Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ad Dammam and Khamis Mushayt

For one person, living is cheaper in Khamis Mushayt: $1,113 a month against $1,188 in Ad Dammam, rent and utilities included – about $900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Ad Dammam
Learn more

Ad Dammam Living Index
56

Cost of Living Index in Khamis Mushayt
Learn more

Khamis Mushayt Living Index

Jump to prices

Ad Dammam

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,188

/mo nomad

Khamis Mushayt

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,113

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ad Dammam and in Khamis Mushayt

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 Khamis Mushayt actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,188 in Ad Dammam versus $1,113 in Khamis Mushayt.

Ad Dammam $1,188
Khamis Mushayt $1,113

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,803 in Ad Dammam versus $1,645 in Khamis Mushayt.

Ad Dammam $1,803
Khamis Mushayt $1,645

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,418 in Ad Dammam versus $2,178 in Khamis Mushayt.

Ad Dammam $2,418
Khamis Mushayt $2,178

Living in Ad Dammam is roughly 7% more expensive than in Khamis Mushayt, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Ad Dammam 12% lower, Khamis Mushayt 18% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.74 SAR 25.28

$4.56 SAR 17.11

47.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.35 SAR 129

$32.11 SAR 121

6.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.62 SAR 24.84

$6.89 SAR 25.87

-3.92%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.84 SAR 6.89

$1.72 SAR 6.47

6.98%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.22 SAR 8.32

$2.12 SAR 7.97

4.72%

Cappuccino

$3.02 SAR 11.33

$2.94 SAR 11.04

2.72%

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

$0.77 SAR 2.88

$0.68 SAR 2.56

13.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.16 SAR 0.59

$0.21 SAR 0.79

-23.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 SAR 6.47

$1.63 SAR 6.11

5.52%

White Bread (500g)

$1.29 SAR 4.84

$0.39 SAR 1.46

230.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.88 SAR 7.07

$3.28 SAR 12.31

-42.68%

Eggs

$2.12 SAR 7.96

$2.43 SAR 9.11

-12.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.47 SAR 28.04

$6.41 SAR 24.06

16.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 SAR 28.91

$5.54 SAR 20.80

38.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.77 SAR 47.94

$12.76 SAR 47.89

0.08%

Apples (1kg)

$2.29 SAR 8.59

$2.23 SAR 8.35

2.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 SAR 6.13

$1.69 SAR 6.33

-3.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.64 SAR 6.16

$1.60 SAR 6.02

2.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.55 SAR 5.83

$1.61 SAR 6.02

-3.73%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 SAR 4.04

$1.21 SAR 4.56

-10.74%

Onion (1kg)

$1.17 SAR 4.37

$1.31 SAR 4.91

-10.69%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 SAR 4.71

$1.29 SAR 4.83

-3.10%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 SAR 2.12

$0.52 SAR 1.96

7.69%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$4.21 SAR 15.81

$2.60 SAR 9.76

61.92%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.46 SAR 5.49

$1.77 SAR 6.65

-17.51%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 SAR 7.92

$2.19 SAR 8.23

-3.65%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.80 SAR 29.29

$6.81 SAR 25.56

14.54%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 SAR 3.30

$0.92 SAR 3.47

-4.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$38.25 SAR 144

$35.04 SAR 132

9.16%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.28 SAR 8.57

$2.69 SAR 10.09

-15.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.35 SAR 5.08

$1.90 SAR 7.14

-28.95%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.89 SAR 52.1

$13.69 SAR 51.4

1.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.61 SAR 2.28

$0.64 SAR 2.42

-4.69%

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

$29.1K SAR 109.2K

$32.9K SAR 123.6K

-11.67%

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

$21.2K SAR 79.7K

$22.5K SAR 84.3K

-5.48%

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

$130 SAR 489

$103 SAR 386

26.90%

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

$32.31 SAR 121

$32.00 SAR 120

0.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$64.2 SAR 241

$59.3 SAR 223

8.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$70.4 SAR 264

$77.6 SAR 291

-9.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.59 SAR 107

Cinema Ticket

$13.39 SAR 50.3

$13.30 SAR 49.94

0.68%

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

$414 SAR 1,554

$443 SAR 1,662

-6.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.5K SAR 39.4K

$10.2K SAR 38.2K

3.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.50 SAR 160

$42.84 SAR 161

-0.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.93 SAR 184

$62.1 SAR 233

-21.25%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.0 SAR 360

$100 SAR 375

-4.06%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$92.0 SAR 345

$86.1 SAR 323

6.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$531 SAR 1,993

$484 SAR 1,818

9.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$376 SAR 1,410

$355 SAR 1,334

5.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$947 SAR 3,553

$939 SAR 3,524

0.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$665 SAR 2,495

$551 SAR 2,069

20.59%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,479 SAR 5,553

$2,026 SAR 7,606

-26.99%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$779 SAR 2,925

$1,134 SAR 4,258

-31.30%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,508 SAR 5,659

$1,567 SAR 5,880

-3.76%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

5.54

6.50%

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

Last update for Ad Dammam: November 3, 2026

Last update for Khamis Mushayt: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ad Dammam

$376 31.6%

Khamis Mushayt

$355 31.9% 5.4% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ad Dammam

$227 19.1%

Khamis Mushayt

$194 17.4% 14.5% $33

Groceries & Markets

Ad Dammam

$198 16.7%

Khamis Mushayt

$182 16.3% 8.4% $17

Clothing & Footwear

Ad Dammam

$126 10.6%

Khamis Mushayt

$131 11.8% 4.2% $5.3

Eating Out

Ad Dammam

$114 9.6%

Khamis Mushayt

$96 8.6% 15.5% $18

Sport & Entertainment

Ad Dammam

$97 8.2%

Khamis Mushayt

$104 9.4% 7.3% $7.1

Getting Around

Ad Dammam

$51 4.3%

Khamis Mushayt

$51 4.6% 0.3% $0.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $531 in Ad Dammam and $484 in Khamis Mushayt. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Khamis Mushayt pays 4% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $34 in Ad Dammam vs $32 in Khamis Mushayt for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $198 vs $182 per month, with Khamis Mushayt cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Ad Dammam

🇸🇦 Khamis Mushayt

🕒 Local time

06:43 6:43 AM

Same time as Ad Dammam

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

903,312

430,828

💱 Currency

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ad Dammam Khamis Mushayt 1,180 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Ad Dammam
Khamis Mushayt

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 Khamis Mushayt: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Khamis Mushayt wins on cost – living expenses run 6% lower than in Ad Dammam. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Khamis Mushayt the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 4% 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: $531 in Ad Dammam versus $484 in Khamis Mushayt. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,188 per month in Ad Dammam versus $1,113 in Khamis Mushayt – Khamis Mushayt is about 6% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Khamis Mushayt runs roughly 8% less than in Ad Dammam. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Khamis Mushayt 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 Khamis Mushayt are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Khamis Mushayt gentler on the wallet – expenses run 6% less than in Ad Dammam. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.