Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ad Dammam and Sakakah

For one person, living is cheaper in Ad Dammam: $1,188 a month against $1,223 in Sakakah, rent and utilities included – about $420 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Ad Dammam
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Ad Dammam Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Sakakah
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Sakakah Living Index

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Ad Dammam

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,188

/mo nomad

Sakakah

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,223

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,188 in Ad Dammam versus $1,223 in Sakakah.

Ad Dammam $1,188
Sakakah $1,223

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,803 in Ad Dammam versus $1,793 in Sakakah.

Ad Dammam $1,803
Sakakah $1,793

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,418 in Ad Dammam versus $2,364 in Sakakah.

Ad Dammam $2,418
Sakakah $2,364

Living in Ad Dammam costs roughly 3% less than in Sakakah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities sit below the global median: Ad Dammam 12% lower, Sakakah 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.74 SAR 25.28

$5.81 SAR 21.79

16.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.35 SAR 129

$36.64 SAR 138

-6.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.62 SAR 24.84

$7.81 SAR 29.29

-15.24%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.84 SAR 6.89

$2.17 SAR 8.13

-15.21%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.22 SAR 8.32

$1.55 SAR 5.80

43.23%

Cappuccino

$3.02 SAR 11.33

$3.65 SAR 13.69

-17.26%

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

$0.77 SAR 2.87

$0.64 SAR 2.40

20.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.16 SAR 0.59

$0.34 SAR 1.28

-52.94%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 SAR 6.47

$1.67 SAR 6.26

2.99%

White Bread (500g)

$1.29 SAR 4.84

$1.35 SAR 5.08

-4.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.88 SAR 7.07

$2.36 SAR 8.85

-20.34%

Eggs

$2.12 SAR 7.96

$2.38 SAR 8.94

-10.92%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.47 SAR 28.04

$7.68 SAR 28.82

-2.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 SAR 28.91

$6.77 SAR 25.42

13.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.77 SAR 47.93

$12.59 SAR 47.26

1.43%

Apples (1kg)

$2.29 SAR 8.59

$2.22 SAR 8.33

3.15%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 SAR 6.13

$1.72 SAR 6.46

-5.23%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.64 SAR 6.16

$1.59 SAR 5.97

3.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.55 SAR 5.83

$1.56 SAR 5.85

-0.64%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 SAR 4.04

$1.23 SAR 4.63

-12.20%

Onion (1kg)

$1.17 SAR 4.37

$1.32 SAR 4.95

-11.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 SAR 4.71

$1.19 SAR 4.45

5.04%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 SAR 2.12

$0.53 SAR 1.98

5.66%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$4.21 SAR 15.81

$2.76 SAR 10.37

52.54%

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

$1.93 SAR 7.23

9.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.80 SAR 29.29

$5.84 SAR 21.92

33.56%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 SAR 3.30

$0.98 SAR 3.69

-10.20%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$38.25 SAR 144

$36.58 SAR 137

4.57%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.28 SAR 8.57

$2.81 SAR 10.55

-18.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.35 SAR 5.08

$1.73 SAR 6.50

-21.97%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.89 SAR 52.1

$14.80 SAR 55.6

-6.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.61 SAR 2.28

$0.59 SAR 2.23

3.39%

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

$29.1K SAR 109.2K

$25.1K SAR 94.4K

15.69%

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

$21.2K SAR 79.7K

$24.2K SAR 90.9K

-12.29%

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

$130 SAR 489

$119 SAR 445

9.89%

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

$32.31 SAR 121

$37.42 SAR 140

-13.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$64.2 SAR 241

$73.6 SAR 276

-12.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$70.4 SAR 264

$79.1 SAR 297

-11.03%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.59 SAR 107

Cinema Ticket

$13.39 SAR 50.3

$11.94 SAR 44.80

12.14%

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

$414 SAR 1,554

$380 SAR 1,426

8.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.5K SAR 39.4K

$11.0K SAR 41.2K

-4.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.50 SAR 160

$38.10 SAR 143

11.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.93 SAR 184

$59.7 SAR 224

-18.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.0 SAR 360

$101 SAR 379

-4.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$92.0 SAR 345

$80.6 SAR 303

14.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$531 SAR 1,993

$563 SAR 2,114

-5.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$376 SAR 1,410

$398 SAR 1,494

-5.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$947 SAR 3,553

$872 SAR 3,274

8.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$665 SAR 2,495

$604 SAR 2,267

10.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,479 SAR 5,552

$1,840 SAR 6,905

-19.59%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$779 SAR 2,925

$1,239 SAR 4,651

-37.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,508 SAR 5,659

$912 SAR 3,422

65.36%

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 Sakakah: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ad Dammam

$376 31.6%

Sakakah

$398 32.6% 6% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ad Dammam

$227 19.1%

Sakakah

$230 18.8% 1.2% $2.8

Groceries & Markets

Ad Dammam

$198 16.7%

Sakakah

$197 16.1% 0.7% $1.5

Clothing & Footwear

Ad Dammam

$126 10.6%

Sakakah

$126 10.3% 0% $0

Eating Out

Ad Dammam

$114 9.6%

Sakakah

$118 9.6% 3.4% $3.9

Sport & Entertainment

Ad Dammam

$97 8.2%

Sakakah

$103 8.4% 6% $5.8

Getting Around

Ad Dammam

$51 4.3%

Sakakah

$52 4.3% 2.3% $1.2

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $531 in Ad Dammam and $563 in Sakakah. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ad Dammam pays 65% 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 $37 in Sakakah. Groceries flip the comparison at $198 vs $197, with Sakakah cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Ad Dammam

🇸🇦 Sakakah

🕒 Local time

16:17 4:17 PM

Same time as Ad Dammam

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

903,312

242,813

💱 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 Sakakah 1,050 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Ad Dammam
Sakakah

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 Sakakah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ad Dammam wins on cost – living expenses run 3% lower than in Sakakah. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Ad Dammam the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 65% 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: $531 in Ad Dammam versus $563 in Sakakah. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Sakakah runs roughly 4% less than in Ad Dammam. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

All in, you’ll spend $1,188 per month in Ad Dammam versus $1,223 in Sakakah – Ad Dammam is about 3% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

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