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

🙂 Solo nomad: Paarl is 5.3% cheaper than Cape Town without rent, and 23.3% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Paarl is 5.4% cheaper than Cape Town without rent, and 17.3% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Paarl
Cape Town
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.07 R 197
$11.02 R 196
0.45%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$44.32 R 788
$44.54 R 792
-0.49%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.01 R 89.1
$4.96 R 88.2
1.01%
Cappuccino
$2 R 35.62
$1.98 R 35.25
1.01%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.8 R 14.22
$1.16 R 20.6
-31.03%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.87 R 15.49
$0.87 R 15.46
-
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.27 R 40.34
$2.82 R 50.1
-19.50%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.56 R 45.61
$2.47 R 43.97
3.64%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Paarl
Cape Town
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.15 R 20.4
$1.16 R 20.62
-0.86%
White Bread (500g)
$0.93 R 16.57
$1.1 R 19.49
-15.45%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.87 R 33.24
$1.83 R 32.49
2.19%
Eggs
$1.89 R 33.56
$2.39 R 42.45
-20.92%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.16 R 145
$8.28 R 147
-1.45%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$5.1 R 90.8
$5.22 R 92.8
-2.30%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$7.73 R 137
$7.46 R 133
3.62%
Apples (1kg)
$1.49 R 26.49
$1.55 R 27.64
-3.87%
Banana (1kg)
$1.36 R 24.15
$1.41 R 25.08
-3.55%
Oranges (1kg)
$0.94 R 16.65
$1.45 R 25.83
-35.17%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.38 R 24.53
$1.52 R 26.99
-9.21%
Potato (1kg)
$0.83 R 14.82
$1.08 R 19.21
-23.15%
Onion (1kg)
$0.86 R 15.22
$1.24 R 22.05
-30.65%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.08 R 19.26
$1.09 R 19.32
-0.92%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.89 R 15.88
$0.98 R 17.46
-9.18%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.81 R 49.99
$3.04 R 54
-7.57%
Wine (Bottle)
$5.05 R 89.9
$5.68 R 101
-11.09%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.18 R 20.96
$1.42 R 25.18
-16.90%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.88 R 15.71
$1.68 R 29.94
-47.62%
🚌 Getting Around
Paarl
Cape Town
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.11 R 19.69
$0.91 R 16.22
21.98%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$47.53 R 845
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.38 R 24.56
$1.38 R 24.59
-
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.94 R 16.64
$0.95 R 16.94
-1.05%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$4.44 R 78.9
$4.54 R 80.8
-2.20%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.25 R 22.22
$1.23 R 21.88
1.63%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21K R 374.3K
$21K R 373K
0.35%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$17.1K R 304.7K
$24.5K R 434.9K
-29.95%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Paarl
Cape Town
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$74.1 R 1,317
$99.2 R 1,764
-25.35%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$33.08 R 588
$33.54 R 597
-1.37%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$40.98 R 729
$40.65 R 723
0.81%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Paarl
Cape Town
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$25.11 R 447
$42.61 R 758
-41.07%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$8.17 R 145
-
Cinema Ticket
$6 R 107
$6.85 R 122
-12.41%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Paarl
Cape Town
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$201 R 3,570
$209 R 3,720
-4.04%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$4,129 R 73.4K
$5,202 R 92.5K
-20.62%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Paarl
Cape Town
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$39.13 R 696
$55.1 R 980
-29.01%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$28.37 R 505
$33.11 R 589
-14.32%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$107 R 1,901
$111 R 1,974
-3.71%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$85.2 R 1,516
$85.5 R 1,520
-0.26%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Paarl
Cape Town
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$680 R 12.1K
$766 R 13.6K
-11.21%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$337 R 6,000
$522 R 9,280
-35.35%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,205 R 21.4K
$1,434 R 25.5K
-15.93%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$813 R 14.5K
$1,029 R 18.3K
-21.03%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$719 R 12.8K
$2,000 R 35.6K
-64.08%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$619 R 11K
$1,318 R 23.4K
-53.07%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Paarl
Cape Town
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,297 R 23.1K
$1,641 R 29.2K
-20.96%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.4
11.77
-3.14%

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

Last update for Paarl: October 28, 2025

Last update for Cape Town: October 29, 2025

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