Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ad Dammam and Mecca

For one person, living is cheaper in Mecca: $1,076 a month against $1,217 in Ad Dammam, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Ad Dammam
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Ad Dammam Living Index
52

Cost of Living Index in Mecca
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Mecca Living Index

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Ad Dammam

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,217

/mo nomad

Mecca

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,076

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,217 in Ad Dammam versus $1,076 in Mecca.

Ad Dammam $1,217
Mecca $1,076

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,838 in Ad Dammam versus $1,613 in Mecca.

Ad Dammam $1,838
Mecca $1,613

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,460 in Ad Dammam versus $2,151 in Mecca.

Ad Dammam $2,460
Mecca $2,151

Living in Ad Dammam is roughly 13% more expensive than in Mecca, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Ad Dammam 11% lower, Mecca 21% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.12 SAR 26.74

$4.64 SAR 17.41

53.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.16 SAR 128

$26.18 SAR 98.3

30.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.82 SAR 25.60

$7.00 SAR 26.27

-2.57%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.91 SAR 7.17

$1.51 SAR 5.68

26.49%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 SAR 8.45

$1.56 SAR 5.86

44.23%

Cappuccino

$3.02 SAR 11.33

$2.53 SAR 9.50

19.37%

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

$0.78 SAR 2.94

$0.71 SAR 2.67

9.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.17 SAR 0.63

$0.25 SAR 0.94

-32.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.73 SAR 6.51

$1.69 SAR 6.34

2.37%

White Bread (500g)

$1.29 SAR 4.85

$0.96 SAR 3.62

34.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 SAR 7.29

$2.10 SAR 7.89

-7.62%

Eggs

$2.18 SAR 8.20

$2.50 SAR 9.39

-12.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.60 SAR 28.53

$5.91 SAR 22.16

28.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.83 SAR 29.37

$8.18 SAR 30.71

-4.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.77 SAR 47.92

$13.00 SAR 48.78

-1.77%

Apples (1kg)

$2.22 SAR 8.33

$2.09 SAR 7.83

6.22%

Banana (1kg)

$1.71 SAR 6.42

$1.62 SAR 6.07

5.56%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.64 SAR 6.15

$1.60 SAR 5.99

2.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.58 SAR 5.94

$1.54 SAR 5.76

2.60%

Potato (1kg)

$1.12 SAR 4.21

$1.17 SAR 4.39

-4.27%

Onion (1kg)

$1.16 SAR 4.35

$1.32 SAR 4.94

-12.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.33 SAR 4.98

$1.09 SAR 4.08

22.02%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.62 SAR 2.31

$0.54 SAR 2.03

14.81%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$4.06 SAR 15.24

$4.24 SAR 15.91

-4.25%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.51 SAR 5.67

$1.77 SAR 6.62

-14.69%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.12 SAR 7.96

$1.65 SAR 6.18

28.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.58 SAR 28.46

$6.70 SAR 25.16

13.13%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.91 SAR 3.41

$1.09 SAR 4.07

-16.51%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$38.54 SAR 145

$45.74 SAR 172

-15.74%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.74 SAR 10.27

$2.43 SAR 9.11

12.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.74 SAR 10.28

$1.77 SAR 6.65

54.80%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.10 SAR 49.16

$13.28 SAR 49.85

-1.36%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.64 SAR 2.40

$0.61 SAR 2.27

4.92%

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

$29.1K SAR 109.1K

$26.5K SAR 99.5K

9.66%

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

$21.5K SAR 80.5K

$21.4K SAR 80.2K

0.39%

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

$131 SAR 493

$67.8 SAR 254

93.74%

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

$32.48 SAR 122

$34.99 SAR 131

-7.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$62.9 SAR 236

$61.9 SAR 232

1.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$72.9 SAR 273

$80.8 SAR 303

-9.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.56 SAR 107

$41.97 SAR 158

-31.95%

Cinema Ticket

$13.54 SAR 50.8

$12.00 SAR 45.05

12.83%

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

$416 SAR 1,560

$757 SAR 2,841

-45.10%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,051 SAR 30.2K

$16.8K SAR 63.0K

-52.08%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.09 SAR 158

$13.39 SAR 50.3

214.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.5 SAR 189

$56.6 SAR 212

-10.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.1 SAR 361

$39.94 SAR 150

140.61%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$92.6 SAR 348

$52.6 SAR 197

76.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$535 SAR 2,008

$603 SAR 2,265

-11.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$387 SAR 1,450

$386 SAR 1,449

0.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$970 SAR 3,641

$903 SAR 3,389

7.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$670 SAR 2,513

$620 SAR 2,327

7.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$962 SAR 3,611

$5,392 SAR 20.2K

-82.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$707 SAR 2,653

$1,411 SAR 5,294

-49.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,475 SAR 5,537

$1,071 SAR 4,021

37.71%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

5.25

12.38%

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

Last update for Ad Dammam: October 24, 2026

Last update for Mecca: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ad Dammam

$386 31.8%

Mecca

$386 35.9% 0.1% $0.4

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ad Dammam

$227 18.6%

Mecca

$165 15.3% 27.4% $62

Groceries & Markets

Ad Dammam

$201 16.5%

Mecca

$194 18% 3.7% $7.4

Clothing & Footwear

Ad Dammam

$127 10.4%

Mecca

$73 6.8% 42.2% $53

Eating Out

Ad Dammam

$117 9.7%

Mecca

$92 8.6% 21.4% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Ad Dammam

$100 8.2%

Mecca

$105 9.7% 4.8% $4.8

Getting Around

Ad Dammam

$59 4.8%

Mecca

$61 5.7% 4.7% $2.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $535 in Ad Dammam and $603 in Mecca. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ad Dammam pays 38% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $34 in Ad Dammam vs $26 in Mecca for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $201 vs $194 per month, with Mecca cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Ad Dammam

🇸🇦 Mecca

🕒 Local time

04:42 4:42 AM

Same time as Ad Dammam

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

903,312

1,675,368

💱 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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Highest

Between locations

Ad Dammam Mecca 1,180 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Ad Dammam
Mecca

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 Mecca: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mecca wins on cost – living expenses run 12% lower than in Ad Dammam. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Mecca the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 38% higher in Ad Dammam, 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: $535 in Ad Dammam versus $603 in Mecca. 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 $1,076 in Mecca – Mecca is about 12% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Ad Dammam runs roughly 16% less than in Mecca. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Either city works on $1,500 a month, though Mecca gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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 Mecca are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

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