK 282

$11.35 R 188

151.72%

Cinema Ticket

$16.61 SEK 164

$8.89 R 147

86.84%

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

$149 SEK 1,468

$308 R 5,085

-51.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,520 SEK 44.6K

$8,141 R 134.6K

-44.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$96.6 SEK 954

$57.4 R 948

68.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.95 SEK 394

$31.75 R 525

25.83%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.2 SEK 831

$116 R 1,917

-27.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$158 SEK 1,560

$101 R 1,665

57.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$739 SEK 7,291

$1,047 R 17.3K

-29.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$543 SEK 5,357

$669 R 11.1K

-18.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,447 SEK 14.3K

$1,861 R 30.8K

-22.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$963 SEK 9,501

$1,407 R 23.3K

-31.59%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,520 SEK 34.7K

$2,410 R 39.8K

46.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,740 SEK 27.0K

$1,570 R 25.9K

74.55%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.38

10.89

-68.96%

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

Last update for Kista: 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

Kista

$543 32.3%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 23.3% $126

Groceries & Markets

Kista

$360 21.4%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 38% $137

Eating Out

Kista

$267 15.9%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 34.8% $93

Clothing & Footwear

Kista

$170 10.1%

Cape Town

$138 9% 19.3% $33

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kista

$168 10%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 8.6% $14

Getting Around

Kista

$105 6.2%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 31.7% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Kista

$70 4.2%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 0.6% $0.4

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $739 in Kista 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 $79 in Kista versus $43 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $360 vs $223 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇸🇪 Kista

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

21:49 9:49 PM

22:49 10:49 PM

1 h ahead of Kista

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

10,254

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Swedish Krona SEK kr

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 SEK = 10.13 USD

100 SEK = 9.07 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.05 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 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 = 9.87 SEK (1 SEK = 0.101 USD). 1 EUR = 11.03 SEK (100 SEK = 9.07 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.53 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.05 USD). 1 EUR = 18.47 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

USD to SEK in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Kista Cape Town 10,380 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Kista
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

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

Kista costs about 10% 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 $2,524 per month in Kista 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 Kista, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $739 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,683 in Kista and $1,527 in Cape Town. That makes Cape Town about 9% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 21% 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 $1,683 in Kista and $1,527 in Cape Town. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cape Town costs $1,527 versus $1,683 in Kista. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.