Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Manila and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Manila: $948 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $7,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

46

Cost of Living Index in Manila
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Manila Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Manila

🇵🇭 Philippines

$948

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $948 per month in Manila vs $1,586 in Cape Town, rent included.

Manila $948
Cape Town $1,586

A couple spends around $1,508 per month in Manila vs $2,425 in Cape Town, rent included.

Manila $1,508
Cape Town $2,425

A family of three spends $2,068 per month in Manila vs $3,263 in Cape Town, rent included.

Manila $2,068
Cape Town $3,263

Manila is about 40% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Manila sits 30% below the global median, while Cape Town is 17% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.46 ₱344

$12.14 R 200

-55.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$26.93 ₱1,695

$45.34 R 747

-40.60%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.90 ₱246

$5.88 R 96.9

-33.67%

Cappuccino

$2.62 ₱165

$2.50 R 41.18

4.80%

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

$1.36 ₱85.5

$1.27 R 20.94

7.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 ₱52.3

$0.98 R 16.14

-15.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.22 ₱76.9

$2.99 R 49.33

-59.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.32 ₱146

$3.72 R 61.4

-37.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.96 ₱123

$1.30 R 21.40

50.77%

White Bread (500g)

$1.42 ₱89.1

$1.25 R 20.68

13.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.04 ₱65.4

$2.23 R 36.76

-53.36%

Eggs

$2.23 ₱140

$3.11 R 51.2

-28.30%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.70 ₱485

$9.06 R 149

-15.01%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.91 ₱309

$6.92 R 114

-29.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.12 ₱448

$9.30 R 153

-23.44%

Apples (1kg)

$3.23 ₱204

$1.84 R 30.25

75.54%

Banana (1kg)

$1.92 ₱121

$1.96 R 32.29

-2.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.93 ₱184

$1.67 R 27.45

75.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.79 ₱113

$2.17 R 35.70

-17.51%

Potato (1kg)

$2.32 ₱146

$1.57 R 25.81

47.77%

Onion (1kg)

$2.73 ₱172

$1.48 R 24.45

84.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.12 ₱133

$1.30 R 21.41

63.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 ₱37.25

$1.13 R 18.60

-47.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.18 ₱200

$3.60 R 59.3

-11.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 ₱618

$6.15 R 101

59.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.34 ₱84.1

$1.38 R 22.66

-2.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.00 ₱126

$2.14 R 35.20

-6.54%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.47 ₱29.47

$1.50 R 24.65

-68.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.56 ₱791

$60.8 R 1,001

-79.33%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.73 ₱46.07

$0.59 R 9.71

23.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.21 ₱13.20

$1.50 R 24.65

-86.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.87 ₱118

$5.11 R 84.2

-63.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 ₱80.6

$1.55 R 25.50

-17.42%

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

$21.4K ₱1.3M

$36.2K R 596.5K

-40.99%

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

$19.3K ₱1.2M

$31.2K R 514.8K

-38.23%

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

$124 ₱7,822

$114 R 1,883

8.68%

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

$15.73 ₱990

$28.91 R 476

-45.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.40 ₱1,536

$39.73 R 654

-38.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.31 ₱2,727

$49.01 R 808

-11.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.79 ₱365

$10.99 R 181

-47.32%

Cinema Ticket

$6.76 ₱425

$9.15 R 151

-26.12%

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

$630 ₱39.7K

$259 R 4,264

143.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,004 ₱566.9K

$6,794 R 111.9K

32.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.3 ₱3,668

$56.2 R 926

3.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.34 ₱1,721

$32.41 R 534

-15.64%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.6 ₱4,758

$121 R 1,987

-37.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$56.6 ₱3,564

$108 R 1,781

-47.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$536 ₱33.8K

$1,021 R 16.8K

-47.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$284 ₱17.9K

$717 R 11.8K

-60.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,874 ₱118.0K

$1,824 R 30.1K

2.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$654 ₱41.2K

$1,327 R 21.9K

-50.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,438 ₱279.4K

$2,391 R 39.4K

85.61%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,530 ₱159.3K

$1,542 R 25.4K

64.08%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$467 ₱29.4K

$1,639 R 27.0K

-71.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.43

10.97

-32.27%

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

Last update for Manila: October 11, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Manila

$284 29.9%

Cape Town

$717 45.2% 153% $433

Groceries & Markets

Manila

$222 23.5%

Cape Town

$225 14.2% 1.1% $2.5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Manila

$164 17.3%

Cape Town

$183 11.5% 11.3% $19

Eating Out

Manila

$106 11.2%

Cape Town

$176 11.1% 65.6% $70

Clothing & Footwear

Manila

$98 10.3%

Cape Town

$143 9% 45.7% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Manila

$57 6%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 18.4% $10

Getting Around

Manila

$16 1.7%

Cape Town

$75 4.7% 362% $59

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $536 in Manila versus $1,021 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 251% higher in Cape Town, 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 $27.00 in Manila versus $45.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $222 vs $225 – making Manila the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Manila

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

03:59 3:59 AM

21:59 9:59 PM

6 h behind Manila

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,780,148 Capital

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.79 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Manila Cape Town 12,050 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Manila
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

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

Cape Town costs about 67% more than Manila, 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 $1,422 per month in Manila and $2,379 in Cape Town. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Manila, 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 $948 in Manila and $1,586 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 67%.

Public transport costs about 384% less in Manila. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Manila, where all-in costs run around $948, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Manila 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. Manila costs $948 versus $1,586 in Cape Town. 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 Manila. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Cape Town makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.