Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ad Dammam and Dhahran

For one person, living is cheaper in Ad Dammam: $1,217 a month against $1,373 in Dhahran, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 less a year. The total is higher in Dhahran despite lower rent and utilities.

58

Cost of Living Index in Ad Dammam
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Ad Dammam Living Index
66

Cost of Living Index in Dhahran
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Dhahran Living Index

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Ad Dammam

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,217

/mo nomad

Dhahran

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,373

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ad Dammam and in Dhahran

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,217 in Ad Dammam versus $1,373 in Dhahran.

Ad Dammam $1,217
Dhahran $1,373

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,838 in Ad Dammam versus $1,761 in Dhahran.

Ad Dammam $1,838
Dhahran $1,761

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,460 in Ad Dammam versus $2,149 in Dhahran.

Ad Dammam $2,460
Dhahran $2,149

Living in Ad Dammam costs roughly 11% less than in Dhahran, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.12 SAR 26.74

$5.41 SAR 20.31

31.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.16 SAR 128

$39.83 SAR 149

-14.24%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.82 SAR 25.60

$6.46 SAR 24.24

5.57%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.91 SAR 7.17

$1.92 SAR 7.19

-0.52%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 SAR 8.45

$1.62 SAR 6.09

38.89%

Cappuccino

$3.02 SAR 11.33

$3.82 SAR 14.35

-20.94%

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

$0.78 SAR 2.94

$0.69 SAR 2.57

13.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.17 SAR 0.63

$0.20 SAR 0.75

-15.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.73 SAR 6.51

$1.56 SAR 5.86

10.90%

White Bread (500g)

$1.29 SAR 4.85

$0.94 SAR 3.51

37.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 SAR 7.29

$1.99 SAR 7.47

-2.51%

Eggs

$2.18 SAR 8.20

$3.91 SAR 14.67

-44.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.60 SAR 28.53

$8.66 SAR 32.51

-12.24%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.83 SAR 29.37

$11.22 SAR 42.12

-30.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.77 SAR 47.92

$13.79 SAR 51.7

-7.40%

Apples (1kg)

$2.22 SAR 8.33

$2.09 SAR 7.83

6.22%

Banana (1kg)

$1.71 SAR 6.42

$1.44 SAR 5.40

18.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.64 SAR 6.15

$1.81 SAR 6.81

-9.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.58 SAR 5.94

$1.75 SAR 6.58

-9.71%

Potato (1kg)

$1.12 SAR 4.21

$1.47 SAR 5.53

-23.81%

Onion (1kg)

$1.16 SAR 4.35

$0.97 SAR 3.63

19.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.33 SAR 4.98

$1.98 SAR 7.45

-32.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.62 SAR 2.31

$0.85 SAR 3.17

-27.06%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$4.06 SAR 15.24

$4.72 SAR 17.70

-13.98%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.51 SAR 5.67

$1.63 SAR 6.13

-7.36%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.12 SAR 7.96

$2.41 SAR 9.03

-12.03%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.58 SAR 28.46

$5.51 SAR 20.68

37.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.91 SAR 3.41

$0.90 SAR 3.37

1.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$38.54 SAR 145

$55.6 SAR 209

-30.63%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.74 SAR 10.27

$1.37 SAR 5.15

100.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.74 SAR 10.28

$3.30 SAR 12.38

-16.97%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.10 SAR 49.16

$9.26 SAR 34.75

41.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.64 SAR 2.40

$0.63 SAR 2.38

1.59%

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

$29.1K SAR 109.1K

$36.3K SAR 136.4K

-20.01%

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

$21.5K SAR 80.5K

$21.6K SAR 81.1K

-0.71%

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

$131 SAR 493

$61.2 SAR 230

114.44%

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

$32.48 SAR 122

$43.31 SAR 163

-25.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$62.9 SAR 236

$65.9 SAR 247

-4.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$72.9 SAR 273

$195 SAR 733

-62.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.56 SAR 107

$95.1 SAR 357

-69.97%

Cinema Ticket

$13.54 SAR 50.8

$10.51 SAR 39.44

28.83%

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

$416 SAR 1,560

$66.2 SAR 248

528.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,051 SAR 30.2K

$13.6K SAR 51.0K

-40.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.09 SAR 158

$50.7 SAR 190

-17.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.5 SAR 189

$42.77 SAR 161

17.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.1 SAR 361

$77.0 SAR 289

24.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$92.6 SAR 348

$90.4 SAR 339

2.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$535 SAR 2,008

$366 SAR 1,375

46.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$387 SAR 1,450

$449 SAR 1,683

-13.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$970 SAR 3,641

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$670 SAR 2,513

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$962 SAR 3,611

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$707 SAR 2,653

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,475 SAR 5,537

$2,804 SAR 10.5K

-47.39%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

4.5

31.11%

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

Last update for Ad Dammam: October 24, 2026

Last update for Dhahran: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ad Dammam

$386 31.8%

Dhahran

$449 32.7% 16.1% $62

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ad Dammam

$227 18.6%

Dhahran

$170 12.4% 24.8% $56

Groceries & Markets

Ad Dammam

$201 16.5%

Dhahran

$232 16.9% 15.1% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Ad Dammam

$127 10.4%

Dhahran

$117 8.6% 7.2% $9.1

Eating Out

Ad Dammam

$117 9.7%

Dhahran

$112 8.2% 4.6% $5.4

Sport & Entertainment

Ad Dammam

$100 8.2%

Dhahran

$216 15.8% 116% $116

Getting Around

Ad Dammam

$59 4.8%

Dhahran

$77 5.6% 31.4% $18

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $535 in Ad Dammam and $366 in Dhahran. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dhahran pays 90% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $34 in Ad Dammam vs $40 in Dhahran for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $201 vs $232 per month, with Ad Dammam cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Ad Dammam

🇸🇦 Dhahran

🕒 Local time

13:40 1:40 PM

Same time as Ad Dammam

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

903,312

120,521

💱 Currency

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.239 EUR

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.239 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Ad Dammam Dhahran 16 km

From you

Ad Dammam
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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

Ad Dammam vs Dhahran: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ad Dammam wins on cost – living expenses run 11% lower than in Dhahran. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Ad Dammam the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 47% lower in Ad Dammam. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $535 in Ad Dammam versus $366 in Dhahran. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,217 per month in Ad Dammam versus $1,373 in Dhahran – Ad Dammam is about 11% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Ad Dammam runs roughly 31% less than in Dhahran. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Ad Dammam is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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, Ad Dammam and Dhahran are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Ad Dammam wins on affordability, Dhahran on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.