Cost of living comparison
compared to
Phnom Penh vs. Cape Town Cost of Living Summary
Phnom Penh is 3.4% cheaper than Cape Town.
- Restaurants
-
pay 11.0% less in Phnom Penh
- Groceries
-
pay 42.7% more in Phnom Penh
- Transportation
-
pay 9.8% more in Phnom Penh
- Housing
-
pay 38.5% less in Phnom Penh
- Childcare
-
pay 34.5% more in Phnom Penh
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 26.0% less in Phnom Penh
- Clothing
-
pay 35.3% less in Phnom Penh
The cost of groceries, childcare, and transportation in Phnom Penh are more expensive than in Cape Town. Expenses including housing, clothing, entertainment and sports, and restaurants are lower in Phnom Penh.
Phnom Penh vs. Cape Town Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Phnom Penh instead of Cape Town, you would:
pay 11.0% less for restaurants
|
Cape Town
|
Phnom Penh
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$11.47
ZAR194.18
|
$5.00
KHR20,018.85
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$5.16
ZAR87.38
|
$7.00
KHR28,026.39
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.20
ZAR20.35
|
$0.93
KHR3,721.15
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.92
ZAR15.53
|
$0.91
KHR3,656.62
|
|
Cape Town vs. Phnom Penh - Cost of restaurants
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pay 42.7% more for groceries
|
Cape Town
|
Phnom Penh
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.14
ZAR19.21
|
$1.65
KHR6,608.28
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.37
ZAR73.94
|
$6.70
KHR26,825.26
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.50
ZAR76.09
|
$8.17
KHR32,701.82
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.49
ZAR42.19
|
$1.82
KHR7,282.41
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$2.43
ZAR41.18
|
$2.01
KHR8,041.21
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$0.78
ZAR13.27
|
$1.81
KHR7,249.19
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.76
ZAR12.83
|
$0.88
KHR3,541.36
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.74
ZAR12.54
|
$1.91
KHR7,663.87
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.78
ZAR13.19
|
$0.73
KHR2,942.05
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.60
ZAR10.08
|
$0.88
KHR3,511.09
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.62
ZAR10.51
|
$0.54
KHR2,149.03
|
|
Cape Town vs. Phnom Penh - Cost of groceries
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pay 9.8% more for transportation
|
Cape Town
|
Phnom Penh
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.73
ZAR80.12
|
$4.33
KHR17,336.51
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$28.68
ZAR485.44
|
$9.60
KHR38,436.20
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$21,796.50
ZAR368,934.03
|
$49,000.00
KHR196,184,757.29
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$10.15
ZAR171.85
|
$9.05
KHR36,245.37
|
|
Cape Town vs. Phnom Penh - Cost of transportation
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pay 38.5% less for housing
|
Cape Town
|
Phnom Penh
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$42.97
ZAR727.40
|
$21.29
KHR85,223.90
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$838.02
ZAR14,184.54
|
$481.60
KHR1,928,225.26
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$559.94
ZAR9,477.63
|
$273.92
KHR1,096,705.90
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$91.96
ZAR1,556.46
|
$82.99
KHR332,257.04
|
|
Cape Town vs. Phnom Penh - Cost of housing
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pay 34.5% more for childcare
|
Cape Town
|
Phnom Penh
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$228.00
ZAR3,859.24
|
$293.33
KHR1,174,439.36
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$5,090.62
ZAR86,165.43
|
$7,141.67
KHR28,593,594.73
|
|
Cape Town vs. Phnom Penh - Cost of childcare
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pay 26.0% less for entertainment and sports
|
Cape Town
|
Phnom Penh
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.87
ZAR48.54
|
$1.21
KHR4,837.39
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.12
ZAR35.82
|
$2.53
KHR10,114.79
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$3.15
ZAR53.40
|
$1.88
KHR7,507.07
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$44.05
ZAR745.55
|
$41.67
KHR166,823.77
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$6.88
ZAR116.51
|
$3.75
KHR15,014.14
|
|
Cape Town vs. Phnom Penh - Cost of entertainment and sports
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pay 35.3% less for clothing
|
Cape Town
|
Phnom Penh
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$55.23
ZAR934.82
|
$25.75
KHR103,097.09
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$33.91
ZAR573.94
|
$23.33
KHR93,421.31
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$117.06
ZAR1,981.48
|
$88.00
KHR352,331.81
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$88.13
ZAR1,491.79
|
$60.20
KHR241,026.99
|
|
Cape Town vs. Phnom Penh - Cost of clothing
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The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025
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