Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Pogradec and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Pogradec: $808 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $8,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

39

Cost of Living Index in Pogradec
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Pogradec Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Pogradec

🇦🇱 Albania

$808

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $808 per month in Pogradec vs $1,527 in Cape Town, rent included.

Pogradec $808
Cape Town $1,527

A couple spends around $1,337 per month in Pogradec vs $2,417 in Cape Town, rent included.

Pogradec $1,337
Cape Town $2,417

A family of three spends $1,866 per month in Pogradec vs $3,306 in Cape Town, rent included.

Pogradec $1,866
Cape Town $3,306

Pogradec is about 47% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Pogradec sits 40% below the global median, while Cape Town is 13% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.76 ALL 786

$12.01 R 197

-18.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.30 ALL 3,166

$42.92 R 704

-8.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.44 ALL 600

$6.15 R 101

20.98%

Cappuccino

$1.58 ALL 128

$2.37 R 38.87

-33.33%

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

$1.69 ALL 137

$1.27 R 20.87

33.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.69 ALL 55.3

$0.94 R 15.39

-26.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.46 ALL 118

$2.96 R 48.55

-50.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.77 ALL 223

$3.69 R 60.5

-24.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.94 ALL 157

$1.32 R 21.64

46.97%

White Bread (500g)

$0.96 ALL 77.6

$1.21 R 19.78

-20.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.09 ALL 168

$2.20 R 36.10

-5.00%

Eggs

$2.24 ALL 181

$3.10 R 50.9

-27.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.12 ALL 654

$8.73 R 143

-6.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.19 ALL 337

$6.89 R 113

-39.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.92 ALL 1,122

$9.26 R 152

50.32%

Apples (1kg)

$1.20 ALL 96.9

$1.83 R 29.94

-34.43%

Banana (1kg)

$2.25 ALL 181

$1.95 R 31.99

15.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.52 ALL 123

$1.66 R 27.20

-8.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.21 ALL 97.9

$2.14 R 35.04

-43.46%

Potato (1kg)

$0.98 ALL 78.6

$1.58 R 25.90

-37.97%

Onion (1kg)

$0.94 ALL 75.8

$1.47 R 24.19

-36.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.97 ALL 78.0

$1.35 R 22.08

-28.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.81 ALL 65.3

$1.14 R 18.77

-28.95%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.43 ALL 357

$3.58 R 58.7

23.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.18 ALL 498

$6.05 R 99.3

2.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 ALL 101

$1.39 R 22.85

-10.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.88 ALL 152

$2.18 R 35.75

-13.76%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.47 ALL 37.76

$1.40 R 22.92

-66.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$18.22 ALL 1,468

$60.8 R 997

-70.01%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.63 ALL 293

$0.93 R 15.20

290.32%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.88 ALL 152

$0.90 R 14.77

108.89%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$18.38 ALL 1,481

$4.96 R 81.4

270.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 ALL 181

$1.54 R 25.26

46.10%

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

$33.0K ALL 2.7M

$35.4K R 580.2K

-6.75%

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

$24.4K ALL 2.0M

$33.4K R 547.5K

-26.92%

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

$62.3 ALL 5,017

$117 R 1,921

-46.81%

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

$16.41 ALL 1,322

$25.71 R 422

-36.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.28 ALL 1,392

$39.41 R 647

-56.15%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.11 ALL 2,829

$51.6 R 847

-31.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.63 ALL 1,501

$11.35 R 186

64.14%

Cinema Ticket

$8.52 ALL 686

$8.89 R 146

-4.16%

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

$99.7 ALL 8,030

$308 R 5,047

-67.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 133.6K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.44 ALL 3,903

$57.4 R 941

-15.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.3 ALL 4,536

$31.75 R 521

77.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.3 ALL 7,923

$116 R 1,903

-15.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$147 ALL 11.8K

$101 R 1,652

45.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$186 ALL 15.0K

$1,047 R 17.2K

-82.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$121 ALL 9,775

$669 R 11.0K

-81.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$376 ALL 30.3K

$1,861 R 30.5K

-79.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$247 ALL 19.9K

$1,407 R 23.1K

-82.46%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,627 ALL 131.1K

$2,410 R 39.5K

-32.50%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,505 ALL 121.2K

$1,570 R 25.8K

-4.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$480 ALL 38.7K

$1,630 R 26.7K

-70.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

-54.09%

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

Last update for Pogradec: November 1, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Pogradec

$206 25.5%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 8.4% $17

Clothing & Footwear

Pogradec

$157 19.5%

Cape Town

$138 9% 12.6% $20

Eating Out

Pogradec

$142 17.6%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 22.7% $32

Accommodation & Living

Pogradec

$121 15%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 452% $548

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Pogradec

$96 11.9%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 89.9% $86

Sport & Entertainment

Pogradec

$52 6.5%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 33.1% $17

Getting Around

Pogradec

$33 4.1%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 117% $39

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $186 in Pogradec 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 Cape Town are about 3.4 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $39 in Pogradec versus $43 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $206 vs $223 – making Pogradec the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇱 Pogradec

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

19:25 7:25 PM

20:25 8:25 PM

1 h ahead of Pogradec

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

20,848

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Albanian Lek ALL L

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 ALL = 1.24 USD

100 ALL = 1.1 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.09 USD

100 ZAR = 5.42 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to ALL – Albanian Lek Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇱 Albanian Lek (L)

Albanian Lek exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 80.57 ALL (100 ALL = 1.24 USD). 1 EUR = 90.54 ALL (100 ALL = 1.1 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 16.41 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.09 USD). 1 EUR = 18.44 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.42 EUR).

USD to ALL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Pogradec Cape Town 8,320 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Pogradec
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

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

Cape Town costs about 89% more than Pogradec, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,212 per month in Pogradec 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 Pogradec, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $186 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $808 in Pogradec and $1,527 in Cape Town. That makes Pogradec about 47% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 70% less in Pogradec. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $808 in Pogradec 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 Pogradec – 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 Pogradec. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Cape Town makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.