Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Madeira and Cape Town

For one person, living costs are similar in Madeira and in Cape Town: $1,597 and $1,568 a month, rent and utilities included.

78

Cost of Living Index in Madeira
Learn more

Madeira Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
Learn more

Cape Town Living Index

Jump to prices

Madeira

🇵🇹 Portugal

$1,597

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,597 per month in Madeira vs $1,568 in Cape Town, rent included.

Madeira $1,597
Cape Town $1,568

A couple spends around $2,383 per month in Madeira vs $2,438 in Cape Town, rent included.

Madeira $2,383
Cape Town $2,438

A family of three spends $3,169 per month in Madeira vs $3,307 in Cape Town, rent included.

Madeira $3,169
Cape Town $3,307

Madeira costs about 2% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Madeira and Cape Town sit above the global median – Madeira by 19%, Cape Town by 17%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.62 €10.37

$11.78 R 194

-1.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.16 €41.19

$46.55 R 768

-0.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.12 €8.14

$5.96 R 98.4

53.02%

Cappuccino

$2.10 €1.88

$2.47 R 40.80

-14.98%

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

$1.85 €1.65

$1.33 R 21.91

39.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.43 €1.27

$1.03 R 16.99

38.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.27 €2.03

$3.01 R 49.72

-24.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.54 €3.16

$3.66 R 60.4

-3.28%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.09 €0.98

$1.39 R 22.96

-21.58%

White Bread (500g)

$1.53 €1.37

$1.19 R 19.60

28.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.60 €1.43

$2.11 R 34.84

-24.17%

Eggs

$2.99 €2.67

$3.01 R 49.58

-0.66%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.53 €10.29

$8.96 R 148

28.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.69 €6.86

$6.65 R 110

15.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.00 €12.49

$9.29 R 153

50.70%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 €2.10

$1.83 R 30.13

28.42%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 €1.26

$1.90 R 31.31

-25.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.75 R 28.83

2.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.50 €2.23

$2.09 R 34.41

19.62%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 €1.34

$1.55 R 25.64

-2.58%

Onion (1kg)

$1.92 €1.72

$1.49 R 24.53

28.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.55 €1.38

$1.30 R 21.41

19.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.84 €0.75

$1.16 R 19.19

-27.59%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.04 €5.39

$3.71 R 61.2

62.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.22 €4.66

$6.06 R 100

-13.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.39 R 22.85

-6.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.32 €2.07

$2.20 R 36.32

5.45%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.36 €2.11

$1.51 R 24.98

56.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$42.32 €37.77

$61.0 R 1,006

-30.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.28 €3.82

$0.63 R 10.33

579.37%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.79 €0.71

$1.53 R 25.29

-48.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.53 €15.65

$4.81 R 79.4

264.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.90 €1.69

$1.58 R 26.08

20.25%

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

$35.4K €31.6K

$35.5K R 585.7K

-0.36%

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

$39.1K €34.9K

$31.7K R 523.8K

23.09%

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

$134 €120

$116 R 1,920

15.14%

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

$20.90 €18.65

$28.37 R 468

-26.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.95 €37.44

$40.69 R 671

3.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.41 €38.74

$48.85 R 806

-11.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.37 €15.50

$11.13 R 184

56.06%

Cinema Ticket

$8.35 €7.45

$8.83 R 146

-5.44%

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

$473 €422

$261 R 4,314

80.83%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,183 €7,303

$6,702 R 110.6K

22.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$74.7 €66.7

$55.4 R 914

34.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.11 €34.01

$32.27 R 532

18.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.9 €82.0

$118 R 1,939

-21.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$92.8 €82.8

$107 R 1,766

-13.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$914 €816

$1,015 R 16.7K

-9.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 €640

$715 R 11.8K

0.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,446 €1,291

$1,801 R 29.7K

-19.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,145 €1,021

$1,330 R 22.0K

-13.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,012 €2,688

$2,331 R 38.5K

29.22%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,356 €2,103

$1,513 R 25.0K

55.73%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,636 R 27.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.01

10.97

-54.33%

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

Last update for Madeira: October 5, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Madeira

$717 45.1%

Cape Town

$715 45.3% 0.3% $2

Groceries & Markets

Madeira

$246 15.5%

Cape Town

$222 14.1% 9.5% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Madeira

$197 12.4%

Cape Town

$185 11.7% 5.8% $11

Eating Out

Madeira

$177 11.1%

Cape Town

$174 11% 1.9% $3.4

Clothing & Footwear

Madeira

$134 8.4%

Cape Town

$141 8.9% 4.9% $6.6

Sport & Entertainment

Madeira

$60 3.8%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 10.7% $6.4

Getting Around

Madeira

$60 3.8%

Cape Town

$75 4.8% 25.5% $15

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $914 in Madeira 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $46.00 in Madeira versus $47.00 in Cape Town. Groceries tell a different story – $246 in Madeira vs $222 in Cape Town – so Cape Town wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Madeira

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

06:16 6:16 AM

07:16 7:16 AM

1 h ahead of Madeira

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

154

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ZAR = 6.06 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 16.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.06 USD). 1 EUR = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Madeira Cape Town 8,280 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Madeira
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

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

Madeira costs about 2% 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 $2,395 per month in Madeira 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 $1,597 in Madeira and $1,568 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 2%.

Public transport costs about 44% 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 Madeira at $1,597. In Cape Town it covers expenses comfortably, while in Madeira it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cape Town costs $1,568 versus $1,597 in Madeira. 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 Cape Town. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Madeira makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.