Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Saint Helena and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Saint Helena: $558 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $12,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

🇸🇭 Saint Helena
$558
/mo nomad
Cape Town
🇿🇦 South Africa
$1,568
/mo nomad
🙂 Solo nomad: Saint Helena is 17.8% cheaper than Cape Town without rent, and 64.4% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Saint Helena is 21.9% cheaper than Cape Town without rent, and 45.7% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Saint Helena
Cape Town
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$16.00 SHP 12.08
$11.78 R 194
35.82%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$66.2 SHP 49.99
$46.55 R 768
42.17%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$13.38 SHP 10.11
$5.96 R 98.4
124.50%
Cappuccino
-
$2.47 R 40.80
-
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.21 SHP 0.91
$1.33 R 21.91
-9.02%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.96 SHP 0.72
$1.03 R 16.99
-6.80%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
-
$3.01 R 49.72
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$3.66 R 60.4
-
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Saint Helena
Cape Town
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
-
$1.39 R 22.96
-
White Bread (500g)
$1.98 SHP 1.50
$1.19 R 19.60
66.39%
Rice (white) (1kg)
-
$2.11 R 34.84
-
Eggs
$5.17 SHP 3.91
$3.01 R 49.58
71.76%
Local Cheese (1kg)
-
$8.96 R 148
-
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
-
$6.65 R 110
-
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.81 SHP 8.16
$9.29 R 153
16.36%
Apples (1kg)
-
$1.83 R 30.13
-
Banana (1kg)
-
$1.90 R 31.31
-
Oranges (1kg)
-
$1.75 R 28.83
-
Tomato (1kg)
-
$2.09 R 34.41
-
Potato (1kg)
-
$1.55 R 25.64
-
Onion (1kg)
-
$1.49 R 24.53
-
Lettuce (1 head)
-
$1.30 R 21.41
-
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.31 SHP 0.99
$1.16 R 19.19
12.93%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$11.35 SHP 8.57
$3.71 R 61.2
205.93%
Wine (Bottle)
$15.07 SHP 11.39
$6.06 R 100
148.68%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
-
$1.39 R 22.85
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$2.20 R 36.32
-
🚌 Getting Around
Saint Helena
Cape Town
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
-
$1.51 R 24.98
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$39.73 SHP 30.01
$61.0 R 1,006
-34.83%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
-
$0.63 R 10.33
-
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
-
$1.53 R 25.29
-
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
-
$4.81 R 79.4
-
Gasoline (1 liter)
$2.44 SHP 1.84
$1.58 R 26.08
54.43%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
-
$35.5K R 585.7K
-
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
-
$31.7K R 523.8K
-
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Saint Helena
Cape Town
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
-
$116 R 1,920
-
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
-
$28.37 R 468
-
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$210 SHP 159
$40.69 R 671
416.74%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Saint Helena
Cape Town
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$19.60 SHP 14.80
$48.85 R 806
-59.88%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$11.13 R 184
-
Cinema Ticket
-
$8.83 R 146
-
🧸 Childcare & Education
Saint Helena
Cape Town
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
-
$261 R 4,314
-
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
-
$6,702 R 110.6K
-
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Saint Helena
Cape Town
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
-
$55.4 R 914
-
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
-
$32.27 R 532
-
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
-
$118 R 1,939
-
Men's Leather Business Shoes
-
$107 R 1,766
-
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Saint Helena
Cape Town
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$733 SHP 554
$1,015 R 16.7K
-27.75%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
-
$715 R 11.8K
-
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
-
$1,801 R 29.7K
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$509 SHP 384
$1,330 R 22.0K
-61.74%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$2,331 R 38.5K
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$1,513 R 25.0K
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Saint Helena
Cape Town
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$775 SHP 585
$1,636 R 27.0K
-52.66%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
0
10.97
-

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

Last update for Saint Helena: October 4, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Saint Helena
–
Cape Town
$715
Groceries & Markets
Saint Helena
–
Cape Town
$222
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Saint Helena
–
Cape Town
$185
Eating Out
Saint Helena
–
Cape Town
$174
Clothing & Footwear
Saint Helena
–
Cape Town
$141
Getting Around
Saint Helena
–
Cape Town
$75
Sport & Entertainment
Saint Helena
–
Cape Town
$67
Good to know
🇸🇭 Saint Helena
🇿🇦 Cape Town
🕒 Local time
11:42 11:42 AM
13:42 1:42 PM
2 h ahead of Saint Helena
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
5,633
3,740,026 Capital
Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to SHP – Saint Helena Pound Converter

Saint Helena Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.755 SHP (1 SHP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.846 SHP (1 SHP = 1.18 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 16.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.06 USD). 1 EUR = 18.49 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Saint Helena Cape Town 3,140 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Saint Helena
  • 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

Saint Helena vs other spots: cost of living compared

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