Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between York and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,568 a month against $2,192 in York, rent and utilities included – about $7,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

106

Cost of Living Index in York
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York Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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York

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,192

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,568

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,192 per month in York vs $1,568 in Cape Town, rent included.

York $2,192
Cape Town $1,568

A couple spends around $3,458 per month in York vs $2,438 in Cape Town, rent included.

York $3,458
Cape Town $2,438

A family of three spends $4,723 per month in York vs $3,307 in Cape Town, rent included.

York $4,723
Cape Town $3,307

York costs about 40% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both York and Cape Town sit above the global median – York by 64%, Cape Town by 17%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.67 £20.16

$11.78 R 194

126.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$87.8 £66.4

$46.55 R 768

88.61%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.48 £7.92

$5.96 R 98.4

75.84%

Cappuccino

$5.02 £3.80

$2.47 R 40.80

103.24%

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

$2.78 £2.10

$1.33 R 21.91

109.02%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 £1.30

$1.03 R 16.99

67.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.65 £5.02

$3.01 R 49.72

120.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.77 £5.12

$3.66 R 60.4

84.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 £1.24

$1.39 R 22.96

18.71%

White Bread (500g)

$1.57 £1.19

$1.19 R 19.60

31.93%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.04 £1.54

$2.11 R 34.84

-3.32%

Eggs

$3.82 £2.88

$3.01 R 49.58

26.91%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.90 £6.73

$8.96 R 148

-0.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.28 £6.26

$6.65 R 110

24.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.82 £7.42

$9.29 R 153

5.71%

Apples (1kg)

$3.33 £2.52

$1.83 R 30.13

81.97%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 £1.48

$1.90 R 31.31

2.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.46 £1.86

$1.75 R 28.83

40.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.76 £3.60

$2.09 R 34.41

127.75%

Potato (1kg)

$3.08 £2.32

$1.55 R 25.64

98.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.56 £1.18

$1.49 R 24.53

4.70%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.52 £1.15

$1.30 R 21.41

16.92%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.45 £1.10

$1.16 R 19.19

25.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.22 £17.54

$3.71 R 61.2

525.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.84 £8.95

$6.06 R 100

95.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.18 £3.16

$1.39 R 22.85

200.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.69 £3.55

$2.20 R 36.32

113.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.98 £3.01

$1.51 R 24.98

163.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$114 £86.2

$61.0 R 1,006

87.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.55 £3.44

$0.63 R 10.33

622.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.66 £2.01

$1.53 R 25.29

73.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.50 £14.74

$4.81 R 79.4

305.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.02 £1.53

$1.58 R 26.08

27.85%

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

$38.5K £29.1K

$35.5K R 585.7K

8.49%

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

$40.1K £30.3K

$31.7K R 523.8K

26.40%

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

$195 £147

$116 R 1,920

67.56%

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

$16.43 £12.42

$28.37 R 468

-42.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$46.68 £35.28

$40.69 R 671

14.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.76 £36.85

$48.85 R 806

-0.18%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.11 £18.22

$11.13 R 184

116.62%

Cinema Ticket

$13.39 £10.12

$8.83 R 146

51.64%

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

$1,577 £1,192

$261 R 4,314

503.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.3K £12.3K

$6,702 R 110.6K

143.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$60.1 £45.42

$55.4 R 914

8.50%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.33 £27.46

$32.27 R 532

12.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.3 £59.2

$118 R 1,939

-33.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$76.3 £57.6

$107 R 1,766

-28.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,234 £933

$1,015 R 16.7K

21.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$927 £701

$715 R 11.8K

29.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,495 £1,885

$1,801 R 29.7K

38.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,931 £1,459

$1,330 R 22.0K

45.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,018 £3,792

$2,331 R 38.5K

115.30%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,867 £2,922

$1,513 R 25.0K

155.59%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,500 £2,645

$1,636 R 27.0K

113.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.61

10.97

-48.86%

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

Last update for York: October 5, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

York

$927 42.2%

Cape Town

$715 45.3% 22.8% $212

Eating Out

York

$370 16.8%

Cape Town

$174 11% 53.1% $196

Groceries & Markets

York

$305 13.9%

Cape Town

$222 14.1% 27.1% $83

Monthly Utilities & Internet

York

$258 11.8%

Cape Town

$185 11.7% 28.2% $73

Getting Around

York

$148 6.7%

Cape Town

$75 4.8% 49.1% $73

Clothing & Footwear

York

$113 5.1%

Cape Town

$141 8.9% 24.4% $28

Sport & Entertainment

York

$76 3.4%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 12% $9

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,234 in York versus $1,015 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 114% higher in York, 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 $88.0 in York versus $47.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $305 vs $222 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 York

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

08:04 8:04 AM

09:04 9:04 AM

1 h ahead of York

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

137,000

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.06 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 16.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.06 USD). 1 EUR = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

York Cape Town 9,950 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

York
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

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

York costs about 40% 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 $3,288 per month in York and $2,352 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 $2,192 in York and $1,568 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 40%.

Public transport costs about 87% 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 $1,568, than in York at $2,192. In Cape Town it covers expenses comfortably, while in York it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Cape Town costs $1,568 versus $2,192 in York. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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