Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Salalah and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Salalah: $1,059 a month against $1,568 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cape Town outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

52

Cost of Living Index in Salalah
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Salalah Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Salalah

🇴🇲 Oman

$1,059

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,059 per month in Salalah vs $1,568 in Cape Town, rent included.

Salalah $1,059
Cape Town $1,568

A couple spends around $1,599 per month in Salalah vs $2,438 in Cape Town, rent included.

Salalah $1,599
Cape Town $2,438

A family of three spends $2,138 per month in Salalah vs $3,307 in Cape Town, rent included.

Salalah $2,138
Cape Town $3,307

Salalah is about 32% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Salalah sits 21% below the global median, while Cape Town is 17% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.31 OMR 2.05

$11.78 R 194

-54.92%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$26.43 OMR 10.17

$46.55 R 768

-43.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.97 OMR 4.99

$5.96 R 98.4

117.62%

Cappuccino

$6.09 OMR 2.34

$2.47 R 40.80

146.56%

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

$0.90 OMR 0.35

$1.33 R 21.91

-32.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.25 OMR 0.10

$1.03 R 16.99

-75.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.33 OMR 3.59

$3.01 R 49.72

209.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$10.30 OMR 3.96

$3.66 R 60.4

181.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.93 OMR 0.74

$1.39 R 22.96

38.85%

White Bread (500g)

$1.23 OMR 0.47

$1.19 R 19.60

3.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 OMR 1.03

$2.11 R 34.84

26.07%

Eggs

$1.82 OMR 0.70

$3.01 R 49.58

-39.53%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.58 OMR 1.76

$8.96 R 148

-48.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.62 OMR 1.78

$6.65 R 110

-30.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.61 OMR 2.55

$9.29 R 153

-28.85%

Apples (1kg)

$1.91 OMR 0.74

$1.83 R 30.13

4.37%

Banana (1kg)

$1.87 OMR 0.72

$1.90 R 31.31

-1.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.12 OMR 0.82

$1.75 R 28.83

21.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.87 OMR 0.72

$2.09 R 34.41

-10.53%

Potato (1kg)

$1.52 OMR 0.59

$1.55 R 25.64

-1.94%

Onion (1kg)

$1.03 OMR 0.40

$1.49 R 24.53

-30.87%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.04 OMR 0.40

$1.30 R 21.41

-20.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.48 OMR 0.18

$1.16 R 19.19

-58.62%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.84 OMR 2.25

$3.71 R 61.2

57.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.73 OMR 7.60

$6.06 R 100

225.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.81 OMR 1.47

$1.39 R 22.85

174.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.76 OMR 1.83

$2.20 R 36.32

116.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.32 OMR 0.51

$1.51 R 24.98

-12.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$55.3 OMR 21.27

$61.0 R 1,006

-9.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.31 OMR 0.89

$0.63 R 10.33

266.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.32 OMR 0.51

$1.53 R 25.29

-13.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.49 OMR 4.42

$4.81 R 79.4

138.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.61 OMR 0.23

$1.58 R 26.08

-61.39%

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

$20.8K OMR 8,004

$35.5K R 585.7K

-41.43%

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

$18.3K OMR 7,048

$31.7K R 523.8K

-42.34%

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

$78.1 OMR 30.07

$116 R 1,920

-32.88%

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

$49.55 OMR 19.08

$28.37 R 468

74.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$74.3 OMR 28.59

$40.69 R 671

82.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.58 OMR 15.24

$48.85 R 806

-18.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.22 OMR 10.10

$11.13 R 184

135.58%

Cinema Ticket

$7.81 OMR 3.01

$8.83 R 146

-11.55%

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

$106 OMR 40.78

$261 R 4,314

-59.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,942 OMR 747

$6,702 R 110.6K

-71.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$28.74 OMR 11.06

$55.4 R 914

-48.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.76 OMR 11.84

$32.27 R 532

-4.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$57.8 OMR 22.23

$118 R 1,939

-50.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$46.20 OMR 17.79

$107 R 1,766

-56.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$251 OMR 96.5

$1,015 R 16.7K

-75.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$205 OMR 79.0

$715 R 11.8K

-71.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$642 OMR 247

$1,801 R 29.7K

-64.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 OMR 147

$1,330 R 22.0K

-71.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,981 OMR 763

$2,331 R 38.5K

-15.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,240 OMR 477

$1,513 R 25.0K

-18.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,771 OMR 682

$1,636 R 27.0K

8.22%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.58

10.97

-58.25%

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

Last update for Salalah: October 6, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Salalah

$229 21.6%

Cape Town

$222 14.1% 3% $6.9

Eating Out

Salalah

$226 21.3%

Cape Town

$174 11% 23.3% $53

Accommodation & Living

Salalah

$205 19.3%

Cape Town

$715 45.3% 249% $510

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Salalah

$202 19%

Cape Town

$185 11.7% 8.2% $16

Clothing & Footwear

Salalah

$74 6.9%

Cape Town

$141 8.9% 91% $67

Getting Around

Salalah

$69 6.6%

Cape Town

$75 4.8% 8.4% $5.8

Sport & Entertainment

Salalah

$55 5.2%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 20.5% $11

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $251 in Salalah versus $1,015 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 8% higher in Salalah, 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 $26.00 in Salalah versus $47.00 in Cape Town. Groceries tell a different story – $229 in Salalah vs $222 in Cape Town – so Cape Town wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇴🇲 Salalah

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

15:22 3:22 PM

13:22 1:22 PM

2 h behind Salalah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

178,469

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Omani Rial OMR ر.ع.

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 OMR = 2.6 USD

1 OMR = 2.32 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to OMR – Omani Rial Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇴🇲 Omani Rial (ر.ع.)

Omani Rial exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.385 OMR (1 OMR = 2.6 USD). 1 EUR = 0.431 OMR (1 OMR = 2.32 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).

USD to OMR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Salalah Cape Town 6,810 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Salalah
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

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

Cape Town costs about 48% more than Salalah, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from clothing. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,589 per month in Salalah and $2,352 in Cape Town. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Salalah, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,059 in Salalah and $1,568 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 48%.

Public transport costs about 10% less in Salalah. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Salalah, where all-in costs run around $1,059, than in Cape Town at $1,568. In Salalah it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cape Town it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Salalah costs $1,059 versus $1,568 in Cape Town. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Salalah. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Cape Town makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.