Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Oued Zem and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Oued Zem: $744 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $10,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

36

Cost of Living Index in Oued Zem
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Oued Zem Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Oued Zem

🇲🇦 Morocco

$744

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $744 per month in Oued Zem vs $1,586 in Cape Town, rent included.

Oued Zem $744
Cape Town $1,586

A couple spends around $1,188 per month in Oued Zem vs $2,425 in Cape Town, rent included.

Oued Zem $1,188
Cape Town $2,425

A family of three spends $1,633 per month in Oued Zem vs $3,263 in Cape Town, rent included.

Oued Zem $1,633
Cape Town $3,263

Oued Zem is about 53% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Oued Zem sits 45% below the global median, while Cape Town is 17% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.23 MAD 41.20

$12.14 R 200

-65.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$41.45 MAD 404

$45.34 R 747

-8.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.16 MAD 69.8

$5.88 R 96.9

21.77%

Cappuccino

$1.97 MAD 19.23

$2.50 R 41.18

-21.20%

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

$0.54 MAD 5.25

$1.27 R 20.94

-57.48%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.37 MAD 3.56

$0.98 R 16.14

-62.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.08 MAD 49.57

$2.99 R 49.33

69.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.28 MAD 31.95

$3.72 R 61.4

-11.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.84 MAD 8.16

$1.30 R 21.40

-35.38%

White Bread (500g)

$0.63 MAD 6.09

$1.25 R 20.68

-49.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.89 MAD 18.40

$2.23 R 36.76

-15.25%

Eggs

$1.89 MAD 18.42

$3.11 R 51.2

-39.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.57 MAD 113

$9.06 R 149

27.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.72 MAD 65.6

$6.92 R 114

-2.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.01 MAD 117

$9.30 R 153

29.14%

Apples (1kg)

$1.62 MAD 15.82

$1.84 R 30.25

-11.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MAD 13.50

$1.96 R 32.29

-29.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.82 MAD 8.00

$1.67 R 27.45

-50.90%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.83 MAD 8.13

$2.17 R 35.70

-61.75%

Potato (1kg)

$0.69 MAD 6.71

$1.57 R 25.81

-56.05%

Onion (1kg)

$0.76 MAD 7.36

$1.48 R 24.45

-48.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.40 MAD 3.93

$1.30 R 21.41

-69.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.65 MAD 6.34

$1.13 R 18.60

-42.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.15 MAD 40.43

$3.60 R 59.3

15.28%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.61 MAD 74.2

$6.15 R 101

23.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.62 MAD 25.51

$1.38 R 22.66

89.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.73 MAD 26.60

$2.14 R 35.20

27.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.52 MAD 5.10

$1.50 R 24.65

-65.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$18.72 MAD 183

$60.8 R 1,001

-69.19%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.70 MAD 6.86

$0.59 R 9.71

18.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.75 MAD 7.30

$1.50 R 24.65

-50.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.02 MAD 39.19

$5.11 R 84.2

-21.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MAD 14.72

$1.55 R 25.50

-2.58%

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

$30.9K MAD 301.7K

$36.2K R 596.5K

-14.53%

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

$30.9K MAD 301.7K

$31.2K R 514.8K

-0.97%

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

$36.62 MAD 357

$114 R 1,883

-67.97%

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

$10.06 MAD 98.0

$28.91 R 476

-65.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.17 MAD 333

$39.73 R 654

-13.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.12 MAD 284

$49.01 R 808

-40.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.76 MAD 202

$10.99 R 181

88.90%

Cinema Ticket

$6.16 MAD 60.0

$9.15 R 151

-32.68%

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

$185 MAD 1,807

$259 R 4,264

-28.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,495 MAD 92.6K

$6,794 R 111.9K

39.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.33 MAD 481

$56.2 R 926

-12.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.51 MAD 395

$32.41 R 534

24.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.8 MAD 915

$121 R 1,987

-22.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$65.2 MAD 636

$108 R 1,781

-39.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$278 MAD 2,712

$1,021 R 16.8K

-72.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$165 MAD 1,607

$717 R 11.8K

-77.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$478 MAD 4,664

$1,824 R 30.1K

-73.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$246 MAD 2,398

$1,327 R 21.9K

-81.46%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,115 MAD 10.9K

$2,391 R 39.4K

-53.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$767 MAD 7,480

$1,542 R 25.4K

-50.24%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$239 MAD 2,333

$1,639 R 27.0K

-85.40%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.55

10.97

-58.52%

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

Last update for Oued Zem: October 12, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Oued Zem

$205 27.5%

Cape Town

$225 14.2% 9.9% $20

Accommodation & Living

Oued Zem

$165 22.2%

Cape Town

$717 45.2% 335% $552

Eating Out

Oued Zem

$115 15.4%

Cape Town

$176 11.1% 53.8% $62

Clothing & Footwear

Oued Zem

$112 15.1%

Cape Town

$143 9% 27.5% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Oued Zem

$81 10.9%

Cape Town

$183 11.5% 126% $102

Sport & Entertainment

Oued Zem

$41 5.6%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 62.5% $26

Getting Around

Oued Zem

$25 3.4%

Cape Town

$75 4.7% 196% $50

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $278 in Oued Zem 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 585% 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 $41.00 in Oued Zem versus $45.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $205 vs $225 – making Oued Zem the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇦 Oued Zem

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

10:25 10:25 AM

11:25 11:25 AM

1 h ahead of Oued Zem

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

95,267

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

Oued Zem Cape Town 7,870 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Oued Zem
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

Oued Zem vs Cape Town: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 113% more than Oued Zem, 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 $1,116 per month in Oued Zem 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 Oued Zem, 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 $744 in Oued Zem and $1,586 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 113%.

Public transport costs about 225% less in Oued Zem. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Oued Zem, where all-in costs run around $744, than in Cape Town at $1,586. In Oued Zem 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. Oued Zem costs $744 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 Oued Zem. 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.