Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Upington and Cairo

For one person, living is cheaper in Cairo: $635 a month against $1,133 in Upington, rent and utilities included – about $6,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

54

Cost of Living Index in Upington
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Upington Living Index
31

Cost of Living Index in Cairo
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Cairo Living Index

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Upington

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,133

/mo nomad

Cairo

🇪🇬 Egypt

$635

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Upington and in Cairo

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Upington and in Cairo actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,133 per month in Upington vs $635 in Cairo, rent included.

Upington $1,133
Cairo $635

A couple spends around $1,760 per month in Upington vs $1,010 in Cairo, rent included.

Upington $1,760
Cairo $1,010

A family of three spends $2,388 per month in Upington vs $1,385 in Cairo, rent included.

Upington $2,388
Cairo $1,385

Upington costs about 78% more than Cairo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Upington and Cairo are more affordable than the global median – Upington 16% lower, Cairo 53% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.40 R 204

$4.63 E£247

167.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.12 R 612

$27.66 E£1,477

34.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.69 R 93.7

$5.83 E£311

-2.40%

Cappuccino

$1.74 R 28.68

$1.69 E£90.1

2.96%

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

$1.04 R 17.17

$0.35 E£18.79

197.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.76 R 12.58

$0.13 E£6.86

484.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.73 R 28.48

$1.47 E£78.3

17.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 R 46.42

$2.21 E£118

27.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.89 R 14.65

$0.94 E£50.5

-5.32%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.66

$0.79 E£41.96

58.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.65 R 27.26

$0.70 E£37.41

135.71%

Eggs

$2.64 R 43.52

$1.12 E£59.5

135.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.45 R 139

$4.08 E£218

107.11%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.12 R 84.3

$4.77 E£255

7.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.27 R 120

$8.81 E£470

-17.48%

Apples (1kg)

$2.04 R 33.55

$1.68 E£89.7

21.43%

Banana (1kg)

$1.71 R 28.20

$0.71 E£38.07

140.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.78 R 29.35

$0.59 E£31.31

201.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.29

$0.51 E£27.06

260.78%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 R 24.81

$0.37 E£19.81

308.11%

Onion (1kg)

$1.58 R 25.95

$0.44 E£23.47

259.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.27 R 20.96

$0.34 E£18.37

273.53%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.02 R 16.78

$0.21 E£11.16

385.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.76 R 45.51

$1.99 E£106

38.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.73 R 61.4

$7.49 E£400

-50.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 R 21.09

$1.51 E£80.4

-15.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 R 28.88

$2.08 E£111

-15.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.74 R 28.72

$0.34 E£18.29

411.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.31 E£444

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.55 R 9.03

$0.40 E£21.48

37.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.96 R 15.86

$0.19 E£9.99

405.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.66 R 176

$1.50 E£80.0

610.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 R 24.69

$0.45 E£23.77

233.33%

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

$31.3K R 514.9K

$33.1K E£1.8M

-5.62%

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

$34.0K R 560.5K

$26.1K E£1.4M

30.11%

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

$146 R 2,404

$27.62 E£1,475

428.28%

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

$37.98 R 626

$7.83 E£418

385.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$38.45 R 633

$14.39 E£769

167.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$27.77 R 458

$28.62 E£1,528

-2.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.05 R 198

$7.47 E£399

61.31%

Cinema Ticket

$6.94 R 114

$4.56 E£244

52.19%

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

$103 R 1,691

$120 E£6,417

-14.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,463 R 90.0K

$3,476 E£185.6K

57.18%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.2 R 1,008

$39.13 E£2,090

56.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.44 R 551

$49.04 E£2,619

-31.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,916

$111 E£5,934

4.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.9 R 1,597

$57.0 E£3,043

70.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$394 R 6,494

$215 E£11.5K

83.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$369 R 6,084

$196 E£10.5K

88.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$616 R 10.2K

$542 E£28.9K

13.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$737 R 12.1K

$338 E£18.0K

117.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$763 R 12.6K

$830 E£44.3K

-8.15%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$736 R 12.1K

$512 E£27.3K

43.90%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$776 R 12.8K

$195 E£10.4K

297.95%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.38

16.21

-29.80%

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

Last update for Upington: October 18, 2026

Last update for Cairo: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Upington

$369 32.6%

Cairo

$196 30.8% 46.9% $173

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Upington

$222 19.6%

Cairo

$50 7.8% 77.6% $172

Groceries & Markets

Upington

$190 16.8%

Cairo

$137 21.6% 28% $53

Eating Out

Upington

$159 14%

Cairo

$88 13.9% 44.3% $70

Clothing & Footwear

Upington

$139 12.2%

Cairo

$115 18.2% 16.7% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Upington

$42 3.7%

Cairo

$38 5.9% 9.4% $3.9

Getting Around

Upington

$12 * 1.1%

Cairo

$11 1.7% 10.6% $1.3

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $394 in Upington versus $215 in Cairo. 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 298% higher in Upington, 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 $37.00 in Upington versus $28.00 in Cairo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $190 vs $137 – making Cairo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Upington

🇪🇬 Cairo

🕒 Local time

02:05 2:05 AM

03:05 3:05 AM

1 h ahead of Upington

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,834

9,120,350 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

100 EGP = 1.87 USD

100 EGP = 1.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 53.4 EGP (100 EGP = 1.87 USD). 1 EUR = 60.03 EGP (100 EGP = 1.67 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

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Between locations

Upington Cairo 6,590 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Upington
Cairo

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

Upington vs Cairo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Upington is pricier by about 78%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,700 per month in Upington and $953 in Cairo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cairo, 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 $1,133 in Upington and $635 in Cairo. That's a gap of about 78%.

Kindergarten costs $103 per month in Upington and $120 in Cairo. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Cairo, where all-in costs run around $635, than in Upington at $1,133. In Cairo it covers expenses comfortably, while in Upington it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

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