Cost of living in Saudi Arabia
Summary of cost of living in Saudi Arabia
- Family of four estimated monthly costs: ﷼ 14,391
- Single person estimated monthly costs: ﷼ 8,074
- Saudi Arabia is the 2nd cheapest country in Middle East (3 out of 4)
- Cost of living in Saudi Arabia is more expensive than in 54% of countries in the World (30 out of 63)
| Food | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic lunchtime menu (including a drink) in the business district | ﷼ 33 | ||
| Combo meal in fast food restaurant (big mac meal or similar) | ﷼ 31 | ||
| 500 gr (1 lb.) of boneless chicken breast | ﷼ 17 | ||
| 1 liter (1 qt.) of whole fat milk | ﷼ 6 | ||
| 12 eggs, large | ﷼ 17 | ||
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of tomatoes | ﷼ 6 | ||
| 500 gr (16 oz.) of local cheese | ﷼ 15 | ||
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of apples | ﷼ 8 | ||
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of potatoes | ﷼ 5.09 | ||
| 0.5 l (16 oz) domestic beer in the supermarket | - | ||
| 1 bottle of red table wine, good quality | - | ||
| 2 liters of coca-cola | ﷼ 8 | ||
| Bread for 2 people for 1 day | ﷼ 3.75 | ||
| Housing | |||
| Monthly rent for 85 m2 (900 sqft) furnished accommodation in expensive area | ﷼ 7,428 | ||
| Monthly rent for 85 m2 (900 sqft) furnished accommodation in normal area | ﷼ 3,953 | ||
| Utilities 1 month (heating, electricity, gas ...) for 2 people in 85m2 flat | ﷼ 451 | ||
| Monthly rent for a 45 m2 (480 sqft) furnished studio in expensive area | ﷼ 4,241 | ||
| Monthly rent for a 45 m2 (480 sqft) furnished studio in normal area | ﷼ 2,855 | ||
| Utilities 1 month (heating, electricity, gas ...) for 1 person in 45 m2 (480 sqft) studio | ﷼ 706 | ||
| Internet 8 mbps (1 month) | ﷼ 258 | ||
| 40” flat screen tv | ﷼ 1,142 | ||
| Microwave 800/900 watt (bosch, panasonic, lg, sharp, or equivalent brands) | ﷼ 435 | ||
| Laundry detergent (3 l. ~ 100 oz.) | ﷼ 35 | ||
| Hourly rate for cleaning help | ﷼ 61 | ||
| Clothes | |||
| 1 pair of jeans (levis 501 or similar) | ﷼ 182 | ||
| 1 summer dress in a high street store (zara, h&m or similar retailers) | ﷼ 207 | ||
| 1 pair of sport shoes (nike, adidas, or equivalent brands) | ﷼ 396 | ||
| 1 pair of men’s leather business shoes | ﷼ 324 | ||
| Transportation | |||
| Volkswagen golf 1.4 tsi 150 cv (or equivalent), with no extras, new | ﷼ 94,922 | ||
| 1 liter (1/4 gallon) of gas | ﷼ 2.27 | ||
| Monthly ticket public transport | ﷼ 146 | ||
| Personal Care | |||
| Cold medicine for 6 days (tylenol, frenadol, coldrex, or equivalent brands) | ﷼ 8 | ||
| 1 box of antibiotics (12 doses) | ﷼ 90 | ||
| Short visit to private doctor (15 minutes) | ﷼ 198 | ||
| 1 box of 32 tampons (tampax, ob, ...) | ﷼ 24 | ||
| Deodorant, roll-on (50ml ~ 1.5 oz.) | ﷼ 20 | ||
| Hair shampoo 2-in-1 (400 ml ~ 12 oz.) | ﷼ 15 | ||
| 4 rolls of toilet paper | ﷼ 16 | ||
| Tube of toothpaste | ﷼ 20 | ||
| Standard men's haircut in expat area of the city | ﷼ 25 | ||
| Entertainment | |||
| Basic dinner out for two in neighborhood pub | ﷼ 112 | ||
| 2 tickets to the movies | ﷼ 118 | ||
| 2 tickets to the theater (best available seats) | ﷼ 200 | ||
| Dinner for two at an italian restaurant in the expat area including appetisers, main course, wine and dessert | ﷼ 218 | ||
| 1 cocktail drink in downtown club | - | ||
| Cappuccino in expat area of the city | ﷼ 17 | ||
| 1 beer in neighbourhood pub (500ml or 1pt.) | - | ||
| Ipad wi-fi 128gb | ﷼ 2,708 | ||
| 1 min. of prepaid mobile tariff (no discounts or plans) | ﷼ 0.35 | ||
| 1 month of gym membership in business district | ﷼ 397 | ||
| 1 package of marlboro cigarettes | ﷼ 26 | ||
Moving to Saudi Arabia with your children?
International Schools in Saudi Arabia
Map of Cost of Living in Saudi Arabia
This map shows only the top cities in Saudi Arabia. We also have on this page a list of all the cities available in Expatistan:
List of all the cities available in Expatistan
The color of each marker corresponds with the cost of living in the city red markers show more expensive cities green ones show cheaper cities
Moving the mouse on top of a city will show its name and the Cost of Living Index of that city.
What is the Cost of Living Index? To calculate each city's Price Index value, we start by assigning a value of 100 to a
central reference city (that happens to be Prague).
Once the reference point has been established, the Price Index value of every other city in the
database is calculated by comparing their cost of living to the cost of living in Prague.
Therefore, if a city has a Price Index of 134, that means that living there is 34% more expensive than living in Prague.
Are you moving to Saudi Arabia? Do you know how much money you will need there to maintain your current standard of living?
Find out what is the real equivalent in Saudi Arabia of your current salary and improve your chances of a happy relocation.
Get a salary calculation for:
List of all cities available in Saudi Arabia
| Al Mubarraz | Al Qurayyat | Arar |
| Buraidah | Dammam | Jeddah |
| Jizan | Jubail | Khamis Mushait |
| Mecca | Medina | Najran |
| Riyadh | Sakaka | Sultanah |
| Ta'if | Tabuk | Yanbu` al Bahr |
Recent Comparisons
- Cost of living in Jeddah is 32% more expensive than in Shanghai
- Cost of living in Riyadh is 23% cheaper than in Dubai
- Cost of living in Dammam is 505% more expensive than in Posadas
- Cost of living in Jeddah is 121% more expensive than in Port-au-Prince
- Cost of living in Riyadh is 132% more expensive than in Cairo
- Cost of living in Dammam is 11% more expensive than in Rio de Janeiro
- Cost of living in Riyadh is 618% more expensive than in Posadas
- Cost of living in Jeddah is 98% more expensive than in Benin City
- Cost of living in Jeddah is 702% more expensive than in Posadas
- Cost of living in Riyadh is 35% more expensive than in Dakar
- Cost of living in Riyadh is about the same as in Dunedin
- Cost of living in Riyadh is 197% more expensive than in Omsk
- Cost of living in Riyadh is 24% more expensive than in Istanbul
- Cost of living in Jeddah is 56% more expensive than in Lima
- Cost of living in Riyadh is 61% more expensive than in Homs
- Cost of living in Riyadh is about the same as in Madrid
- Cost of living in Jeddah is 75% more expensive than in Bogotá
- Cost of living in Jeddah is 21% cheaper than in Pointe-à-Pitre
- Cost of living in Jeddah is 57% more expensive than in Valencia, Venezuela
- Cost of living in Jeddah is 90% more expensive than in Oradea