Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Al Khobar and Al-Ula

For one person, living is cheaper in Al-Ula: $1,184 a month against $1,405 in Al Khobar, rent and utilities included – about $2,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

68

Cost of Living Index in Al Khobar
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Al Khobar Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Al-Ula
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Al-Ula Living Index

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Al Khobar

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,405

/mo nomad

Al-Ula

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,184

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Al Khobar and in Al-Ula

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,405 in Al Khobar versus $1,184 in Al-Ula.

Al Khobar $1,405
Al-Ula $1,184

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,186 in Al Khobar versus $1,757 in Al-Ula.

Al Khobar $2,186
Al-Ula $1,757

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,967 in Al Khobar versus $2,330 in Al-Ula.

Al Khobar $2,967
Al-Ula $2,330

Living in Al Khobar is roughly 19% more expensive than in Al-Ula, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Al Khobar is 4% above, Al-Ula is 12% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.53 SAR 24.51

$6.11 SAR 22.91

6.87%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$59.2 SAR 222

$36.80 SAR 138

60.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.86 SAR 29.50

$7.96 SAR 29.87

-1.26%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.74 SAR 10.28

$1.89 SAR 7.08

44.97%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.68 SAR 10.05

$2.30 SAR 8.62

16.52%

Cappuccino

$4.48 SAR 16.79

$3.17 SAR 11.89

41.32%

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

$0.87 SAR 3.25

$0.86 SAR 3.24

1.16%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.38 SAR 1.42

$0.26 SAR 0.98

46.15%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 SAR 6.38

$1.74 SAR 6.52

-2.30%

White Bread (500g)

$1.28 SAR 4.80

$1.27 SAR 4.75

0.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.46 SAR 9.24

$2.30 SAR 8.62

6.96%

Eggs

$2.32 SAR 8.69

$2.32 SAR 8.72

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.15 SAR 26.84

$7.39 SAR 27.75

-3.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.24 SAR 38.43

$8.07 SAR 30.27

26.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.69 SAR 43.86

$12.67 SAR 47.54

-7.73%

Apples (1kg)

$2.62 SAR 9.83

$2.25 SAR 8.45

16.44%

Banana (1kg)

$1.76 SAR 6.59

$1.76 SAR 6.60

Oranges (1kg)

$1.98 SAR 7.43

$1.58 SAR 5.94

25.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.77 SAR 6.64

$1.57 SAR 5.89

12.74%

Potato (1kg)

$1.36 SAR 5.11

$1.23 SAR 4.61

10.57%

Onion (1kg)

$1.66 SAR 6.24

$1.28 SAR 4.79

29.69%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.66 SAR 6.23

$1.22 SAR 4.58

36.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 SAR 2.01

$0.54 SAR 2.02

-1.85%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$2.63 SAR 9.88

$2.86 SAR 10.71

-8.04%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 SAR 5.98

$1.78 SAR 6.68

-10.67%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.84 SAR 6.91

$2.11 SAR 7.91

-12.80%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.66 SAR 25.00

$6.74 SAR 25.28

-1.19%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.73 SAR 2.75

$1.09 SAR 4.08

-33.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$67.2 SAR 252

$36.77 SAR 138

82.87%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.23 SAR 12.14

$2.61 SAR 9.80

23.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.72 SAR 10.20

$1.85 SAR 6.95

47.03%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.48 SAR 24.31

$13.14 SAR 49.29

-50.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.63 SAR 2.37

$0.65 SAR 2.44

-3.08%

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

$66.3K SAR 248.6K

$44.0K SAR 165.2K

50.48%

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

$22.5K SAR 84.6K

$21.3K SAR 79.9K

5.78%

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

$99.6 SAR 374

$106 SAR 397

-6.00%

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

$33.32 SAR 125

$33.21 SAR 125

0.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$70.5 SAR 265

$65.8 SAR 247

7.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$82.0 SAR 308

$82.4 SAR 309

-0.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$37.23 SAR 140

Cinema Ticket

$15.07 SAR 56.6

$13.33 SAR 50.0

13.05%

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

$589 SAR 2,210

$425 SAR 1,596

38.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,524 SAR 32.0K

$8,102 SAR 30.4K

5.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.0 SAR 233

$42.74 SAR 160

45.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$83.0 SAR 312

$55.4 SAR 208

49.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$97.2 SAR 365

$96.2 SAR 361

1.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.9 SAR 352

$87.6 SAR 329

7.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$630 SAR 2,363

$576 SAR 2,162

9.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$499 SAR 1,873

$372 SAR 1,397

34.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,187 SAR 4,454

$832 SAR 3,121

42.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$860 SAR 3,226

$572 SAR 2,147

50.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,404 SAR 9,020

$2,323 SAR 8,718

3.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,444 SAR 5,417

$1,382 SAR 5,187

4.45%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,829 SAR 6,864

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.88

5.54

6.14%

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

Last update for Al Khobar: October 10, 2026

Last update for Al-Ula: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Al Khobar

$499 35.5%

Al-Ula

$372 31.5% 25.4% $127

Groceries & Markets

Al Khobar

$217 15.5%

Al-Ula

$203 17.1% 6.8% $15

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Al Khobar

$203 14.5%

Al-Ula

$205 17.3% 0.8% $1.5

Clothing & Footwear

Al Khobar

$151 10.8%

Al-Ula

$127 10.7% 16.1% $24

Eating Out

Al Khobar

$135 9.6%

Al-Ula

$115 9.7% 14.3% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Al Khobar

$112 8%

Al-Ula

$109 9.2% 2.8% $3.1

Getting Around

Al Khobar

$87 6.2%

Al-Ula

$53 4.5% 39.1% $34

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $630 in Al Khobar and $576 in Al-Ula. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $59.0 in Al Khobar vs $37.00 in Al-Ula for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $217 vs $203 per month, with Al-Ula cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Al Khobar

🇸🇦 Al-Ula

🕒 Local time

13:05 1:05 PM

Same time as Al Khobar

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

219,679

32,413

💱 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

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Between locations

Al Khobar Al-Ula 1,220 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Al Khobar
Al-Ula

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

Al Khobar vs Al-Ula: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Al-Ula wins on cost – living expenses run 19% lower than in Al Khobar. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Al-Ula the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $2,107 in Al Khobar and $1,776 in Al-Ula to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $630 in Al Khobar versus $576 in Al-Ula. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Al-Ula runs roughly 83% less than in Al Khobar. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $589 in Al Khobar versus $425 in Al-Ula. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,184 in Al-Ula versus $1,405 in Al Khobar, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Al-Ula but tight or insufficient in Al Khobar. The gap between the two cities makes Al-Ula the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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, Al Khobar and Al-Ula are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Al-Ula gentler on the wallet – expenses run 19% less than in Al Khobar. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.