Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rabigh and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Rabigh: $953 a month against $1,556 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

46

Cost of Living Index in Rabigh
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Rabigh Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
Learn more

Cape Town Living Index

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Rabigh

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$953

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,556

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $953 per month in Rabigh vs $1,556 in Cape Town, rent included.

Rabigh $953
Cape Town $1,556

A couple spends around $1,456 per month in Rabigh vs $2,432 in Cape Town, rent included.

Rabigh $1,456
Cape Town $2,432

A family of three spends $1,960 per month in Rabigh vs $3,307 in Cape Town, rent included.

Rabigh $1,960
Cape Town $3,307

Rabigh is about 39% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Rabigh sits 30% below the global median, while Cape Town is 14% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.66 SAR 17.49

$12.09 R 201

-61.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$26.40 SAR 99.1

$44.34 R 738

-40.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.97 SAR 26.15

$6.15 R 102

13.33%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.52 SAR 5.72

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.58 SAR 5.93

Cappuccino

$2.57 SAR 9.63

$2.36 R 39.24

8.90%

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

$0.70 SAR 2.63

$1.26 R 21.03

-44.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.23 SAR 0.86

$1.00 R 16.56

-77.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.08 R 51.2

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.70 R 61.5

Milk (1 liter)

$1.88 SAR 7.06

$1.34 R 22.38

40.30%

White Bread (500g)

$1.02 SAR 3.82

$1.19 R 19.86

-14.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.19 SAR 8.23

$2.10 R 34.96

4.29%

Eggs

$2.56 SAR 9.61

$3.05 R 50.7

-16.07%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.08 SAR 22.80

$8.73 R 145

-30.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.04 SAR 45.18

$6.97 R 116

72.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.95 SAR 48.60

$9.39 R 156

37.91%

Apples (1kg)

$2.08 SAR 7.81

$1.89 R 31.39

10.05%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 SAR 6.08

$1.88 R 31.27

-13.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.80 SAR 6.76

$1.69 R 28.04

6.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 SAR 5.63

$2.04 R 34.02

-26.47%

Potato (1kg)

$1.33 SAR 4.99

$1.57 R 26.08

-15.29%

Onion (1kg)

$1.51 SAR 5.67

$1.48 R 24.61

2.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.06 SAR 3.97

$1.28 R 21.33

-17.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.74 SAR 2.77

$1.19 R 19.78

-37.82%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$2.89 SAR 10.84

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.19 SAR 8.22

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.56 SAR 5.85

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.94 SAR 29.80

$3.63 R 60.4

118.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.17 R 103

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 23.10

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 36.27

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.08 SAR 4.06

$1.37 R 22.79

-21.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$33.60 SAR 126

$61.3 R 1,020

-45.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.41 SAR 9.06

$0.57 R 9.56

322.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.61 SAR 9.80

$1.48 R 24.58

76.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.48 SAR 50.6

$4.90 R 81.5

175.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.61 SAR 2.27

$1.58 R 26.25

-61.39%

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

$26.6K SAR 99.9K

$34.7K R 577.5K

-23.31%

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

$21.4K SAR 80.3K

$34.1K R 567.4K

-37.26%

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

$66.6 SAR 250

$117 R 1,945

-43.04%

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

$34.24 SAR 128

$28.35 R 472

20.78%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$63.8 SAR 239

$40.58 R 675

57.24%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.0 SAR 278

$48.54 R 808

52.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.80 R 180

Cinema Ticket

$15.35 SAR 57.6

$9.11 R 152

68.50%

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

$428 SAR 1,606

$302 R 5,024

41.71%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,737 SAR 29.0K

$6,720 R 111.8K

15.13%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$13.32 SAR 49.99

$55.2 R 919

-75.88%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.3 SAR 207

$32.70 R 544

69.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$39.72 SAR 149

$118 R 1,961

-66.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$53.7 SAR 201

$104 R 1,728

-48.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$335 SAR 1,258

$1,041 R 17.3K

-67.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$244 SAR 917

$691 R 11.5K

-64.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$610 SAR 2,291

$1,981 R 33.0K

-69.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$424 SAR 1,591

$1,388 R 23.1K

-69.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,728 SAR 6,484

$2,420 R 40.3K

-28.59%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,478 SAR 5,546

$1,552 R 25.8K

-4.76%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,576 R 26.2K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.25

10.97

-52.14%

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

Last update for Rabigh: October 26, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rabigh

$244 25.7%

Cape Town

$691 44.4% 183% $447

Groceries & Markets

Rabigh

$220 23.1%

Cape Town

$224 14.4% 1.5% $3.4

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rabigh

$165 17.3%

Cape Town

$186 11.9% 12.9% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Rabigh

$105 11%

Cape Town

$67 4.3% 36.2% $38

Eating Out

Rabigh

$93 9.7%

Cape Town

$175 11.3% 89.1% $83

Clothing & Footwear

Rabigh

$73 7.7%

Cape Town

$139 9% 91.2% $66

Getting Around

Rabigh

$53 5.6%

Cape Town

$75 4.8% 39.9% $21

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $335 in Rabigh versus $1,041 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 $26 in Rabigh versus $44 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $220 vs $224 – making Rabigh the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Rabigh

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

15:57 3:57 PM

14:57 2:57 PM

1 h behind Rabigh

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

92,072

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.239 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.01 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to SAR – Saudi Riyal Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇦 Saudi Riyal (ر.س)

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.18 SAR (1 SAR = 0.239 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 16.64 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.01 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to SAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Rabigh Cape Town 6,670 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Rabigh
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

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

Cape Town costs about 63% more than Rabigh, 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 $1,429 per month in Rabigh and $2,335 in Cape Town. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Rabigh, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $335 there versus $1,041 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $953 in Rabigh and $1,556 in Cape Town. That’s a gap of about 63%.

Kindergarten costs $428 per month in Rabigh and $302 in Cape Town. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

It depends on your priorities. Cape Town has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $953 in Rabigh to $1,556 in Cape Town. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.