Cape Verde: plugs, voltage, currency, time & travel facts

Plugs and voltage

Cape Verde uses Types C and F sockets. Mains supply is 220 V at 50 Hz.

At 220 V, devices made only for 100–127 V (many American and Japanese hair dryers, curling irons and some shavers) will be damaged without a step-down converter. Chargers labelled “100–240V” work fine with just a plug adapter.

Money

CVE Cape Verdean Escudo CVE

Average in 2025: 1 USD = 97.86 CVE (World Bank). No daily reference rate is published for this currency by the ECB; check a live rate before exchanging.

Price level 54 (US = 100, 2025)

Everyday household prices in Cape Verde are about 54% of US prices when converted at market exchange rates: dearer than the median country (50). All countries

Language

Portugueseofficial76%

Bars show the share of the population that speaks each language (CLDR estimates).

Time

UTC−1

Cape Verde is on UTC−1, with no daylight saving time.

Driving

Traffic in Cape Verde drives on the right, so the steering wheel is on the left.

Public holidays in the next 12 months

12 national public holidays from 2 November 2026. Banks, offices and many shops close; regional holidays are not shown. Dates marked “estimated” follow a lunar calendar and can move by a day.