Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisse and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $2,689 in Lisse, rent and utilities included – about $13,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

122

Cost of Living Index in Lisse
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Lisse Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Lisse

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$2,689

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,689 per month in Lisse vs $1,527 in Cape Town, rent included.

Lisse $2,689
Cape Town $1,527

A couple spends around $3,848 per month in Lisse vs $2,417 in Cape Town, rent included.

Lisse $3,848
Cape Town $2,417

A family of three spends $5,007 per month in Lisse vs $3,306 in Cape Town, rent included.

Lisse $5,007
Cape Town $3,306

Lisse costs about 76% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Lisse and Cape Town sit above the global median – Lisse by 99%, Cape Town by 13%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.22 €19.78

$12.01 R 198

85.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.2 €81.2

$42.92 R 707

112.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.19 €9.07

$6.15 R 101

65.69%

Cappuccino

$3.57 €3.18

$2.37 R 39.04

50.63%

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

$3.41 €3.04

$1.27 R 20.96

168.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.74 €2.44

$0.94 R 15.46

191.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.57 €5.85

$2.96 R 48.77

121.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.27 €3.80

$3.69 R 60.8

15.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.32 R 21.73

9.85%

White Bread (500g)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.21 R 19.87

88.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 €2.24

$2.20 R 36.26

14.09%

Eggs

$4.60 €4.10

$3.10 R 51.1

48.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.52 €12.93

$8.73 R 144

66.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.85 €11.44

$6.89 R 114

86.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.90 €16.82

$9.26 R 153

104.10%

Apples (1kg)

$2.70 €2.40

$1.83 R 30.08

47.54%

Banana (1kg)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.95 R 32.12

15.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.06 €1.83

$1.66 R 27.32

24.10%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.71 €3.30

$2.14 R 35.19

73.36%

Potato (1kg)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.58 R 26.01

-17.09%

Onion (1kg)

$1.35 €1.20

$1.47 R 24.29

-8.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.11 €0.99

$1.35 R 22.18

-17.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.14 R 18.85

-17.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.54 €12.94

$3.58 R 59.0

306.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.84 €5.20

$6.05 R 99.7

-3.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.21

$1.39 R 22.95

-2.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.93 €1.72

$2.18 R 35.90

-11.47%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 €3.33

$1.40 R 23.02

167.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$98.4 €87.6

$60.8 R 1,001

61.91%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.66 €4.15

$0.93 R 15.26

401.08%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.47 €3.09

$0.90 R 14.83

285.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$44.10 €39.27

$4.96 R 81.7

789.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.58 €2.30

$1.54 R 25.37

67.53%

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

$40.7K €36.3K

$35.4K R 582.8K

15.15%

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

$39.1K €34.8K

$33.4K R 549.9K

17.02%

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

$280 €249

$117 R 1,929

139.06%

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

$28.25 €25.15

$25.71 R 424

9.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.9 €49.79

$39.41 R 649

41.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.77 €38.97

$51.6 R 850

-15.19%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.29 €18.95

$11.35 R 187

87.58%

Cinema Ticket

$16.16 €14.39

$8.89 R 146

81.78%

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

$2,561 €2,280

$308 R 5,069

732.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,035 €7,154

$8,141 R 134.2K

-1.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$95.5 €85.1

$57.4 R 946

66.47%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.85 €39.04

$31.75 R 523

38.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 €95.6

$116 R 1,911

-7.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$137 €122

$101 R 1,660

35.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,410 €1,255

$1,047 R 17.2K

34.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,295 €1,153

$669 R 11.0K

93.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,993 €1,774

$1,861 R 30.7K

7.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,898 €1,690

$1,407 R 23.2K

34.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,494 €4,892

$2,410 R 39.7K

127.94%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,000 €4,452

$1,570 R 25.9K

218.54%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,081 €3,634

$1,630 R 26.9K

150.40%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.4

10.89

-68.78%

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

Last update for Lisse: 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

Lisse

$1.3K 48.2%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 48.3% $626

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisse

$364 13.5%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 50% $182

Groceries & Markets

Lisse

$329 12.2%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 32.1% $105

Eating Out

Lisse

$317 11.8%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 45.1% $143

Clothing & Footwear

Lisse

$173 6.4%

Cape Town

$138 9% 20.2% $35

Getting Around

Lisse

$135 5%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 47% $64

Sport & Entertainment

Lisse

$76 2.8%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 8.8% $6.7

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,410 in Lisse 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 in Lisse are about 2.5 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $91 in Lisse versus $43 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $329 vs $223 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇳🇱 Lisse

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

01:04 1:04 AM

02:04 2:04 AM

1 h ahead of Lisse

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

22,995

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 = 5.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.89 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lisse Cape Town 9,680 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisse
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

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

Lisse costs about 76% more than Cape Town, 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 $4,034 per month in Lisse 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 Cape Town, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,047 there versus $1,410 in Lisse.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,689 in Lisse and $1,527 in Cape Town. That makes Cape Town about 43% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 38% 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 $2,689 in Lisse 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 $2,689 in Lisse. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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