Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rijeka and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $1,608 in Rijeka, rent and utilities included – about $970 less a year. The total is higher in Rijeka despite lower rent and utilities.

77

Cost of Living Index in Rijeka
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Rijeka Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Rijeka

🇭🇷 Croatia

$1,608

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,608 per month in Rijeka vs $1,527 in Cape Town, rent included.

Rijeka $1,608
Cape Town $1,527

A couple spends around $2,443 per month in Rijeka vs $2,417 in Cape Town, rent included.

Rijeka $2,443
Cape Town $2,417

A family of three spends $3,278 per month in Rijeka vs $3,306 in Cape Town, rent included.

Rijeka $3,278
Cape Town $3,306

Rijeka costs about 5% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Rijeka and Cape Town sit above the global median – Rijeka by 19%, Cape Town by 13%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.46 €11.99

$12.01 R 198

12.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$72.0 €64.1

$42.92 R 707

67.71%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.11 €9.00

$6.15 R 101

64.39%

Cappuccino

$2.27 €2.02

$2.37 R 39.04

-4.22%

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

$3.00 €2.67

$1.27 R 20.96

136.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.68

$0.94 R 15.46

101.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.84 €3.42

$2.96 R 48.77

29.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 €3.88

$3.69 R 60.8

18.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.20 €1.06

$1.32 R 21.73

-9.09%

White Bread (500g)

$1.55 €1.38

$1.21 R 19.87

28.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.36 €2.99

$2.20 R 36.26

52.73%

Eggs

$3.68 €3.27

$3.10 R 51.1

18.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.03 €14.27

$8.73 R 144

83.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.35 €9.21

$6.89 R 114

50.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.07 €12.53

$9.26 R 153

51.94%

Apples (1kg)

$1.63 €1.45

$1.83 R 30.08

-10.93%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.54

$1.95 R 32.12

-11.28%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.83 €1.63

$1.66 R 27.32

10.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$2.14 R 35.19

23.83%

Potato (1kg)

$1.38 €1.23

$1.58 R 26.01

-12.66%

Onion (1kg)

$1.27 €1.13

$1.47 R 24.29

-13.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 €1.20

$1.35 R 22.18

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.21

$1.14 R 18.85

19.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.77 €5.14

$3.58 R 59.0

61.17%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.00 €7.12

$6.05 R 99.7

32.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.67 €1.48

$1.39 R 22.95

20.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 €1.93

$2.18 R 35.90

-0.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.87 €2.56

$1.40 R 23.02

105.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$52.7 €46.95

$60.8 R 1,001

-13.22%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.65 €5.03

$0.93 R 15.26

507.53%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 €1.32

$0.90 R 14.83

64.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.87 €24.81

$4.96 R 81.7

461.90%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.88 €1.67

$1.54 R 25.37

22.08%

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

$27.3K €24.3K

$35.4K R 582.8K

-22.88%

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

$25.1K €22.3K

$33.4K R 549.9K

-24.90%

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

$186 €166

$117 R 1,929

59.23%

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

$24.34 €21.67

$25.71 R 424

-5.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.94 €35.56

$39.41 R 649

1.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.0 €47.23

$51.6 R 850

2.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.15 €9.93

$11.35 R 187

-1.76%

Cinema Ticket

$10.35 €9.22

$8.89 R 146

16.42%

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

$541 €482

$308 R 5,069

76.01%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.1K €8,953

$8,141 R 134.2K

23.50%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$98.9 €88.0

$57.4 R 946

72.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.89 €37.30

$31.75 R 523

31.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 €91.4

$116 R 1,911

-11.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$110 €97.9

$101 R 1,660

9.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$688 €613

$1,047 R 17.2K

-34.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$541 €481

$669 R 11.0K

-19.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,199 €1,068

$1,861 R 30.7K

-35.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$866 €771

$1,407 R 23.2K

-38.49%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,070 €3,624

$2,410 R 39.7K

68.89%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,758 €3,347

$1,570 R 25.9K

139.46%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,466 €1,305

$1,630 R 26.9K

-10.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.73

10.89

-65.75%

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

Last update for Rijeka: November 1, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rijeka

$541 33.6%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 23.8% $129

Groceries & Markets

Rijeka

$294 18.3%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 24% $71

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rijeka

$251 15.6%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 27.3% $68

Eating Out

Rijeka

$213 13.2%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 18.2% $39

Clothing & Footwear

Rijeka

$159 9.9%

Cape Town

$138 9% 13.5% $21

Getting Around

Rijeka

$77 4.8%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 7.1% $5.5

Sport & Entertainment

Rijeka

$74 4.6%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 5.9% $4.4

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $688 in Rijeka 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 11% 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 $72 in Rijeka versus $43 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $294 vs $223 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇷 Rijeka

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

10:04 10:04 AM

11:04 11:04 AM

1 h ahead of Rijeka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

107,964

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 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 = 0.89 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.51 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

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Between locations

Rijeka Cape Town 8,820 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Rijeka
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

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

Rijeka costs about 5% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,412 per month in Rijeka 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 Rijeka, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $688 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,608 in Rijeka and $1,527 in Cape Town. That makes Cape Town about 5% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 13% less in Rijeka. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,608 in Rijeka and $1,527 in Cape Town. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Cape Town has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,527 in Cape Town to $1,608 in Rijeka. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.