Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Wakefield and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,586 a month against $2,025 in Wakefield, rent and utilities included – about $5,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

98

Cost of Living Index in Wakefield
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Wakefield Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Wakefield

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,025

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,025 per month in Wakefield vs $1,586 in Cape Town, rent included.

Wakefield $2,025
Cape Town $1,586

A couple spends around $3,205 per month in Wakefield vs $2,425 in Cape Town, rent included.

Wakefield $3,205
Cape Town $2,425

A family of three spends $4,384 per month in Wakefield vs $3,263 in Cape Town, rent included.

Wakefield $4,384
Cape Town $3,263

Wakefield costs about 28% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Wakefield and Cape Town sit above the global median – Wakefield by 50%, Cape Town by 17%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.01 £15.01

$12.14 R 200

64.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$80.5 £60.4

$45.34 R 747

77.61%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.04 £7.53

$5.88 R 96.9

70.75%

Cappuccino

$4.30 £3.22

$2.50 R 41.18

72.00%

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

$2.32 £1.74

$1.27 R 20.94

82.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.35 £1.01

$0.98 R 16.14

37.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.09 £4.57

$2.99 R 49.33

103.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.37 £4.03

$3.72 R 61.4

44.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 £1.11

$1.30 R 21.40

13.85%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 £1.44

$1.25 R 20.68

52.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.61 £1.96

$2.23 R 36.76

17.04%

Eggs

$4.06 £3.05

$3.11 R 51.2

30.55%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 £5.58

$9.06 R 149

-17.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.33 £6.25

$6.92 R 114

20.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 £10.50

$9.30 R 153

50.43%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 £2.27

$1.84 R 30.25

64.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 £1.08

$1.96 R 32.29

-26.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 £1.91

$1.67 R 27.45

52.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.92 £2.19

$2.17 R 35.70

34.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.74 £1.30

$1.57 R 25.81

10.83%

Onion (1kg)

$1.67 £1.25

$1.48 R 24.45

12.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 £0.89

$1.30 R 21.41

-9.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.40 £1.05

$1.13 R 18.60

23.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.05 £16.54

$3.60 R 59.3

512.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.44 £7.83

$6.15 R 101

69.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.32 £2.49

$1.38 R 22.66

140.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.14 £2.35

$2.14 R 35.20

46.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.40 £2.55

$1.50 R 24.65

126.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$103 £77.0

$60.8 R 1,001

68.84%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 £4.02

$0.59 R 9.71

808.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.43 £1.07

$1.50 R 24.65

-4.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.72 £11.80

$5.11 R 84.2

207.63%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.99 £1.49

$1.55 R 25.50

28.39%

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

$37.5K £28.1K

$36.2K R 596.5K

3.44%

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

$40.8K £30.6K

$31.2K R 514.8K

30.58%

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

$350 £262

$114 R 1,883

205.72%

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

$15.43 £11.58

$28.91 R 476

-46.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.92 £32.20

$39.73 R 654

8.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.79 £26.10

$49.01 R 808

-29.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.16 £19.63

$10.99 R 181

138.03%

Cinema Ticket

$14.10 £10.58

$9.15 R 151

54.10%

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

$1,193 £895

$259 R 4,264

361.01%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.9K £17.9K

$6,794 R 111.9K

251.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.2 £64.6

$56.2 R 926

53.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.7 £40.27

$32.41 R 534

65.60%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.6 £69.4

$121 R 1,987

-23.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.8 £66.6

$108 R 1,781

-17.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$984 £738

$1,021 R 16.8K

-3.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$694 £521

$717 R 11.8K

-3.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,076 £1,557

$1,824 R 30.1K

13.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,555 £1,167

$1,327 R 21.9K

17.23%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,959 £2,970

$2,391 R 39.4K

65.58%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,683 £2,013

$1,542 R 25.4K

74.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,455 £1,842

$1,639 R 27.0K

49.80%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.77

10.97

-56.52%

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

Last update for Wakefield: October 11, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Wakefield

$694 34.3%

Cape Town

$717 45.2% 3.2% $22

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Wakefield

$408 20.1%

Cape Town

$183 11.5% 55.1% $225

Eating Out

Wakefield

$298 14.7%

Cape Town

$176 11.1% 40.8% $121

Groceries & Markets

Wakefield

$289 14.3%

Cape Town

$225 14.2% 22.2% $64

Clothing & Footwear

Wakefield

$145 7.1%

Cape Town

$143 9% 1.2% $1.8

Getting Around

Wakefield

$129 6.4%

Cape Town

$75 4.7% 41.9% $54

Sport & Entertainment

Wakefield

$63 3.1%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 6.9% $4.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $984 in Wakefield versus $1,021 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 50% higher in Wakefield, 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 $81.0 in Wakefield versus $45.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $289 vs $225 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Wakefield

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

04:18 4:18 AM

05:18 5:18 AM

1 h ahead of Wakefield

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

322,300

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Wakefield Cape Town 9,930 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Wakefield
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

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

Wakefield costs about 28% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,038 per month in Wakefield and $2,379 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 $2,025 in Wakefield and $1,586 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 28%.

Public transport costs about 69% 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 $1,586, than in Wakefield at $2,025. In Cape Town it covers expenses comfortably, while in Wakefield it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cape Town costs $1,586 versus $2,025 in Wakefield. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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