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Cost of Living Comparison Between Manila and Cape Town Cost of Living Comparison Between Manila and Cape Town

๐Ÿ™‚ Solo nomad: Manila is 15% cheaper than Cape Town without rent, and 24.3% cheaper with rent.
๐Ÿ™‚ Family of 3: Manila is 16.3% cheaper than Cape Town without rent, and 22.1% cheaper with rent.
Currency
๐Ÿฝ Eating Out
Manila
Cape Town
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$5.43 โ‚ฑ323
$10.83 Rย 178
-49.86%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$26.41 โ‚ฑ1,569
$45.28 Rย 743
-41.67%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$4.39 โ‚ฑ261
$5.09 Rย 83.5
-13.75%
Cappuccino
$2.71 โ‚ฑ161
$2.01 Rย 33.02
34.83%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.98 โ‚ฑ58.5
$1.11 Rย 18.18
-11.71%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.53 โ‚ฑ31.76
$0.81 Rย 13.26
-34.57%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.55 โ‚ฑ91.9
$2.78 Rย 45.63
-44.24%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.69 โ‚ฑ160
$2.45 Rย 40.14
9.80%
๐Ÿ›’ Groceries & Markets
Manila
Cape Town
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.95 โ‚ฑ116
$1.10 Rย 18.08
77.27%
White Bread (500g)
$1.39 โ‚ฑ82.9
$1.10 Rย 17.96
26.36%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.05 โ‚ฑ62.2
$1.86 Rย 30.57
-43.55%
Eggs
$2.09 โ‚ฑ124
$2.49 Rย 40.87
-16.06%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$9.35 โ‚ฑ555
$8.39 Rย 138
11.44%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$5.14 โ‚ฑ305
$5.28 Rย 86.6
-2.65%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$8.64 โ‚ฑ513
$7.33 Rย 120
17.87%
Apples (1kg)
$3.52 โ‚ฑ209
$1.58 Rย 25.83
122.78%
Banana (1kg)
$1.83 โ‚ฑ109
$1.46 Rย 23.99
25.34%
Oranges (1kg)
$3.68 โ‚ฑ218
$1.46 Rย 24.02
152.05%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.51 โ‚ฑ149
$1.53 Rย 25.10
64.05%
Potato (1kg)
$2.69 โ‚ฑ160
$1.07 Rย 17.56
151.40%
Onion (1kg)
$3.04 โ‚ฑ181
$1.22 Rย 20.07
149.18%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.02 โ‚ฑ120
$1.09 Rย 17.87
85.32%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.66 โ‚ฑ38.94
$0.92 Rย 15.15
-28.26%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.31 โ‚ฑ197
$3.14 Rย 51.5
5.41%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.17 โ‚ฑ604
$6.57 Rย 108
54.79%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.51 โ‚ฑ89.7
$1.40 Rย 22.96
7.86%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.12 โ‚ฑ126
$1.76 Rย 28.92
20.45%
๐ŸšŒ Getting Around
Manila
Cape Town
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.52 โ‚ฑ30.98
$0.96 Rย 15.80
-45.83%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$12.14 โ‚ฑ722
$48.51 Rย 796
-74.97%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.93 โ‚ฑ55.4
$1.43 Rย 23.40
-34.97%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.25 โ‚ฑ14.68
$0.93 Rย 15.27
-73.12%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$2.15 โ‚ฑ128
$4.47 Rย 73.3
-51.90%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.12 โ‚ฑ66.5
$1.23 Rย 20.23
-8.94%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$26.2K โ‚ฑ1.6M
$21.0K Rย 345.0K
24.63%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.1K โ‚ฑ1.4M
$24.3K Rย 398.8K
-5.19%
๐Ÿงพ Monthly Utilities & Internet
Manila
Cape Town
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$136 โ‚ฑ8,099
$101 Rย 1,659
34.74%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.02 โ‚ฑ1,308
$32.32 Rย 530
-31.87%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$27.89 โ‚ฑ1,658
$42.08 Rย 690
-33.72%
๐ŸŽ‰ Sport & Entertainment
Manila
Cape Town
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$41.36 โ‚ฑ2,458
$41.35 Rย 678
0.02%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$6.83 โ‚ฑ406
$8.36 Rย 137
-18.30%
Cinema Ticket
$6.62 โ‚ฑ394
$6.63 Rย 109
-0.15%
๐Ÿงธ Childcare & Education
Manila
Cape Town
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$361 โ‚ฑ21.4K
$214 Rย 3,513
68.43%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$11.6K โ‚ฑ689.6K
$5,334 Rย 87.5K
117.53%
๐Ÿ‘•๐Ÿ‘Ÿ Clothing & Footwear
Manila
Cape Town
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$46.96 โ‚ฑ2,791
$55.0 Rย 902
-14.65%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$35.44 โ‚ฑ2,106
$33.11 Rย 543
7.04%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$82.2 โ‚ฑ4,885
$113 Rย 1,846
-26.95%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$46.02 โ‚ฑ2,735
$84.2 Rย 1,381
-45.36%
๐Ÿ  Accommodation & Living
Manila
Cape Town
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$492 โ‚ฑ29.3K
$771 Rย 12.6K
-36.10%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$270 โ‚ฑ16.1K
$516 Rย 8,457
-47.57%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,730 โ‚ฑ102.8K
$1,439 Rย 23.6K
20.16%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$631 โ‚ฑ37.5K
$1,013 Rย 16.6K
-37.66%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,426 โ‚ฑ263.0K
$2,093 Rย 34.3K
111.47%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,635 โ‚ฑ156.6K
$1,420 Rย 23.3K
85.51%
๐Ÿ’ต Salaries & Financials
Manila
Cape Town
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$488 โ‚ฑ29.0K
$1,685 Rย 27.6K
-71.02%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
7.52
11.77
-36.11%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input โ€“ minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Manila: January 13, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: January 13, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.
Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index
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