Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Al Khobar and Najran

For one person, living is cheaper in Najran: $1,238 a month against $1,471 in Al Khobar, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

71

Cost of Living Index in Al Khobar
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Al Khobar Living Index
60

Cost of Living Index in Najran
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Najran Living Index

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Al Khobar

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,471

/mo nomad

Najran

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,238

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Al Khobar and in Najran

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,471 in Al Khobar versus $1,238 in Najran.

Al Khobar $1,471
Najran $1,238

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,231 in Al Khobar versus $1,887 in Najran.

Al Khobar $2,231
Najran $1,887

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,991 in Al Khobar versus $2,536 in Najran.

Al Khobar $2,991
Najran $2,536

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

The two cities straddle the global median: Al Khobar is 9% above, Najran is 8% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.74 SAR 25.30

$7.99 SAR 30.00

-15.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.2 SAR 226

$36.76 SAR 138

63.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.14 SAR 30.57

$9.12 SAR 34.24

-10.75%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.60 SAR 9.76

$1.68 SAR 6.30

54.76%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 SAR 10.03

$1.37 SAR 5.14

94.89%

Cappuccino

$4.35 SAR 16.33

$4.49 SAR 16.84

-3.12%

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

$0.94 SAR 3.54

$0.64 SAR 2.41

46.87%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.41 SAR 1.53

$0.30 SAR 1.11

36.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 SAR 6.18

$2.71 SAR 10.17

-39.11%

White Bread (500g)

$1.24 SAR 4.67

$1.25 SAR 4.69

-0.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.46 SAR 9.24

$2.28 SAR 8.55

7.89%

Eggs

$2.35 SAR 8.81

$2.41 SAR 9.06

-2.49%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.42 SAR 27.87

$7.51 SAR 28.21

-1.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.09 SAR 37.87

$7.91 SAR 29.70

27.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.69 SAR 43.87

$12.77 SAR 47.91

-8.46%

Apples (1kg)

$2.72 SAR 10.20

$2.12 SAR 7.95

28.30%

Banana (1kg)

$1.71 SAR 6.40

$1.67 SAR 6.26

2.40%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.98 SAR 7.43

$1.62 SAR 6.09

22.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.74 SAR 6.52

$1.61 SAR 6.03

8.07%

Potato (1kg)

$1.42 SAR 5.33

$1.24 SAR 4.64

14.52%

Onion (1kg)

$1.67 SAR 6.25

$1.31 SAR 4.93

27.48%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.65 SAR 6.18

$1.19 SAR 4.48

38.66%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 SAR 2.01

$0.54 SAR 2.01

-1.85%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$2.62 SAR 9.82

$3.00 SAR 11.25

-12.67%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 SAR 5.92

$1.82 SAR 6.83

-13.19%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 SAR 7.03

$2.02 SAR 7.59

-7.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.80 SAR 25.51

$6.44 SAR 24.19

5.59%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.93 SAR 3.50

$1.08 SAR 4.05

-13.89%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.5 SAR 204

$38.45 SAR 144

41.64%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.76 SAR 6.61

$2.63 SAR 9.86

-33.08%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.68 SAR 10.07

$1.94 SAR 7.27

38.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$14.22 SAR 53.4

$14.12 SAR 53.0

0.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.63 SAR 2.38

$0.54 SAR 2.04

16.67%

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

$66.8K SAR 250.9K

$30.9K SAR 115.9K

116.51%

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

$21.4K SAR 80.3K

$23.0K SAR 86.2K

-6.82%

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

$96.9 SAR 364

$103 SAR 388

-6.35%

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

$32.58 SAR 122

$33.14 SAR 124

-1.69%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$68.3 SAR 256

$66.1 SAR 248

3.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$80.1 SAR 301

$77.9 SAR 292

2.82%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$36.17 SAR 136

$81.0 SAR 304

-55.35%

Cinema Ticket

$15.22 SAR 57.1

$13.22 SAR 49.63

15.13%

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

$599 SAR 2,249

$454 SAR 1,703

32.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.6K SAR 69.9K

$10.6K SAR 39.6K

76.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.5 SAR 238

$42.90 SAR 161

47.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$83.0 SAR 311

$54.5 SAR 205

52.13%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$97.4 SAR 366

$96.7 SAR 363

0.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$94.8 SAR 356

$85.6 SAR 321

10.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$762 SAR 2,861

$544 SAR 2,040

40.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$584 SAR 2,192

$390 SAR 1,463

49.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,226 SAR 4,603

$937 SAR 3,518

30.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$912 SAR 3,424

$614 SAR 2,306

48.49%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,437 SAR 5,392

$1,949 SAR 7,314

-26.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,037 SAR 3,894

$1,268 SAR 4,760

-18.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,872 SAR 7,028

$1,737 SAR 6,519

7.80%

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: November 3, 2026

Last update for Najran: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Al Khobar

$584 39.7%

Najran

$390 31.5% 33.3% $194

Groceries & Markets

Al Khobar

$217 14.8%

Najran

$211 17.1% 2.5% $5.5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Al Khobar

$198 13.4%

Najran

$203 16.4% 2.5% $4.9

Clothing & Footwear

Al Khobar

$152 10.4%

Najran

$126 10.2% 17.4% $27

Eating Out

Al Khobar

$136 9.2%

Najran

$149 12% 9.5% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Al Khobar

$111 7.5%

Najran

$104 8.4% 5.6% $6.2

Getting Around

Al Khobar

$73 5%

Najran

$55 4.5% 24.9% $18

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $762 in Al Khobar and $544 in Najran. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Al Khobar pays 8% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $60 in Al Khobar vs $37 in Najran for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $217 vs $211 per month, with Najran cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Al Khobar

🇸🇦 Najran

🕒 Local time

06:31 6:31 AM

Same time as Al Khobar

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

219,679

298,288

💱 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 Najran 1,150 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Al Khobar
Najran

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 Najran: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Najran wins on cost – living expenses run 16% lower than in Al Khobar. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Najran the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 8% higher in Al Khobar, 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: $762 in Al Khobar versus $544 in Najran. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Najran runs roughly 29% less than in Al Khobar. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $599 in Al Khobar versus $454 in Najran. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

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

Expats usually find Najran gentler on the wallet – expenses run 16% less than in Al Khobar. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.