Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Middelburg, Netherlands and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $2,331 in Middelburg, rent and utilities included – about $9,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

110

Cost of Living Index in Middelburg
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Middelburg Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Middelburg

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$2,331

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,331 per month in Middelburg vs $1,527 in Cape Town, rent included.

Middelburg $2,331
Cape Town $1,527

A couple spends around $3,397 per month in Middelburg vs $2,417 in Cape Town, rent included.

Middelburg $3,397
Cape Town $2,417

A family of three spends $4,463 per month in Middelburg vs $3,306 in Cape Town, rent included.

Middelburg $4,463
Cape Town $3,306

Middelburg costs about 53% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Middelburg and Cape Town sit above the global median – Middelburg by 72%, Cape Town by 13%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.45 €12.03

$12.01 R 199

11.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$90.4 €80.9

$42.92 R 709

110.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.18 €10.90

$6.15 R 102

98.05%

Cappuccino

$4.15 €3.72

$2.37 R 39.16

75.11%

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

$3.26 €2.92

$1.27 R 21.03

156.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.29 €2.94

$0.94 R 15.50

250.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.90 €6.17

$2.96 R 48.92

133.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.01 €6.28

$3.69 R 61.0

89.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 €1.26

$1.32 R 21.80

6.82%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 €1.96

$1.21 R 19.93

81.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.08 €1.86

$2.20 R 36.37

-5.45%

Eggs

$4.47 €4.00

$3.10 R 51.3

44.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.65 €11.32

$8.73 R 144

44.90%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.16 €11.77

$6.89 R 114

91.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.30 €17.27

$9.26 R 153

108.42%

Apples (1kg)

$2.59 €2.32

$1.83 R 30.17

41.53%

Banana (1kg)

$2.18 €1.95

$1.95 R 32.22

11.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.04 €1.83

$1.66 R 27.40

22.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.58 €3.20

$2.14 R 35.30

67.29%

Potato (1kg)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.58 R 26.09

-17.09%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 €1.03

$1.47 R 24.37

-21.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 €1.05

$1.35 R 22.25

-13.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.92 €0.83

$1.14 R 18.91

-19.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.72 €10.49

$3.58 R 59.1

227.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.80 €5.19

$6.05 R 100

-4.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.34 €1.20

$1.39 R 23.02

-3.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.95 €1.75

$2.18 R 36.01

-10.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 23.09

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,004

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.70 €4.21

$0.93 R 15.31

405.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.45 €3.08

$0.90 R 14.88

283.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$44.53 €39.84

$4.96 R 82.0

797.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.33 €2.09

$1.54 R 25.45

51.30%

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

$41.0K €36.7K

$35.4K R 584.6K

16.02%

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

$40.1K €35.9K

$33.4K R 551.6K

20.08%

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

$148 €132

$117 R 1,935

26.40%

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

$28.44 €25.45

$25.71 R 425

10.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$54.0 €48.36

$39.41 R 651

37.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.15 €39.50

$51.6 R 853

-14.45%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.12 €12.64

$11.35 R 188

24.41%

Cinema Ticket

$9.95 €8.90

$8.89 R 147

11.92%

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

$2,645 €2,367

$308 R 5,085

759.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.7K €14.1K

$8,141 R 134.6K

92.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$96.6 €86.4

$57.4 R 948

68.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.88 €39.27

$31.75 R 525

38.20%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 €96.9

$116 R 1,917

-6.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$136 €122

$101 R 1,665

35.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,396 €1,249

$1,047 R 17.3K

33.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,252 €1,120

$669 R 11.1K

87.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,003 €1,792

$1,861 R 30.8K

7.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,892 €1,693

$1,407 R 23.3K

34.48%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.9K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,268 €3,819

$1,630 R 26.9K

161.87%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.4

10.89

-68.78%

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

Last update for Middelburg: November 1, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Middelburg

$1.3K 53.7%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 46.6% $583

Groceries & Markets

Middelburg

$320 13.7%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 30.3% $97

Eating Out

Middelburg

$269 11.5%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 35.2% $95

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Middelburg

$230 9.9%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 20.9% $48

Clothing & Footwear

Middelburg

$173 7.4%

Cape Town

$138 9% 20.5% $36

Sport & Entertainment

Middelburg

$64 2.8%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 8.3% $5.3

Getting Around

Middelburg

$22 * 0.9%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 227% $50

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,396 in Middelburg versus $1,047 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 in Middelburg are about 2.6 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $90 in Middelburg versus $43 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $320 vs $223 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇳🇱 Middelburg

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

18:46 6:46 PM

19:46 7:46 PM

1 h ahead of Middelburg

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

40,345

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ZAR = 6.05 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.895 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.53 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.05 USD). 1 EUR = 18.56 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Middelburg Cape Town 9,610 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Middelburg
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

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

Middelburg costs about 53% 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 $3,496 per month in Middelburg and $2,291 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: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,047 there versus $1,396 in Middelburg.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,331 in Middelburg and $1,527 in Cape Town. That makes Cape Town about 34% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $2,645 per month in Middelburg and $308 in Cape Town. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $2,331 in Middelburg and $1,527 in Cape Town. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward Cape Town – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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