Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sun City and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Sun City: $1,270 a month against $1,556 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $3,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

61

Cost of Living Index in Sun City
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Sun City Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Sun City

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,270

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,556

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,270 per month in Sun City vs $1,556 in Cape Town, rent included.

Sun City $1,270
Cape Town $1,556

A couple spends around $1,953 per month in Sun City vs $2,432 in Cape Town, rent included.

Sun City $1,953
Cape Town $2,432

A family of three spends $2,636 per month in Sun City vs $3,307 in Cape Town, rent included.

Sun City $2,636
Cape Town $3,307

Sun City is about 18% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Sun City sits 7% below the global median, while Cape Town is 14% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.96 R 199

$12.09 R 202

-1.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.28 R 771

$44.34 R 739

4.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.46 R 124

$6.15 R 102

21.30%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.70

$2.36 R 39.30

5.93%

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

$1.26 R 21.01

$1.26 R 21.06

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.99 R 16.47

$1.00 R 16.59

-1.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.45 R 40.80

$3.08 R 51.3

-20.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.76 R 46.01

$3.70 R 61.6

-25.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.33 R 22.14

$1.34 R 22.41

-0.75%

White Bread (500g)

$1.20 R 20.05

$1.19 R 19.89

0.84%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.73 R 28.85

$2.10 R 35.01

-17.62%

Eggs

$2.79 R 46.42

$3.05 R 50.8

-8.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.93 R 149

$8.73 R 146

2.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.65 R 94.1

$6.97 R 116

-18.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.75 R 146

$9.39 R 157

-6.82%

Apples (1kg)

$2.10 R 35.07

$1.89 R 31.44

11.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.87 R 31.17

$1.88 R 31.32

-0.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.82 R 30.35

$1.69 R 28.08

7.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 35.68

$2.04 R 34.07

4.90%

Potato (1kg)

$1.65 R 27.43

$1.57 R 26.12

5.10%

Onion (1kg)

$1.79 R 29.80

$1.48 R 24.65

20.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 R 24.20

$1.28 R 21.36

13.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 R 21.70

$1.19 R 19.81

9.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.51 R 58.5

$3.63 R 60.5

-3.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.02 R 100

$6.17 R 103

-2.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.81 R 30.11

$1.39 R 23.14

30.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.31 R 38.43

$2.18 R 36.33

5.96%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.55 R 25.83

$1.37 R 22.83

13.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.3 R 1,021

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.88 R 14.68

$0.57 R 9.58

54.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.95 R 15.82

$1.48 R 24.62

-35.81%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$14.33 R 239

$4.90 R 81.6

192.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.56 R 26.08

$1.58 R 26.29

-1.27%

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

$35.8K R 596.0K

$34.7K R 578.4K

3.04%

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

$34.8K R 580.3K

$34.1K R 568.2K

2.12%

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

$229 R 3,823

$117 R 1,948

96.22%

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

$38.97 R 649

$28.35 R 472

37.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$37.57 R 626

$40.58 R 676

-7.42%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.51 R 542

$48.54 R 809

-33.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.11 R 185

$10.80 R 180

2.87%

Cinema Ticket

$8.49 R 142

$9.11 R 152

-6.81%

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

$246 R 4,106

$302 R 5,032

-18.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,591 R 93.2K

$6,720 R 112.0K

-16.81%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.9 R 982

$55.2 R 920

6.72%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.49 R 758

$32.70 R 545

39.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$115 R 1,922

$118 R 1,964

-2.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$111 R 1,854

$104 R 1,731

7.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$397 R 6,607

$1,041 R 17.3K

-61.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$359 R 5,982

$691 R 11.5K

-48.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$724 R 12.1K

$1,981 R 33.0K

-63.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$727 R 12.1K

$1,388 R 23.1K

-47.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$874 R 14.6K

$2,420 R 40.3K

-63.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$681 R 11.3K

$1,552 R 25.9K

-56.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,576 R 26.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.91

10.97

-0.55%

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

Last update for Sun City: October 24, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sun City

$359 28.3%

Cape Town

$691 44.4% 92.5% $332

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sun City

$306 24.1%

Cape Town

$186 11.9% 39.3% $120

Groceries & Markets

Sun City

$220 17.3%

Cape Town

$224 14.4% 1.6% $3.5

Eating Out

Sun City

$175 13.8%

Cape Town

$175 11.3% 0.3% $0.5

Clothing & Footwear

Sun City

$149 11.7%

Cape Town

$139 9% 6.5% $9.6

Sport & Entertainment

Sun City

$50 3.9%

Cape Town

$67 4.3% 34.9% $17

Getting Around

Sun City

$12 * 0.9%

Cape Town

$75 4.8% 532% $63

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $397 in Sun City versus $1,041 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $46 in Sun City versus $44 in Cape Town. Groceries tell a different story – $220 in Sun City vs $224 in Cape Town – so Sun City wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Sun City

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

00:07 12:07 AM

Same time as Sun City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,556

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

100 ZAR = 6 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Sun City Cape Town 1,270 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Sun City
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

Sun City vs Cape Town: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 23% more than Sun City, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,905 per month in Sun City and $2,335 in Cape Town. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Sun City, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $397 there versus $1,041 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,270 in Sun City and $1,556 in Cape Town. That makes Sun City about 18% cheaper.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $46 in Sun City and $44 in Cape Town. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,270 in Sun City and $1,556 in Cape Town. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward Sun City – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.