Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Matosinhos and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,586 a month against $1,926 in Matosinhos, rent and utilities included – about $4,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

93

Cost of Living Index in Matosinhos
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Matosinhos Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Matosinhos

🇵🇹 Portugal

$1,926

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,926 per month in Matosinhos vs $1,586 in Cape Town, rent included.

Matosinhos $1,926
Cape Town $1,586

A couple spends around $2,803 per month in Matosinhos vs $2,425 in Cape Town, rent included.

Matosinhos $2,803
Cape Town $2,425

A family of three spends $3,680 per month in Matosinhos vs $3,263 in Cape Town, rent included.

Matosinhos $3,680
Cape Town $3,263

Matosinhos costs about 21% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Matosinhos and Cape Town sit above the global median – Matosinhos by 43%, Cape Town by 17%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.41 €11.93

$12.14 R 200

10.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.70 €42.43

$45.34 R 747

5.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.91 €8.81

$5.88 R 96.9

68.54%

Cappuccino

$2.69 €2.40

$2.50 R 41.18

7.60%

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

$2.07 €1.84

$1.27 R 20.94

62.99%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.51 €1.34

$0.98 R 16.14

54.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.19 €1.94

$2.99 R 49.33

-26.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.30 €2.94

$3.72 R 61.4

-11.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.11 €0.98

$1.30 R 21.40

-14.62%

White Bread (500g)

$1.68 €1.50

$1.25 R 20.68

34.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 €1.52

$2.23 R 36.76

-23.77%

Eggs

$3.36 €2.99

$3.11 R 51.2

8.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.61 €10.33

$9.06 R 149

28.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.21 €6.41

$6.92 R 114

4.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.34 €12.75

$9.30 R 153

54.19%

Apples (1kg)

$2.18 €1.94

$1.84 R 30.25

18.48%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 €1.33

$1.96 R 32.29

-23.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.79 €1.59

$1.67 R 27.45

7.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.47 €2.20

$2.17 R 35.70

13.82%

Potato (1kg)

$1.62 €1.44

$1.57 R 25.81

3.18%

Onion (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.48 R 24.45

25.68%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 €1.36

$1.30 R 21.41

17.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 €0.68

$1.13 R 18.60

-31.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.43 €5.72

$3.60 R 59.3

78.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.55 €4.94

$6.15 R 101

-9.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.38 R 22.66

-0.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$2.14 R 35.20

-3.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.70 €2.40

$1.50 R 24.65

80.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.17 €39.28

$60.8 R 1,001

-27.29%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.47 €3.98

$0.59 R 9.71

657.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.81 €0.72

$1.50 R 24.65

-46.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$14.19 €12.62

$5.11 R 84.2

177.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 €1.89

$1.55 R 25.50

37.42%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

$36.2K R 596.5K

-6.99%

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

$38.1K €33.9K

$31.2K R 514.8K

22.00%

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

$158 €141

$114 R 1,883

38.64%

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

$22.04 €19.60

$28.91 R 476

-23.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.78 €29.15

$39.73 R 654

-17.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$62.3 €55.4

$49.01 R 808

27.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.15 €19.70

$10.99 R 181

101.55%

Cinema Ticket

$9.20 €8.18

$9.15 R 151

0.55%

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

$567 €504

$259 R 4,264

118.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.5K €9,323

$6,794 R 111.9K

54.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$95.9 €85.3

$56.2 R 926

70.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.94 €32.85

$32.41 R 534

13.98%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.2 €82.0

$121 R 1,987

-23.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 €90.4

$108 R 1,781

-5.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,160 €1,031

$1,021 R 16.8K

13.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$973 €865

$717 R 11.8K

35.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,225 €1,979

$1,824 R 30.1K

22.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,571 €1,397

$1,327 R 21.9K

18.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,329 €3,850

$2,391 R 39.4K

81.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,785 €3,366

$1,542 R 25.4K

145.48%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,565 €1,392

$1,639 R 27.0K

-4.48%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.67

10.97

-66.55%

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

Last update for Matosinhos: October 10, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Matosinhos

$973 50.5%

Cape Town

$717 45.2% 26.3% $256

Groceries & Markets

Matosinhos

$248 12.9%

Cape Town

$225 14.2% 9.1% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Matosinhos

$213 11.1%

Cape Town

$183 11.5% 14.2% $30

Eating Out

Matosinhos

$201 10.5%

Cape Town

$176 11.1% 12.5% $25

Clothing & Footwear

Matosinhos

$147 7.6%

Cape Town

$143 9% 2.9% $4.3

Sport & Entertainment

Matosinhos

$81 4.2%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 16.6% $13

Getting Around

Matosinhos

$64 3.3%

Cape Town

$75 4.7% 17.8% $11

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,160 in Matosinhos 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 5% higher in Cape Town, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $48.00 in Matosinhos versus $45.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $248 vs $225 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Matosinhos

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

19:20 7:20 PM

20:20 8:20 PM

1 h ahead of Matosinhos

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

172,586

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 = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

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 EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Matosinhos Cape Town 8,800 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Matosinhos
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

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

Matosinhos costs about 21% 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 $2,889 per month in Matosinhos 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 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 $1,926 in Matosinhos and $1,586 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 21%.

Public transport costs about 38% 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 $1,586, than in Matosinhos at $1,926. In Cape Town it covers expenses comfortably, while in Matosinhos it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cape Town costs $1,586 versus $1,926 in Matosinhos. 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, Matosinhos makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.