Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rabat, Malta and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $1,832 in Rabat, rent and utilities included – about $3,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

87

Cost of Living Index in Rabat
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Rabat Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Rabat

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,832

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,832 per month in Rabat vs $1,527 in Cape Town, rent included.

Rabat $1,832
Cape Town $1,527

A couple spends around $2,676 per month in Rabat vs $2,417 in Cape Town, rent included.

Rabat $2,676
Cape Town $2,417

A family of three spends $3,520 per month in Rabat vs $3,306 in Cape Town, rent included.

Rabat $3,520
Cape Town $3,306

Rabat costs about 20% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Rabat and Cape Town sit above the global median – Rabat by 35%, Cape Town by 13%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.84 €15.00

$12.01 R 197

40.22%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.4 €44.86

$42.92 R 703

17.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.02 €9.81

$6.15 R 101

79.19%

Cappuccino

$2.34 €2.09

$2.37 R 38.81

-1.27%

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

$2.54 €2.26

$1.27 R 20.84

100.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.64 €1.46

$0.94 R 15.37

74.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.26 €2.90

$2.96 R 48.48

10.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.29 €2.93

$3.69 R 60.5

-10.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.10 €0.98

$1.32 R 21.61

-16.67%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 €1.21

$1.21 R 19.75

12.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.30 €2.05

$2.20 R 36.05

4.55%

Eggs

$3.48 €3.10

$3.10 R 50.8

12.26%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.26 €7.36

$8.73 R 143

-5.38%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.60 €6.77

$6.89 R 113

10.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.44 €11.08

$9.26 R 152

34.34%

Apples (1kg)

$4.15 €3.70

$1.83 R 29.90

126.78%

Banana (1kg)

$2.21 €1.96

$1.95 R 31.94

13.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.52 €3.14

$1.66 R 27.16

112.05%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 €1.95

$2.14 R 34.99

1.87%

Potato (1kg)

$1.10 €0.98

$1.58 R 25.86

-30.38%

Onion (1kg)

$1.09 €0.97

$1.47 R 24.15

-25.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.10 €0.98

$1.35 R 22.05

-18.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.09 €0.97

$1.14 R 18.75

-4.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.88 €6.13

$3.58 R 58.6

92.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.93 €7.06

$6.05 R 99.2

31.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.64 €1.46

$1.39 R 22.82

17.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.36 €2.10

$2.18 R 35.69

8.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.76 €2.46

$1.40 R 22.88

97.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 995

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.73 €5.11

$0.93 R 15.18

516.13%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.22 €1.98

$0.90 R 14.75

146.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.04 €24.09

$4.96 R 81.3

445.16%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 €1.32

$1.54 R 25.23

-3.90%

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

$37.2K €33.1K

$35.4K R 579.4K

5.16%

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

$39.6K €35.3K

$33.4K R 546.7K

18.71%

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

$101 €89.6

$117 R 1,918

-14.09%

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

$12.32 €10.97

$25.71 R 421

-52.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.48 €37.84

$39.41 R 646

7.79%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.7 €56.7

$51.6 R 846

23.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.87 €22.15

$11.35 R 186

119.12%

Cinema Ticket

$10.00 €8.91

$8.89 R 146

12.49%

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

$373 €333

$308 R 5,040

21.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K €10.0K

$8,141 R 133.4K

38.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.4 €78.7

$57.4 R 940

54.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.10 €25.03

$31.75 R 520

-11.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71.3 €63.5

$116 R 1,900

-38.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.5 €70.8

$101 R 1,650

-21.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,139 €1,015

$1,047 R 17.1K

8.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$950 €847

$669 R 11.0K

42.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,784 €1,589

$1,861 R 30.5K

-4.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,496 €1,333

$1,407 R 23.1K

6.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,045 €3,603

$2,410 R 39.5K

67.84%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,915 €2,597

$1,570 R 25.7K

85.74%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,321 €1,176

$1,630 R 26.7K

-18.97%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.9

10.89

-73.37%

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

Last update for Rabat: November 2, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rabat

$950 51.9%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 29.6% $281

Groceries & Markets

Rabat

$259 14.1%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 13.7% $35

Eating Out

Rabat

$235 12.9%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 26.1% $61

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rabat

$155 8.5%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 17.3% $27

Clothing & Footwear

Rabat

$120 6.6%

Cape Town

$138 9% 14.4% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Rabat

$84 4.6%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 17.1% $14

Getting Around

Rabat

$28 * 1.5%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 157% $44

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,139 in Rabat 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 run about 23% higher in Cape Town, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $50 in Rabat versus $43 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $259 vs $223 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇹 Rabat

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

01:22 1:22 AM

02:22 2:22 AM

1 h ahead of Rabat

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

11,497

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ZAR = 6.1 USD

100 ZAR = 5.44 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.891 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.38 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.1 USD). 1 EUR = 18.39 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.44 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Rabat Cape Town 7,770 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Rabat
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

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

Rabat costs about 20% more than Cape Town, 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 $2,748 per month in Rabat and $2,291 in Cape Town. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $1,139 in Rabat and $1,047 in Cape Town. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,832 in Rabat and $1,527 in Cape Town. That makes Cape Town about 17% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $373 per month in Rabat and $308 in Cape Town. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,832 in Rabat 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 Cape Town – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.