Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Aalst and Erbil

For one person, living is cheaper in Erbil: $958 a month against $2,141 in Aalst, rent and utilities included – about $14,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

103

Cost of Living Index in Aalst
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Aalst Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in Erbil
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Erbil Living Index

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Aalst

🇧🇪 Belgium

$2,141

/mo nomad

Erbil

🇮🇶 Iraq

$958

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Aalst and in Erbil

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Aalst and in Erbil actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,141 in Aalst versus $958 in Erbil.

Aalst $2,141
Erbil $958

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,169 in Aalst versus $1,427 in Erbil.

Aalst $3,169
Erbil $1,427

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,197 in Aalst versus $1,896 in Erbil.

Aalst $4,197
Erbil $1,896

Living in Aalst is roughly 124% more expensive than in Erbil, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Aalst is 57% above, Erbil is 30% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$23.31 €20.87

$6.42 IQD 9,704

263.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$95.9 €85.8

$36.55 IQD 55.2K

162.24%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.64 €12.21

$7.41 IQD 11.2K

84.08%

Cappuccino

$4.39 €3.93

$3.24 IQD 4,889

35.49%

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

$3.49 €3.12

$0.89 IQD 1,341

292.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.03 €2.71

$0.33 IQD 505

818.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.63 €5.04

$5.75 IQD 8,681

-2.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.69 €5.09

$3.92 IQD 5,921

45.15%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.34 €1.20

$1.07 IQD 1,611

25.23%

White Bread (500g)

$2.85 €2.55

$0.67 IQD 1,019

325.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.32 €2.07

$1.52 IQD 2,303

52.63%

Eggs

$4.07 €3.64

$1.60 IQD 2,413

154.38%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.44 €14.72

$7.00 IQD 10.6K

134.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.74 €10.52

$4.38 IQD 6,614

168.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.26 €19.94

$12.67 IQD 19.1K

75.69%

Apples (1kg)

$3.08 €2.76

$0.94 IQD 1,415

227.66%

Banana (1kg)

$2.41 €2.16

$1.01 IQD 1,528

138.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.41

$1.02 IQD 1,544

164.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.35 €3.00

$0.70 IQD 1,064

378.57%

Potato (1kg)

$2.53 €2.26

$0.65 IQD 982

289.23%

Onion (1kg)

$1.87 €1.67

$0.63 IQD 952

196.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.50 €1.34

$0.64 IQD 968

134.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.12 €1.00

$0.52 IQD 781

115.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.77 €11.44

$2.19 IQD 3,303

483.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.58 €7.69

$10.83 IQD 16.4K

-20.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$1.45 IQD 2,191

30.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 €1.83

$1.79 IQD 2,712

13.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.18 €2.85

$0.49 IQD 736

548.98%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$52.7 €47.15

$39.29 IQD 59.4K

34.00%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.97 €2.66

$1.67 IQD 2,519

77.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.30 €2.06

$1.60 IQD 2,418

43.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$41.01 €36.72

$5.78 IQD 8,728

609.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.08 €1.86

$0.57 IQD 867

264.91%

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

$35.2K €31.5K

$16.8K IQD 25.4M

109.34%

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

$36.3K €32.5K

$17.1K IQD 25.9M

111.80%

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

$207 €185

$111 IQD 168.1K

85.80%

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

$20.48 €18.34

$12.24 IQD 18.5K

67.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.1 €46.67

$24.61 IQD 37.2K

111.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.48 €32.67

$57.0 IQD 86.1K

-35.94%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.47 €19.22

$13.48 IQD 20.4K

59.27%

Cinema Ticket

$15.71 €14.07

$9.63 IQD 14.6K

63.14%

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

$1,606 €1,439

$294 IQD 443.8K

446.84%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$34.0K €30.4K

$2,726 IQD 4.1M

1145.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$113 €101

$26.71 IQD 40.4K

323.44%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.55 €40.80

$38.49 IQD 58.2K

18.34%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.5

$61.1 IQD 92.3K

72.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$166 €148

$59.9 IQD 90.5K

176.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$931 €834

$426 IQD 643.6K

118.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$814 €729

$271 IQD 410.0K

200.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,392 €1,246

$699 IQD 1.1M

99.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 €997

$404 IQD 610.4K

175.47%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,190 €3,752

$1,017 IQD 1.5M

312.05%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,896 €2,593

$615 IQD 929.8K

370.54%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,836 €2,540

$519 IQD 783.7K

446.84%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.53

2.53

39.53%

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

Last update for Aalst: October 26, 2026

Last update for Erbil: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Aalst

$814 38%

Erbil

$271 28.3% 66.7% $543

Groceries & Markets

Aalst

$361 16.9%

Erbil

$174 18.1% 51.9% $187

Eating Out

Aalst

$346 16.1%

Erbil

$154 16.1% 55.5% $192

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Aalst

$279 13%

Erbil

$148 15.5% 47% $131

Clothing & Footwear

Aalst

$193 9%

Erbil

$84 8.8% 56.7% $110

Getting Around

Aalst

$80 3.7%

Erbil

$51 5.3% 36.2% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Aalst

$68 3.2%

Erbil

$76 8% 12.2% $8.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $931 in Aalst and $426 in Erbil. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Aalst pays about 5.5 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $96 in Aalst vs $37 in Erbil for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $361 vs $174 per month, with Erbil cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇪 Aalst

🇮🇶 Erbil

🕒 Local time

12:55 12:55 PM

14:55 2:55 PM

2 h ahead of Aalst

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

78,271

1,713,461

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.93 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IQD, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Iraqi Dinar exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 1,511 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,687 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.93 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

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Aalst Erbil 3,560 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

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Aalst
Erbil

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

Aalst vs Erbil: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,141 in Aalst and $958 in Erbil, so Erbil is about 55% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Aalst is about 5.5 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $931 in Aalst versus $426 in Erbil. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Erbil – a meal for two runs $37 versus $96 in Aalst. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $2,141 per month in Aalst versus $958 in Erbil – Erbil is about 55% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Aalst and Erbil are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Erbil gentler on the wallet – expenses run 55% less than in Aalst. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.