10 most expensive African cities to rent a 2-bedroom apartment in 2026
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Average annual rent for a high-end two-bedroom apartment exceeds $40,000 in Abidjan, Africa’s most expensive rental market, according to a Fortren & Company report.
The cost of renting a home varies significantly across African cities, with the average annual rent for a high-end two-bedroom apartment exceeding $40,000 in the continent’s most expensive rental market, according to a report by Fortren & Company.
Abidjan in Côte d’Ivoire ranked first with average annual rent of $41,671, followed by Cape Town at $27,138, Accra at $26,299, Lagos at $19,379 and Casablanca at $15,813. Kigali ($15,633), Dar es Salaam ($15,110), Douala ($14,705), Cairo ($13,899) and Nairobi ($10,700) complete the top 10.
The report compared rental costs across 10 major African cities selected based on their economic significance, expatriate and mobile professional activity, and the maturity of their rental markets, with the analysis focused on high-end and mid-market neighbourhoods.
The findings come amid a growing housing challenge across Africa, where the population has risen from approximately 418 million in 1975 to an estimated 1.53 billion in 2025. The report estimates the continent’s housing deficit at more than 53 million units, while home ownership remains below 40 percent.
Additional costs vary by market: tenants in Tanzania, Ghana and Nigeria commonly face annual or multiple-year advance rent payments, while agency fees in Nairobi can amount to one or two months’ rent, and notarisation fees add to costs in Cairo and Casablanca.
The report attributes Cape Town’s high rents partly to average increases of 68.5 percent since 2014, as landlords shift properties towards higher-returning short-term and tourist rentals, reducing supply available for long-term tenants.