Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kos and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Kos: $1,498 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $1,100 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cape Town outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

73

Cost of Living Index in Kos
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Kos Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Kos

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,498

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,498 per month in Kos vs $1,586 in Cape Town, rent included.

Kos $1,498
Cape Town $1,586

A couple spends around $2,242 per month in Kos vs $2,425 in Cape Town, rent included.

Kos $2,242
Cape Town $2,425

A family of three spends $2,985 per month in Kos vs $3,263 in Cape Town, rent included.

Kos $2,985
Cape Town $3,263

Kos is about 6% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Kos and Cape Town sit above the global median – Kos by 11%, Cape Town by 17%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.75 €12.23

$12.14 R 200

13.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$45.34 R 747

45.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.20 €9.96

$5.88 R 96.9

90.48%

Cappuccino

$3.94 €3.50

$2.50 R 41.18

57.60%

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

$3.04 €2.71

$1.27 R 20.94

139.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.10 €0.98

$0.98 R 16.14

12.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.54 €4.04

$2.99 R 49.33

51.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.86 €6.10

$3.72 R 61.4

84.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.35 €2.09

$1.30 R 21.40

80.77%

White Bread (500g)

$1.63 €1.45

$1.25 R 20.68

30.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.60 €2.31

$2.23 R 36.76

16.59%

Eggs

$4.74 €4.21

$3.11 R 51.2

52.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.53 €12.04

$9.06 R 149

49.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.99 €8.89

$6.92 R 114

44.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.10 €12.54

$9.30 R 153

51.61%

Apples (1kg)

$2.22 €1.98

$1.84 R 30.25

20.65%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.80

$1.96 R 32.29

3.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.36 €1.21

$1.67 R 27.45

-18.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.98 €1.76

$2.17 R 35.70

-8.76%

Potato (1kg)

$1.15 €1.02

$1.57 R 25.81

-26.75%

Onion (1kg)

$1.16 €1.03

$1.48 R 24.45

-21.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.06 €0.95

$1.30 R 21.41

-18.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 €0.73

$1.13 R 18.60

-27.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.14 €4.58

$3.60 R 59.3

42.78%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.83 €6.07

$6.15 R 101

11.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.38 R 22.66

52.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.60 €2.32

$2.14 R 35.20

21.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.76 €1.56

$1.50 R 24.65

17.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.70 €39.76

$60.8 R 1,001

-26.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.26 €3.79

$0.59 R 9.71

622.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.14 €1.01

$1.50 R 24.65

-24.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.09 €14.31

$5.11 R 84.2

214.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.09 €1.86

$1.55 R 25.50

34.84%

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

$27.4K €24.4K

$36.2K R 596.5K

-24.25%

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

$25.5K €22.7K

$31.2K R 514.8K

-18.30%

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

$202 €180

$114 R 1,883

77.06%

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

$22.74 €20.23

$28.91 R 476

-21.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.73 €30.89

$39.73 R 654

-12.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 €45.89

$49.01 R 808

5.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.44 €25.29

$10.99 R 181

158.78%

Cinema Ticket

$9.07 €8.07

$9.15 R 151

-0.87%

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

$430 €382

$259 R 4,264

66.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,795 €6,934

$6,794 R 111.9K

14.74%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.4 €78.7

$56.2 R 926

57.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.00 €35.58

$32.41 R 534

23.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$88.4 €78.6

$121 R 1,987

-26.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 €105

$108 R 1,781

9.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$616 €548

$1,021 R 16.8K

-39.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$422 €376

$717 R 11.8K

-41.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$738 €656

$1,824 R 30.1K

-59.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$574 €511

$1,327 R 21.9K

-56.70%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,685 €2,388

$2,391 R 39.4K

12.29%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,416 €2,149

$1,542 R 25.4K

56.74%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$893 €794

$1,639 R 27.0K

-45.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.46

10.97

-59.34%

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

Last update for Kos: October 11, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kos

$422 28.2%

Cape Town

$717 45.2% 69.7% $295

Groceries & Markets

Kos

$290 19.4%

Cape Town

$225 14.2% 22.4% $65

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kos

$260 17.4%

Cape Town

$183 11.5% 29.6% $77

Eating Out

Kos

$244 16.3%

Cape Town

$176 11.1% 27.8% $68

Clothing & Footwear

Kos

$151 10.1%

Cape Town

$143 9% 5.2% $7.9

Sport & Entertainment

Kos

$70 4.7%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 3.5% $2.4

Getting Around

Kos

$62 4.1%

Cape Town

$75 4.7% 21.3% $13

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $616 in Kos versus $1,021 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 84% higher in Cape Town, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $66.0 in Kos versus $45.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $290 vs $225 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Kos

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

10:35 10:35 AM

09:35 9:35 AM

1 h behind Kos

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

30,947

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Kos Cape Town 7,920 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Kos
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

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

Cape Town costs about 6% more than Kos, 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 $2,247 per month in Kos and $2,379 in Cape Town. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Kos, 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 $1,498 in Kos and $1,586 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 6%.

Public transport costs about 36% less in Kos. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Kos, where all-in costs run around $1,498, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Kos 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. Kos costs $1,498 versus $1,586 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 Kos. 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.