Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tres Cantos and Cape Town

For one person, living costs are similar in Tres Cantos and in Cape Town: $1,528 and $1,527 a month, rent and utilities included.

78

Cost of Living Index in Tres Cantos
Learn more

Tres Cantos Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
Learn more

Cape Town Living Index

Jump to prices

Tres Cantos

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,528

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,528 per month in Tres Cantos vs $1,527 in Cape Town, rent included.

Tres Cantos $1,528
Cape Town $1,527

A couple spends around $2,352 per month in Tres Cantos vs $2,417 in Cape Town, rent included.

Tres Cantos $2,352
Cape Town $2,417

A family of three spends $3,176 per month in Tres Cantos vs $3,306 in Cape Town, rent included.

Tres Cantos $3,176
Cape Town $3,306

Tres Cantos and Cape Town have comparable living costs – the differences are in the details.

Both Tres Cantos and Cape Town sit above the global median – Tres Cantos by 13%, Cape Town by 13%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.95 €14.20

$12.01 R 198

32.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.24 €43.84

$42.92 R 707

14.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.00 €9.79

$6.15 R 101

78.86%

Cappuccino

$2.30 €2.05

$2.37 R 39.04

-2.95%

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

$2.49 €2.21

$1.27 R 20.96

96.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.61 €1.43

$0.94 R 15.46

71.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.97 €2.64

$2.96 R 48.77

0.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.49 €3.11

$3.69 R 60.8

-5.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.21 €1.07

$1.32 R 21.73

-8.33%

White Bread (500g)

$1.60 €1.42

$1.21 R 19.87

32.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.37 €1.22

$2.20 R 36.26

-37.73%

Eggs

$3.15 €2.80

$3.10 R 51.1

1.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.47 €12.88

$8.73 R 144

65.75%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.23 €7.32

$6.89 R 114

19.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.19 €15.31

$9.26 R 153

85.64%

Apples (1kg)

$2.31 €2.06

$1.83 R 30.08

26.23%

Banana (1kg)

$1.76 €1.57

$1.95 R 32.12

-9.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.23 €1.98

$1.66 R 27.32

34.34%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.92 €2.60

$2.14 R 35.19

36.45%

Potato (1kg)

$2.00 €1.78

$1.58 R 26.01

26.58%

Onion (1kg)

$1.87 €1.66

$1.47 R 24.29

27.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.29 €1.15

$1.35 R 22.18

-4.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 €0.60

$1.14 R 18.85

-41.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.88 €5.24

$3.58 R 59.0

64.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.57 €4.96

$6.05 R 99.7

-7.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 €1.12

$1.39 R 22.95

-9.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 €1.84

$2.18 R 35.90

-5.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.76 €1.57

$1.40 R 23.02

25.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$33.87 €30.16

$60.8 R 1,001

-44.25%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.89 €3.46

$0.93 R 15.26

318.28%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.22 €1.08

$0.90 R 14.83

35.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.09 €21.45

$4.96 R 81.7

385.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.81 €1.61

$1.54 R 25.37

17.53%

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

$38.4K €34.2K

$35.4K R 582.8K

8.49%

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

$32.8K €29.2K

$33.4K R 549.9K

-1.80%

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

$137 €122

$117 R 1,929

17.44%

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

$16.48 €14.67

$25.71 R 424

-35.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.50 €23.60

$39.41 R 649

-32.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.91 €39.10

$51.6 R 850

-14.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.47 €13.78

$11.35 R 187

36.30%

Cinema Ticket

$8.58 €7.64

$8.89 R 146

-3.49%

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

$508 €452

$308 R 5,069

65.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,119 €8,120

$8,141 R 134.2K

12.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.1 €69.5

$57.4 R 946

36.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.22 €30.47

$31.75 R 523

7.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$81.7 €72.7

$116 R 1,911

-29.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$101 R 1,660

18.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,026 €913

$1,047 R 17.2K

-1.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$595 €530

$669 R 11.0K

-11.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,356 €1,207

$1,861 R 30.7K

-27.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,068 €951

$1,407 R 23.2K

-24.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,498 €3,115

$2,410 R 39.7K

45.14%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,913 €1,704

$1,570 R 25.9K

21.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,191 €2,841

$1,630 R 26.9K

95.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.3

10.89

-69.70%

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

Last update for Tres Cantos: 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

Tres Cantos

$595 39%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 12.4% $74

Groceries & Markets

Tres Cantos

$272 17.8%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 18% $49

Eating Out

Tres Cantos

$226 14.8%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 23.1% $52

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tres Cantos

$180 11.8%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 1% $1.7

Clothing & Footwear

Tres Cantos

$141 9.2%

Cape Town

$138 9% 2.5% $3.5

Sport & Entertainment

Tres Cantos

$61 4%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 13.6% $8.3

Getting Around

Tres Cantos

$51 3.3%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 41% $21

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,026 in Tres Cantos 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 96% higher in Tres Cantos. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $49 in Tres Cantos versus $43 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $272 vs $223 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Tres Cantos

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

08:17 8:17 AM

09:17 9:17 AM

1 h ahead of Tres Cantos

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

51,453

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.89 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Tres Cantos Cape Town 8,590 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Tres Cantos
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

Tres Cantos vs Cape Town: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,291 per month in Tres Cantos and $2,291 in Cape Town. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $1,026 in Tres Cantos and $1,047 in Cape Town. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Groceries cost about 22% more in Tres Cantos, though the gap depends on what you buy.

Kindergarten costs $508 per month in Tres Cantos 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 $1,528 in Tres Cantos and $1,527 in Cape Town. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Cape Town has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,527 in Cape Town to $1,528 in Tres Cantos. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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