Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ad Diwaniyah and Erbil

For one person, living is cheaper in Ad Diwaniyah: $559 a month against $958 in Erbil, rent and utilities included – about $4,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

27

Cost of Living Index in Ad Diwaniyah
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Ad Diwaniyah Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in Erbil
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Erbil Living Index

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Ad Diwaniyah

🇮🇶 Iraq

$559

/mo nomad

Erbil

🇮🇶 Iraq

$958

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ad Diwaniyah 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 Ad Diwaniyah and in Erbil actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $559 per month in Ad Diwaniyah vs $958 in Erbil, rent included.

Ad Diwaniyah $559
Erbil $958

A couple spends around $876 per month in Ad Diwaniyah vs $1,427 in Erbil, rent included.

Ad Diwaniyah $876
Erbil $1,427

A family of three spends $1,193 per month in Ad Diwaniyah vs $1,896 in Erbil, rent included.

Ad Diwaniyah $1,193
Erbil $1,896

Ad Diwaniyah is about 42% cheaper than Erbil, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Ad Diwaniyah and Erbil are more affordable than the global median – Ad Diwaniyah 59% lower, Erbil 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.75 IQD 4,154

$6.42 IQD 9,704

-57.17%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$9.87 IQD 14.9K

$36.55 IQD 55.2K

-73.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.61 IQD 6,960

$7.41 IQD 11.2K

-37.79%

Cappuccino

$1.62 IQD 2,442

$3.24 IQD 4,889

-50.00%

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

$0.36 IQD 538

$0.89 IQD 1,341

-59.55%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.22 IQD 333

$0.33 IQD 505

-33.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.24 IQD 4,901

$5.75 IQD 8,681

-43.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.23 IQD 4,876

$3.92 IQD 5,921

-17.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.95 IQD 1,440

$1.07 IQD 1,611

-11.21%

White Bread (500g)

$0.69 IQD 1,045

$0.67 IQD 1,019

2.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.13 IQD 1,708

$1.52 IQD 2,303

-25.66%

Eggs

$1.69 IQD 2,552

$1.60 IQD 2,413

5.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.40 IQD 5,142

$7.00 IQD 10.6K

-51.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.38 IQD 5,112

$4.38 IQD 6,614

-22.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.80 IQD 14.8K

$12.67 IQD 19.1K

-22.65%

Apples (1kg)

$0.69 IQD 1,038

$0.94 IQD 1,415

-26.60%

Banana (1kg)

$0.65 IQD 980

$1.01 IQD 1,528

-35.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.64 IQD 968

$1.02 IQD 1,544

-37.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.68 IQD 1,027

$0.70 IQD 1,064

-2.86%

Potato (1kg)

$0.55 IQD 837

$0.65 IQD 982

-15.38%

Onion (1kg)

$0.55 IQD 838

$0.63 IQD 952

-12.70%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.32 IQD 483

$0.64 IQD 968

-50.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.62 IQD 930

$0.52 IQD 781

19.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.69 IQD 2,560

$2.19 IQD 3,303

-22.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.24 IQD 4,903

$10.83 IQD 16.4K

-70.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.89 IQD 2,859

$1.45 IQD 2,191

30.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.97 IQD 2,973

$1.79 IQD 2,712

10.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.38 IQD 572

$0.49 IQD 736

-22.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$39.29 IQD 59.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.04 IQD 3,076

$1.67 IQD 2,519

22.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.80 IQD 1,202

$1.60 IQD 2,418

-50.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.52 IQD 9,850

$5.78 IQD 8,728

12.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.29 IQD 432

$0.57 IQD 867

-49.12%

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

$16.4K IQD 24.7M

$16.8K IQD 25.4M

-2.61%

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

$16.7K IQD 25.3M

$17.1K IQD 25.9M

-2.35%

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

$33.29 IQD 50.3K

$111 IQD 168.1K

-70.07%

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

$14.94 IQD 22.6K

$12.24 IQD 18.5K

22.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.23 IQD 50.2K

$24.61 IQD 37.2K

35.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.21 IQD 54.7K

$57.0 IQD 86.1K

-36.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.76 IQD 10.2K

$13.48 IQD 20.4K

-49.85%

Cinema Ticket

$6.45 IQD 9,752

$9.63 IQD 14.6K

-33.02%

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

$65.8 IQD 99.5K

$294 IQD 443.8K

-77.59%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,258 IQD 4.9M

$2,726 IQD 4.1M

19.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$25.65 IQD 38.8K

$26.71 IQD 40.4K

-3.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.66 IQD 50.9K

$38.49 IQD 58.2K

-12.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$58.6 IQD 88.5K

$61.1 IQD 92.3K

-4.08%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$42.15 IQD 63.7K

$59.9 IQD 90.5K

-29.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$204 IQD 309.0K

$426 IQD 643.6K

-51.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$140 IQD 210.8K

$271 IQD 410.0K

-48.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$368 IQD 555.7K

$699 IQD 1.1M

-47.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$316 IQD 478.1K

$404 IQD 610.4K

-21.68%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$890 IQD 1.3M

$1,017 IQD 1.5M

-12.50%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$498 IQD 752.9K

$615 IQD 929.8K

-19.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$328 IQD 495.7K

$519 IQD 783.7K

-36.75%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.12

2.53

62.85%

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

Last update for Ad Diwaniyah: October 25, 2026

Last update for Erbil: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ad Diwaniyah

$140 25%

Erbil

$271 28.3% 94.5% $132

Groceries & Markets

Ad Diwaniyah

$129 23.1%

Erbil

$174 18.1% 34.7% $45

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ad Diwaniyah

$81 14.6%

Erbil

$148 15.5% 81.8% $67

Eating Out

Ad Diwaniyah

$80 14.4%

Erbil

$154 16.1% 91.9% $74

Clothing & Footwear

Ad Diwaniyah

$72 12.9%

Erbil

$84 8.8% 16.3% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Ad Diwaniyah

$49 8.8%

Erbil

$76 8% 55.2% $27

Getting Around

Ad Diwaniyah

$7.5 * 1.4%

Erbil

$51 5.3% 576% $43

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $204 in Ad Diwaniyah versus $426 in Erbil. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 58% higher in Erbil, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $10 in Ad Diwaniyah versus $37 in Erbil. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $129 vs $174 – making Ad Diwaniyah the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇶 Ad Diwaniyah

🇮🇶 Erbil

🕒 Local time

21:20 9:20 PM

Same time as Ad Diwaniyah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

650,927

1,713,461

💱 Currency

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.93 EUR

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.93 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Ad Diwaniyah Erbil 480 km

From you

Ad Diwaniyah
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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 Diwaniyah vs Erbil: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Erbil is pricier by about 71%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $838 per month in Ad Diwaniyah and $1,437 in Erbil. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Ad Diwaniyah, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $204 there versus $426 in Erbil.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $559 in Ad Diwaniyah and $958 in Erbil. That makes Ad Diwaniyah about 42% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $66 per month in Ad Diwaniyah and $294 in Erbil. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Families tend to lean toward Ad Diwaniyah – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Ad Diwaniyah. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Erbil makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.