Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Visby and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,556 a month against $1,724 in Visby, rent and utilities included – about $2,000 less a year. The total is higher in Visby despite lower rent and utilities.

Visby, Sweden
Cape Town, South Africa
Visby
🇸🇪 Sweden
$1,724
/mo nomad
Cape Town
🇿🇦 South Africa
$1,556
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,724 per month in Visby vs $1,556 in Cape Town, rent included.

  • Visby $1,724
  • Cape Town $1,556

A couple spends around $2,717 per month in Visby vs $2,432 in Cape Town, rent included.

  • Visby $2,717
  • Cape Town $2,432

A family of three spends $3,709 per month in Visby vs $3,307 in Cape Town, rent included.

  • Visby $3,709
  • Cape Town $3,307

Visby costs about 11% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Visby and Cape Town sit above the global median – Visby by 27%, Cape Town by 14%.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Visby
Cape Town
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$12.84 SEK 128
$12.09 R 202
6.20%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$79.2 SEK 786
$44.34 R 739
78.51%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$9.24 SEK 91.8
$6.15 R 102
50.24%
Cappuccino
$3.83 SEK 38.00
$2.36 R 39.30
62.29%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.34 SEK 23.26
$1.26 R 21.06
85.71%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.54 SEK 25.20
$1.00 R 16.59
154.00%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$7.55 SEK 75.0
$3.08 R 51.3
145.13%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.06 SEK 40.28
$3.70 R 61.6
9.73%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Visby
Cape Town
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.47 SEK 14.59
$1.34 R 22.41
9.70%
White Bread (500g)
$2.92 SEK 29.03
$1.19 R 19.89
145.38%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$3.06 SEK 30.40
$2.10 R 35.01
45.71%
Eggs
$3.82 SEK 37.93
$3.05 R 50.8
25.25%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.14 SEK 101
$8.73 R 146
16.15%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$11.64 SEK 116
$6.97 R 116
67.00%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$16.22 SEK 161
$9.39 R 157
72.74%
Apples (1kg)
$2.95 SEK 29.31
$1.89 R 31.44
56.08%
Banana (1kg)
$2.54 SEK 25.20
$1.88 R 31.32
35.11%
Oranges (1kg)
$3.09 SEK 30.72
$1.69 R 28.08
82.84%
Tomato (1kg)
$4.31 SEK 42.84
$2.04 R 34.07
111.27%
Potato (1kg)
$1.72 SEK 17.11
$1.57 R 26.12
9.55%
Onion (1kg)
$1.67 SEK 16.55
$1.48 R 24.65
12.84%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.13 SEK 21.19
$1.28 R 21.36
66.41%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.03 SEK 10.27
$1.19 R 19.81
-13.45%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$5.01 SEK 49.77
$3.63 R 60.5
38.02%
Wine (Bottle)
$11.85 SEK 118
$6.17 R 103
92.06%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.20 SEK 21.84
$1.39 R 23.14
58.27%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.53 SEK 15.19
$2.18 R 36.33
-29.82%
🚌 Getting Around
Visby
Cape Town
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.98 SEK 29.64
$1.37 R 22.83
117.52%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$78.1 SEK 776
$61.3 R 1,021
27.50%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.44 SEK 34.20
$0.57 R 9.58
503.51%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.47 SEK 24.57
$1.48 R 24.62
66.89%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$79.8 SEK 792
$4.90 R 81.6
1527.96%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.81 SEK 17.99
$1.58 R 26.29
14.56%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$33.5K SEK 332.8K
$34.7K R 578.4K
-3.46%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$33.6K SEK 333.5K
$34.1K R 568.2K
-1.53%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Visby
Cape Town
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$185 SEK 1,833
$117 R 1,948
57.90%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.66 SEK 225
$28.35 R 472
-20.07%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$42.60 SEK 423
$40.58 R 676
4.98%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Visby
Cape Town
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$37.83 SEK 376
$48.54 R 809
-22.06%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$26.46 SEK 263
$10.80 R 180
145.00%
Cinema Ticket
$13.79 SEK 137
$9.11 R 152
51.37%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Visby
Cape Town
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$149 SEK 1,484
$302 R 5,032
-50.51%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$4,977 SEK 49.4K
$6,720 R 112.0K
-25.94%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Visby
Cape Town
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$103 SEK 1,021
$55.2 R 920
86.11%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.66 SEK 394
$32.70 R 545
21.28%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$89.1 SEK 885
$118 R 1,964
-24.41%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$137 SEK 1,359
$104 R 1,731
31.77%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Visby
Cape Town
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$715 SEK 7,098
$1,041 R 17.3K
-31.33%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$556 SEK 5,520
$691 R 11.5K
-19.56%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,338 SEK 13.3K
$1,981 R 33.0K
-32.44%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,036 SEK 10.3K
$1,388 R 23.1K
-25.36%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,002 SEK 39.7K
$2,420 R 40.3K
65.39%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,746 SEK 27.3K
$1,552 R 25.9K
76.99%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Visby
Cape Town
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$2,491 SEK 24.7K
$1,576 R 26.3K
58.09%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
3.53
10.97
-67.82%

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

Last update for Visby: October 26, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Visby
$556
Cape Town
$691 24.3% $135
Groceries & Markets
Visby
$340
Cape Town
$224 34.2% $116
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Visby
$250
Cape Town
$186 25.6% $64
Eating Out
Visby
$242
Cape Town
$175 27.5% $66
Clothing & Footwear
Visby
$166
Cape Town
$139 15.9% $26
Getting Around
Visby
$106
Cape Town
$75 29.4% $31
Sport & Entertainment
Visby
$65
Cape Town
$67 2.1% $1.4

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $715 in Visby 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.

Salaries run about 58% higher in Visby. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $79 in Visby versus $44 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $340 vs $224 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇸🇪 Visby
🇿🇦 Cape Town
🕒 Local time
05:00 5:00 AM
06:00 6:00 AM
1 h ahead of Visby
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
22,593
3,740,026 Capital
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to SEK – Swedish Krona Converter

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 9.93 SEK (1 SEK = 0.101 USD). 1 EUR = 11.06 SEK (100 SEK = 9.05 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 16.66 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6 USD). 1 EUR = 18.55 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Visby Cape Town 10,180 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Visby
  • 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
Visby vs Cape Town: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which city is more expensive, Visby or Cape Town?
Visby costs about 11% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.
How much do you need to earn to live comfortably in Visby and in Cape Town?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,587 per month in Visby and $2,335 in Cape Town. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Where is rent cheaper, Visby or Cape Town?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Visby, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $715 there versus $1,041 in Cape Town.
How much does it cost to live in Visby compared to Cape Town?
Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,724 in Visby and $1,556 in Cape Town. That makes Cape Town about 10% cheaper.
How expensive is transport in Visby compared to Cape Town?
Public transport costs about 22% less in Cape Town. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.
Can you live on $1,000/month in Visby or in Cape Town?
$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,724 in Visby and $1,556 in Cape Town. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.
Which city offers a better quality of life: Visby or Cape Town?
It depends on your priorities. Cape Town has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,556 in Cape Town to $1,724 in Visby. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.
Should I move to Visby or to Cape Town?
If budget matters most, go with Cape Town. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Visby makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

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