Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sarajevo and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Sarajevo: $1,196 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $4,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Sarajevo
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Sarajevo Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Sarajevo

🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina

$1,196

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,196 per month in Sarajevo vs $1,527 in Cape Town, rent included.

Sarajevo $1,196
Cape Town $1,527

A couple spends around $1,824 per month in Sarajevo vs $2,417 in Cape Town, rent included.

Sarajevo $1,824
Cape Town $2,417

A family of three spends $2,451 per month in Sarajevo vs $3,306 in Cape Town, rent included.

Sarajevo $2,451
Cape Town $3,306

Sarajevo is about 22% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Sarajevo sits 12% below the global median, while Cape Town is 13% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.47 BAM 14.81

$12.01 R 199

-29.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.40 BAM 70.7

$42.92 R 709

-5.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.63 BAM 15.10

$6.15 R 102

40.33%

Cappuccino

$2.28 BAM 4.00

$2.37 R 39.16

-3.80%

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

$2.22 BAM 3.88

$1.27 R 21.03

74.80%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 BAM 2.47

$0.94 R 15.50

50.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.93 BAM 5.12

$2.96 R 48.92

-1.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.93 BAM 5.13

$3.69 R 61.0

-20.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 BAM 2.02

$1.32 R 21.80

-12.88%

White Bread (500g)

$1.15 BAM 2.01

$1.21 R 19.93

-4.96%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.21 BAM 3.86

$2.20 R 36.37

0.45%

Eggs

$3.07 BAM 5.36

$3.10 R 51.3

-0.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.36 BAM 18.13

$8.73 R 144

18.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.54 BAM 13.20

$6.89 R 114

9.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.93 BAM 24.37

$9.26 R 153

50.43%

Apples (1kg)

$1.45 BAM 2.53

$1.83 R 30.17

-20.77%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 BAM 2.85

$1.95 R 32.22

-16.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.51 BAM 2.63

$1.66 R 27.40

-9.04%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.98 BAM 3.47

$2.14 R 35.30

-7.48%

Potato (1kg)

$0.97 BAM 1.69

$1.58 R 26.09

-38.61%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 BAM 1.93

$1.47 R 24.37

-25.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.09 BAM 1.91

$1.35 R 22.25

-19.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.68 BAM 1.19

$1.14 R 18.91

-40.35%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.00 BAM 7.00

$3.58 R 59.1

11.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.01 BAM 12.26

$6.05 R 100

15.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 BAM 1.54

$1.39 R 23.02

-36.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.50 BAM 2.63

$2.18 R 36.01

-31.19%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.28 BAM 2.23

$1.40 R 23.09

-8.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$34.53 BAM 60.4

$60.8 R 1,004

-43.16%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.63 BAM 2.84

$0.93 R 15.31

75.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.29 BAM 2.26

$0.90 R 14.88

43.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.11 BAM 22.93

$4.96 R 82.0

164.31%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.69 BAM 2.96

$1.54 R 25.45

9.74%

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

$29.6K BAM 51.7K

$35.4K R 584.6K

-16.43%

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

$22.1K BAM 38.6K

$33.4K R 551.6K

-33.84%

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

$210 BAM 367

$117 R 1,935

79.02%

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

$13.77 BAM 24.08

$25.71 R 425

-46.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.87 BAM 47.01

$39.41 R 651

-31.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.54 BAM 72.7

$51.6 R 853

-19.51%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.13 BAM 35.22

$11.35 R 188

77.36%

Cinema Ticket

$6.93 BAM 12.12

$8.89 R 147

-22.05%

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

$209 BAM 366

$308 R 5,085

-32.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,035 BAM 8,808

$8,141 R 134.6K

-38.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$85.8 BAM 150

$57.4 R 948

49.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.97 BAM 66.4

$31.75 R 525

19.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$88.8 BAM 155

$116 R 1,917

-23.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$100 BAM 175

$101 R 1,665

-0.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$423 BAM 740

$1,047 R 17.3K

-59.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$320 BAM 559

$669 R 11.1K

-52.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$957 BAM 1,674

$1,861 R 30.8K

-48.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$602 BAM 1,053

$1,407 R 23.3K

-57.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,160 BAM 5,528

$2,410 R 39.8K

31.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,392 BAM 4,185

$1,570 R 25.9K

52.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,043 BAM 1,824

$1,630 R 26.9K

-36.03%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.08

10.89

-62.53%

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

Last update for Sarajevo: 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

Sarajevo

$320 26.7%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 109% $350

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sarajevo

$250 20.9%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 27.2% $68

Groceries & Markets

Sarajevo

$227 19%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 1.5% $3.5

Eating Out

Sarajevo

$156 13%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 11.5% $18

Clothing & Footwear

Sarajevo

$141 11.8%

Cape Town

$138 9% 2.2% $3

Sport & Entertainment

Sarajevo

$55 4.6%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 25.3% $14

Getting Around

Sarajevo

$48 4%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 50.3% $24

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $423 in Sarajevo 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 56% higher in Cape Town. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $40 in Sarajevo versus $43 in Cape Town. Groceries tell a different story – $227 in Sarajevo vs $223 in Cape Town – so Cape Town wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇧🇦 Sarajevo

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

22:04 10:04 PM

23:04 11:04 PM

1 h ahead of Sarajevo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

271,194 Capital

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Bosnia and Herzegovina Convertible Mark BAM KM

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 BAM = 0.572 USD

1 BAM = 0.511 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.05 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to BAM – Bosnia and Herzegovina Convertible Mark Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina Convertible Mark (KM)

Bosnia and Herzegovina Convertible Mark exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 1.75 BAM (1 BAM = 0.572 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BAM (1 BAM = 0.511 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.53 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.05 USD). 1 EUR = 18.47 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

USD to BAM in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Sarajevo Cape Town 8,650 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Sarajevo
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

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

Cape Town costs about 28% more than Sarajevo, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from utilities. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,795 per month in Sarajevo 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 Sarajevo, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $423 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,196 in Sarajevo and $1,527 in Cape Town. That makes Sarajevo about 22% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $209 per month in Sarajevo 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 $1,196 in Sarajevo and $1,527 in Cape Town. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Sarajevo costs $1,196 versus $1,527 in Cape Town. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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