Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between La Paz, Mexico and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in La Paz: $1,266 a month against $1,556 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $3,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

61

Cost of Living Index in La Paz
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La Paz Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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La Paz

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,266

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,556

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,266 per month in La Paz vs $1,556 in Cape Town, rent included.

La Paz $1,266
Cape Town $1,556

A couple spends around $2,091 per month in La Paz vs $2,432 in Cape Town, rent included.

La Paz $2,091
Cape Town $2,432

A family of three spends $2,916 per month in La Paz vs $3,307 in Cape Town, rent included.

La Paz $2,916
Cape Town $3,307

La Paz is about 19% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

La Paz sits 7% below the global median, while Cape Town is 14% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.79 MX$183

$12.09 R 202

-19.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.1 MX$1,008

$44.34 R 739

21.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.87 MX$147

$6.15 R 102

27.97%

Cappuccino

$2.98 MX$55.5

$2.36 R 39.30

26.27%

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

$1.76 MX$32.82

$1.26 R 21.06

39.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.99 MX$18.43

$1.00 R 16.59

-1.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.15 MX$40.12

$3.08 R 51.3

-30.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.59 MX$104

$3.70 R 61.6

51.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.15 MX$40.02

$1.34 R 22.41

60.45%

White Bread (500g)

$2.61 MX$48.69

$1.19 R 19.89

119.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.17 MX$40.43

$2.10 R 35.01

3.33%

Eggs

$2.33 MX$43.47

$3.05 R 50.8

-23.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.53 MX$215

$8.73 R 146

32.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.34 MX$155

$6.97 R 116

19.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.73 MX$200

$9.39 R 157

14.27%

Apples (1kg)

$3.50 MX$65.3

$1.89 R 31.44

85.19%

Banana (1kg)

$1.25 MX$23.27

$1.88 R 31.32

-33.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.84 MX$34.23

$1.69 R 28.08

8.88%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.83 MX$34.04

$2.04 R 34.07

-10.29%

Potato (1kg)

$1.95 MX$36.35

$1.57 R 26.12

24.20%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 MX$38.67

$1.48 R 24.65

39.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 MX$27.45

$1.28 R 21.36

14.84%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.35 MX$25.10

$1.19 R 19.81

13.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.29 MX$80.1

$3.63 R 60.5

18.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.87 MX$314

$6.17 R 103

173.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 MX$22.89

$1.39 R 23.14

-11.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.74 MX$51.1

$2.18 R 36.33

25.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.67 MX$12.52

$1.37 R 22.83

-51.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$32.86 MX$613

$61.3 R 1,021

-46.38%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.50 MX$46.56

$0.57 R 9.58

338.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.06 MX$38.45

$1.48 R 24.62

39.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.99 MX$186

$4.90 R 81.6

103.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.81

$1.58 R 26.29

-8.86%

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

$20.8K MX$387.1K

$34.7K R 578.4K

-40.17%

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

$23.6K MX$440.8K

$34.1K R 568.2K

-30.66%

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

$61.3 MX$1,143

$117 R 1,948

-47.55%

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

$25.45 MX$474

$28.35 R 472

-10.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.70 MX$609

$40.58 R 676

-19.42%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.53 MX$606

$48.54 R 809

-32.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.49 MX$326

$10.80 R 180

61.94%

Cinema Ticket

$5.02 MX$93.6

$9.11 R 152

-44.90%

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

$214 MX$3,995

$302 R 5,032

-29.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,487 MX$83.6K

$6,720 R 112.0K

-33.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.0 MX$1,044

$55.2 R 920

1.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.04 MX$746

$32.70 R 545

22.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.6 MX$1,373

$118 R 1,964

-37.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.8 MX$1,675

$104 R 1,731

-13.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$799 MX$14.9K

$1,041 R 17.3K

-23.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$475 MX$8,851

$691 R 11.5K

-31.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,681 MX$31.3K

$1,981 R 33.0K

-15.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,034 MX$19.3K

$1,388 R 23.1K

-25.50%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,918 MX$35.8K

$2,420 R 40.3K

-20.73%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,119 MX$20.9K

$1,552 R 25.9K

-27.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$746 MX$13.9K

$1,576 R 26.3K

-52.64%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.6

10.97

5.74%

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

Last update for La Paz: October 26, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

La Paz

$475 37.5%

Cape Town

$691 44.4% 45.5% $216

Groceries & Markets

La Paz

$293 23.2%

Cape Town

$224 14.4% 23.7% $69

Eating Out

La Paz

$171 13.5%

Cape Town

$175 11.3% 2.8% $4.7

Monthly Utilities & Internet

La Paz

$119 9.4%

Cape Town

$186 11.9% 55.5% $66

Clothing & Footwear

La Paz

$117 9.2%

Cape Town

$139 9% 19.3% $23

Getting Around

La Paz

$48 3.8%

Cape Town

$75 4.8% 54.5% $26

Sport & Entertainment

La Paz

$43 3.4%

Cape Town

$67 4.3% 56.8% $24

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $799 in La Paz versus $1,041 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 in Cape Town are about 2.1 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $54 in La Paz versus $44 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $293 vs $224 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 La Paz

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

13:36 1:36 PM

22:36 10:36 PM

9 h ahead of La Paz

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

250,141

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

100 ZAR = 6 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 16.66 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6 USD). 1 EUR = 18.55 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

La Paz Cape Town 14,970 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

La Paz
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

La Paz vs Cape Town: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 23% more than La Paz, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,898 per month in La Paz and $2,335 in Cape Town. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in La Paz, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $799 there versus $1,041 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,266 in La Paz and $1,556 in Cape Town. That makes La Paz about 19% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 46% less in La Paz. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in La Paz, where all-in costs run around $1,266, than in Cape Town at $1,556. In La Paz 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. La Paz costs $1,266 versus $1,556 in Cape Town. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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