Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,568 a month against $4,086 in London, rent and utilities included – about $30,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

196

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,086

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $4,086 per month in London vs $1,568 in Cape Town, rent included.

London $4,086
Cape Town $1,568

A couple spends around $5,816 per month in London vs $2,438 in Cape Town, rent included.

London $5,816
Cape Town $2,438

A family of three spends $7,546 per month in London vs $3,307 in Cape Town, rent included.

London $7,546
Cape Town $3,307

London costs about 161% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both London and Cape Town sit above the global median – London by 205%, Cape Town by 17%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.62 £20.12

$11.78 R 195

125.98%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$108 £81.3

$46.55 R 772

131.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.39 £7.86

$5.96 R 98.9

74.33%

Cappuccino

$5.79 £4.38

$2.47 R 41.01

134.41%

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

$3.01 £2.27

$1.33 R 22.03

126.32%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 £1.63

$1.03 R 17.08

108.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.35 £7.07

$3.01 R 49.98

210.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.84 £5.93

$3.66 R 60.8

114.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.79 £1.35

$1.39 R 23.08

28.78%

White Bread (500g)

$2.06 £1.56

$1.19 R 19.70

73.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.31 £1.74

$2.11 R 35.02

9.48%

Eggs

$5.05 £3.82

$3.01 R 49.84

67.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.57 £9.50

$8.96 R 149

40.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.66 £8.05

$6.65 R 110

60.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.13 £12.95

$9.29 R 154

84.39%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 £2.29

$1.83 R 30.28

65.57%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 £1.07

$1.90 R 31.47

-25.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.05 £2.31

$1.75 R 28.98

74.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.38 £2.56

$2.09 R 34.59

61.72%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 £1.26

$1.55 R 25.78

7.74%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 £1.31

$1.49 R 24.65

16.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.41 £1.07

$1.30 R 21.53

8.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 £1.35

$1.16 R 19.29

54.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.22 £17.55

$3.71 R 61.5

525.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.99 £9.82

$6.06 R 101

114.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.18 £2.41

$1.39 R 22.97

128.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 £3.34

$2.20 R 36.51

100.45%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.87 £2.93

$1.51 R 25.11

156.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$250 £189

$61.0 R 1,011

310.19%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.71 £4.31

$0.63 R 10.38

806.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 £2.51

$1.53 R 25.42

117.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$57.9 £43.77

$4.81 R 79.8

1103.95%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 £1.54

$1.58 R 26.22

29.11%

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

$37.5K £28.4K

$35.5K R 588.7K

5.78%

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

$40.9K £30.9K

$31.7K R 526.6K

28.81%

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

$376 £284

$116 R 1,930

223.16%

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

$17.88 £13.51

$28.37 R 471

-36.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.01 £30.25

$40.69 R 675

-1.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.2 £46.23

$48.85 R 810

25.20%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.07 £15.93

$11.13 R 185

89.31%

Cinema Ticket

$17.95 £13.57

$8.83 R 146

103.28%

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

$2,865 £2,166

$261 R 4,336

995.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.7K

$6,702 R 111.2K

427.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$116 £87.7

$55.4 R 919

109.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.1 £40.88

$32.27 R 535

67.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 £95.7

$118 R 1,949

7.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$159 £120

$107 R 1,775

48.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,853 £2,157

$1,015 R 16.8K

181.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,301 £1,740

$715 R 11.9K

221.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,201 £3,932

$1,801 R 29.9K

188.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,723 £2,814

$1,330 R 22.1K

179.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$19.0K £14.4K

$2,331 R 38.7K

715.58%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,881 £5,957

$1,513 R 25.1K

420.86%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,818 £3,642

$1,636 R 27.1K

194.47%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.65

10.97

-57.61%

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

Last update for London: October 4, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.3K 56.5%

Cape Town

$715 45.3% 68.9% $1.6K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$434 10.7%

Cape Town

$185 11.7% 57.3% $249

Eating Out

London

$397 9.7%

Cape Town

$174 11% 56.2% $223

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.6%

Cape Town

$222 14.1% 36.3% $127

Getting Around

London

$288 7.1%

Cape Town

$75 4.8% 73.8% $213

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5%

Cape Town

$141 8.9% 31.5% $65

Sport & Entertainment

London

$97 2.4%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 31.5% $31

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,853 in London versus $1,015 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 194% higher in London, 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 $108 in London versus $47.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $349 vs $222 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

01:36 1:36 AM

02:36 2:36 AM

1 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.03 USD

100 ZAR = 5.38 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 16.59 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.03 USD). 1 EUR = 18.6 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.38 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

London Cape Town 9,670 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

London
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

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

London costs about 161% 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 $6,129 per month in London and $2,352 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. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $4,086 in London and $1,568 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 161%.

Public transport costs about 310% less in Cape Town. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Cape Town, where all-in costs run around $1,568, than in London at $4,086. In Cape Town it covers expenses comfortably, while in London it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cape Town costs $1,568 versus $4,086 in London. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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