Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ouarzazate and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Ouarzazate: $707 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $10,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

34

Cost of Living Index in Ouarzazate
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Ouarzazate Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Ouarzazate

🇲🇦 Morocco

$707

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $707 per month in Ouarzazate vs $1,586 in Cape Town, rent included.

Ouarzazate $707
Cape Town $1,586

A couple spends around $1,102 per month in Ouarzazate vs $2,425 in Cape Town, rent included.

Ouarzazate $1,102
Cape Town $2,425

A family of three spends $1,498 per month in Ouarzazate vs $3,263 in Cape Town, rent included.

Ouarzazate $1,498
Cape Town $3,263

Ouarzazate is about 55% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Ouarzazate sits 48% below the global median, while Cape Town is 17% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.72 MAD 36.29

$12.14 R 200

-69.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.53 MAD 307

$45.34 R 747

-30.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.18 MAD 60.3

$5.88 R 96.9

5.10%

Cappuccino

$2.21 MAD 21.56

$2.50 R 41.18

-11.60%

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

$0.64 MAD 6.21

$1.27 R 20.94

-49.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.61 MAD 5.91

$0.98 R 16.14

-37.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.69 MAD 65.2

$2.99 R 49.33

123.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.40 MAD 52.7

$3.72 R 61.4

45.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.85 MAD 8.30

$1.30 R 21.40

-34.62%

White Bread (500g)

$0.86 MAD 8.38

$1.25 R 20.68

-31.20%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 MAD 15.03

$2.23 R 36.76

-30.94%

Eggs

$1.56 MAD 15.24

$3.11 R 51.2

-49.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.76 MAD 75.7

$9.06 R 149

-14.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.56 MAD 44.46

$6.92 R 114

-34.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.72 MAD 114

$9.30 R 153

26.02%

Apples (1kg)

$0.69 MAD 6.73

$1.84 R 30.25

-62.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.21 MAD 11.83

$1.96 R 32.29

-38.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.60 MAD 5.88

$1.67 R 27.45

-64.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.79 MAD 7.75

$2.17 R 35.70

-63.59%

Potato (1kg)

$0.71 MAD 6.97

$1.57 R 25.81

-54.78%

Onion (1kg)

$0.75 MAD 7.33

$1.48 R 24.45

-49.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.23 MAD 2.24

$1.30 R 21.41

-82.31%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.60 MAD 5.86

$1.13 R 18.60

-46.90%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.04 MAD 39.42

$3.60 R 59.3

12.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.55 MAD 73.6

$6.15 R 101

22.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.22 MAD 21.63

$1.38 R 22.66

60.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.27 MAD 31.85

$2.14 R 35.20

52.80%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.54 MAD 5.30

$1.50 R 24.65

-64.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.55 MAD 191

$60.8 R 1,001

-67.82%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.50 MAD 4.85

$0.59 R 9.71

-15.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.65 MAD 6.34

$1.50 R 24.65

-56.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.09 MAD 69.2

$5.11 R 84.2

38.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 MAD 13.88

$1.55 R 25.50

-8.39%

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

$33.6K MAD 327.5K

$36.2K R 596.5K

-7.22%

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

$29.7K MAD 289.5K

$31.2K R 514.8K

-4.98%

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

$35.55 MAD 347

$114 R 1,883

-68.90%

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

$4.94 MAD 48.17

$28.91 R 476

-82.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.25 MAD 256

$39.73 R 654

-33.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.66 MAD 260

$49.01 R 808

-45.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.51 MAD 220

$10.99 R 181

104.82%

Cinema Ticket

$6.39 MAD 62.3

$9.15 R 151

-30.16%

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

$99.3 MAD 968

$259 R 4,264

-61.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,432 MAD 82.2K

$6,794 R 111.9K

24.12%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$31.76 MAD 310

$56.2 R 926

-43.47%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.27 MAD 441

$32.41 R 534

39.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$83.9 MAD 817

$121 R 1,987

-30.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$83.8 MAD 817

$108 R 1,781

-22.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$272 MAD 2,656

$1,021 R 16.8K

-73.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$168 MAD 1,641

$717 R 11.8K

-76.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$422 MAD 4,113

$1,824 R 30.1K

-76.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$247 MAD 2,404

$1,327 R 21.9K

-81.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,189 MAD 11.6K

$2,391 R 39.4K

-50.27%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$821 MAD 8,001

$1,542 R 25.4K

-46.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,639 R 27.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.5

10.97

-58.98%

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

Last update for Ouarzazate: October 10, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Ouarzazate

$172 24.4%

Cape Town

$225 14.2% 30.5% $53

Accommodation & Living

Ouarzazate

$168 23.8%

Cape Town

$717 45.2% 326% $549

Eating Out

Ouarzazate

$124 17.6%

Cape Town

$176 11.1% 42% $52

Clothing & Footwear

Ouarzazate

$110 15.6%

Cape Town

$143 9% 29.6% $33

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ouarzazate

$67 9.5%

Cape Town

$183 11.5% 174% $116

Sport & Entertainment

Ouarzazate

$39 5.6%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 70.7% $28

Getting Around

Ouarzazate

$25 3.6%

Cape Town

$75 4.7% 194% $49

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $272 in Ouarzazate 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32.00 in Ouarzazate versus $45.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $172 vs $225 – making Ouarzazate the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇦 Ouarzazate

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

08:14 8:14 AM

09:14 9:14 AM

1 h ahead of Ouarzazate

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

71,067

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Moroccan Dirham MAD د.م.

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 MAD = 10.26 USD

100 MAD = 9.12 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to MAD – Moroccan Dirham Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇦 Moroccan Dirham (د.م.)

Moroccan Dirham exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 9.75 MAD (1 MAD = 0.103 USD). 1 EUR = 10.96 MAD (100 MAD = 9.12 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to MAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Ouarzazate Cape Town 7,680 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Ouarzazate
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

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

Cape Town costs about 124% more than Ouarzazate, 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 $1,060 per month in Ouarzazate 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 Ouarzazate, 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 $707 in Ouarzazate and $1,586 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 124%.

Public transport costs about 211% less in Ouarzazate. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Ouarzazate, where all-in costs run around $707, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Ouarzazate 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. Ouarzazate costs $707 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 Ouarzazate. 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.