Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sharjah and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,568 a month against $1,841 in Sharjah, rent and utilities included – about $3,300 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Sharjah outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

89

Cost of Living Index in Sharjah
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Sharjah Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Sharjah

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$1,841

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,841 per month in Sharjah vs $1,568 in Cape Town, rent included.

Sharjah $1,841
Cape Town $1,568

A couple spends around $2,576 per month in Sharjah vs $2,438 in Cape Town, rent included.

Sharjah $2,576
Cape Town $2,438

A family of three spends $3,312 per month in Sharjah vs $3,307 in Cape Town, rent included.

Sharjah $3,312
Cape Town $3,307

Sharjah costs about 17% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both Sharjah and Cape Town sit above the global median – Sharjah by 37%, Cape Town by 17%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.97 AED 21.92

$11.78 R 194

-49.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.91 AED 121

$46.55 R 768

-29.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.29 AED 30.45

$5.96 R 98.4

39.09%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.54 AED 35.05

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.35 AED 34.35

Cappuccino

$3.82 AED 14.02

$2.47 R 40.80

54.66%

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

$0.80 AED 2.93

$1.33 R 21.91

-39.85%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.29 AED 1.05

$1.03 R 16.99

-71.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.01 R 49.72

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 R 60.4

Milk (1 liter)

$1.54 AED 5.64

$1.39 R 22.96

10.79%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 AED 4.38

$1.19 R 19.60

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 AED 6.71

$2.11 R 34.84

-13.27%

Eggs

$3.21 AED 11.80

$3.01 R 49.58

6.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.64 AED 31.73

$8.96 R 148

-3.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.63 AED 24.36

$6.65 R 110

-0.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.46 AED 42.09

$9.29 R 153

23.36%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 AED 8.33

$1.83 R 30.13

24.04%

Banana (1kg)

$1.67 AED 6.12

$1.90 R 31.31

-12.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.30 AED 4.78

$1.75 R 28.83

-25.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.28 AED 4.72

$2.09 R 34.41

-38.76%

Potato (1kg)

$1.03 AED 3.79

$1.55 R 25.64

-33.55%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 AED 4.12

$1.49 R 24.53

-24.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.43 AED 5.26

$1.30 R 21.41

10.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.61 AED 2.23

$1.16 R 19.19

-47.41%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$15.53 AED 57.0

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.42 AED 8.88

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.59 AED 9.50

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.31 AED 23.19

$3.71 R 61.2

70.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.06 R 100

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.85

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 R 36.32

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.16 AED 7.92

$1.51 R 24.98

43.05%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.07 AED 99.4

$61.0 R 1,006

-55.59%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.65 AED 13.42

$0.63 R 10.33

479.37%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.52 AED 1.91

$1.53 R 25.29

-66.01%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.07 AED 44.33

$4.81 R 79.4

150.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.94 AED 3.46

$1.58 R 26.08

-40.51%

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

$45.2K AED 166.0K

$35.5K R 585.7K

27.32%

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

$22.0K AED 80.9K

$31.7K R 523.8K

-30.63%

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

$208 AED 766

$116 R 1,920

79.15%

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

$49.40 AED 181

$28.37 R 468

74.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$96.1 AED 353

$40.69 R 671

136.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.5 AED 196

$48.85 R 806

9.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.29 AED 81.9

$11.13 R 184

100.27%

Cinema Ticket

$13.54 AED 49.72

$8.83 R 146

53.34%

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

$325 AED 1,194

$261 R 4,314

24.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,433 AED 31.0K

$6,702 R 110.6K

25.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.6 AED 212

$55.4 R 914

4.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$78.0 AED 286

$32.27 R 532

141.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 AED 401

$118 R 1,939

-7.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.1 AED 353

$107 R 1,766

-10.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$823 AED 3,024

$1,015 R 16.7K

-18.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$906 AED 3,329

$715 R 11.8K

26.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,797 AED 6,598

$1,801 R 29.7K

-0.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,402 AED 5,148

$1,330 R 22.0K

5.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,241 AED 30.3K

$2,331 R 38.5K

253.59%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,748 AED 10.1K

$1,513 R 25.0K

81.60%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,191 AED 8,045

$1,636 R 27.0K

33.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.5

10.97

-58.98%

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

Last update for Sharjah: October 5, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sharjah

$906 49%

Cape Town

$715 45.3% 21.1% $191

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sharjah

$354 19.1%

Cape Town

$185 11.7% 47.6% $169

Groceries & Markets

Sharjah

$192 10.4%

Cape Town

$222 14.1% 15.7% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Sharjah

$153 8.3%

Cape Town

$141 8.9% 8.4% $13

Eating Out

Sharjah

$123 6.6%

Cape Town

$174 11% 41.5% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Sharjah

$81 4.4%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 17.5% $14

Getting Around

Sharjah

$42 2.3%

Cape Town

$75 4.8% 79.5% $33

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $823 in Sharjah 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 34% higher in Sharjah, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $33.00 in Sharjah versus $47.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $192 vs $222 – making Sharjah the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇪 Sharjah

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

06:55 6:55 AM

04:55 4:55 AM

2 h behind Sharjah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,400,000

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.243 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to AED – UAE Dirham Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇪 UAE Dirham (د.إ)

UAE Dirham exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.12 AED (1 AED = 0.243 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 16.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.06 USD). 1 EUR = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to AED in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Sharjah Cape Town 7,660 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Sharjah
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

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

Sharjah costs about 17% more than Cape Town, 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 $2,761 per month in Sharjah 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 Cape Town, 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 $1,841 in Sharjah and $1,568 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 17%.

Public transport costs about 125% less in Cape Town. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Cape Town, where all-in costs run around $1,568, than in Sharjah at $1,841. In Cape Town it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sharjah it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cape Town costs $1,568 versus $1,841 in Sharjah. 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 Cape Town. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Sharjah makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.