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

🙂 Solo nomad: Nairobi is 16.3% cheaper than Cape Town without rent, and 38.1% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Nairobi is 17.8% cheaper than Cape Town without rent, and 33.2% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.43 KES 702

$11.02 R 188

-50.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$38.29 KES 4,949

$45.49 R 777

-15.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.86 KES 887

$4.99 R 85.3

37.47%

Cappuccino

$2.48 KES 320

$2.08 R 35.61

19.23%

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

$0.76 KES 97.9

$1.1 R 18.77

-30.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 KES 68.6

$0.88 R 15.05

-39.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.34 KES 302

$2.76 R 47.2

-15.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.94 KES 380

$2.49 R 42.49

18.07%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.86 KES 111

$1.11 R 18.99

-22.52%

White Bread (500g)

$0.57 KES 73.6

$1.05 R 17.92

-45.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.6 KES 207

$1.85 R 31.67

-13.51%

Eggs

$1.63 KES 210

$2.4 R 41.04

-32.08%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.58 KES 1,497

$8.4 R 143

37.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.91 KES 893

$5.33 R 91.1

29.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$5.57 KES 719

$7.63 R 130

-27.00%

Apples (1kg)

$3.09 KES 399

$1.57 R 26.87

96.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.07 KES 138

$1.48 R 25.35

-27.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.09 KES 269

$1.46 R 24.95

43.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.05 KES 135

$1.59 R 27.23

-33.96%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 KES 139

$1.09 R 18.58

-0.92%

Onion (1kg)

$1.11 KES 144

$1.23 R 21.06

-9.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.65 KES 83.4

$1.08 R 18.48

-39.81%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.81 KES 104

$1 R 17.05

-19.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.08 KES 398

$3.14 R 53.6

-1.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.54 KES 1,492

$5.65 R 96.5

104.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 KES 292

$1.35 R 23.04

67.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.73 KES 353

$1.67 R 28.57

63.47%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 KES 97.5

$0.99 R 16.89

-24.24%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.4 KES 3,929

$47.86 R 817

-36.48%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.53 KES 198

$1.43 R 24.49

6.99%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.58 KES 204

$0.99 R 16.95

59.60%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.86 KES 370

$4.38 R 74.9

-34.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.56 KES 202

$1.24 R 21.14

25.81%

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

$21.8K KES 2.8M

$21K R 358.9K

3.68%

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

$19.9K KES 2.6M

$23.9K R 408.4K

-16.95%

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

$34.7 KES 4,485

$97.8 R 1,671

-64.53%

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

$16.92 KES 2,186

$33.51 R 572

-49.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40 KES 5,170

$41.97 R 717

-4.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.17 KES 5,579

$41.72 R 712

3.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.56 KES 2,657

$8.03 R 137

156.04%

Cinema Ticket

$6.26 KES 809

$6.77 R 116

-7.53%

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

$203 KES 26.3K

$214 R 3,654

-5.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,894 KES 1M

$5,349 R 91.3K

47.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$18.04 KES 2,331

$55.7 R 950

-67.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$23.8 KES 3,076

$33.21 R 567

-28.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$65.4 KES 8,458

$114 R 1,939

-42.36%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.2 KES 7,396

$85.8 R 1,465

-33.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$454 KES 58.6K

$743 R 12.7K

-38.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$183 KES 23.7K

$524 R 8,953

-65.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,128 KES 145.7K

$1,447 R 24.7K

-22.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$424 KES 54.8K

$1,028 R 17.6K

-58.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,108 KES 272.5K

$1,935 R 33K

8.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,097 KES 141.7K

$1,299 R 22.2K

-15.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$409 KES 52.9K

$1,665 R 28.4K

-75.42%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

14.84

11.77

26.08%

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

Last update for Nairobi: November 24, 2025

Last update for Cape Town: November 24, 2025

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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