Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Al Kufah and Sulaymaniyah

For one person, living is cheaper in Sulaymaniyah: $663 a month against $703 in Al Kufah, rent and utilities included – about $480 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Al Kufah outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

34

Cost of Living Index in Al Kufah
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Al Kufah Living Index
32

Cost of Living Index in Sulaymaniyah
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Sulaymaniyah Living Index

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Al Kufah

🇮🇶 Iraq

$703

/mo nomad

Sulaymaniyah

🇮🇶 Iraq

$663

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Al Kufah and in Sulaymaniyah

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $703 in Al Kufah versus $663 in Sulaymaniyah.

Al Kufah $703
Sulaymaniyah $663

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,050 in Al Kufah versus $1,034 in Sulaymaniyah.

Al Kufah $1,050
Sulaymaniyah $1,034

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,397 in Al Kufah versus $1,406 in Sulaymaniyah.

Al Kufah $1,397
Sulaymaniyah $1,406

Living in Al Kufah is roughly 6% more expensive than in Sulaymaniyah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Al Kufah 48% lower, Sulaymaniyah 51% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.74 IQD 7,162

$4.21 IQD 6,363

12.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$25.90 IQD 39.1K

$19.75 IQD 29.8K

31.14%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.63 IQD 10.0K

$5.90 IQD 8,916

12.37%

Cappuccino

$2.82 IQD 4,258

$2.45 IQD 3,702

15.10%

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

$0.38 IQD 579

$0.43 IQD 650

-11.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.20 IQD 302

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.21 IQD 4,844

$3.22 IQD 4,873

-0.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.24 IQD 4,897

$2.04 IQD 3,080

58.82%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.96 IQD 1,451

$1.11 IQD 1,677

-13.51%

White Bread (500g)

$0.69 IQD 1,041

$0.89 IQD 1,339

-22.47%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.32 IQD 1,989

$1.66 IQD 2,516

-20.48%

Eggs

$1.70 IQD 2,574

$1.55 IQD 2,345

9.68%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$2.02 IQD 3,046

$4.31 IQD 6,509

-53.13%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.99 IQD 6,032

$3.66 IQD 5,536

9.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.85 IQD 11.9K

$13.27 IQD 20.1K

-40.84%

Apples (1kg)

$0.63 IQD 954

$1.11 IQD 1,680

-43.24%

Banana (1kg)

$0.96 IQD 1,449

$1.09 IQD 1,646

-11.93%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.56 IQD 848

$1.04 IQD 1,579

-46.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.49 IQD 736

$0.56 IQD 843

-12.50%

Potato (1kg)

$0.43 IQD 650

$0.49 IQD 740

-12.24%

Onion (1kg)

$0.33 IQD 499

$0.63 IQD 957

-47.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.19 IQD 284

$0.58 IQD 883

-67.24%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 IQD 776

$0.45 IQD 685

13.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.53 IQD 2,319

$2.02 IQD 3,049

-24.26%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.59 IQD 17.5K

$9.76 IQD 14.7K

18.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.00 IQD 3,017

$1.66 IQD 2,509

20.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.97 IQD 2,972

$1.25 IQD 1,896

57.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.32 IQD 480

$0.52 IQD 786

-38.46%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.74 IQD 29.8K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.95 IQD 2,954

$1.92 IQD 2,904

1.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.34 IQD 2,031

$1.96 IQD 2,961

-31.63%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.52 IQD 9,849

$4.48 IQD 6,774

45.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.49 IQD 733

$0.57 IQD 865

-14.04%

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

$16.6K IQD 25.0M

$17.6K IQD 26.6M

-5.81%

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

$16.8K IQD 25.4M

$17.0K IQD 25.6M

-0.94%

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

$188 IQD 283.3K

$85.2 IQD 128.7K

120.16%

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

$19.15 IQD 28.9K

$10.12 IQD 15.3K

89.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.76 IQD 29.9K

$24.03 IQD 36.3K

-17.77%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$15.05 IQD 22.7K

$33.78 IQD 51.0K

-55.45%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.92 IQD 27.1K

Cinema Ticket

$9.64 IQD 14.6K

$6.56 IQD 9,916

46.95%

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

$69.3 IQD 104.8K

$153 IQD 231.1K

-54.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,161 IQD 3.3M

$2,546 IQD 3.8M

-15.12%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$10.13 IQD 15.3K

$16.75 IQD 25.3K

-39.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.46 IQD 44.5K

$22.28 IQD 33.7K

32.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$20.07 IQD 30.3K

$36.83 IQD 55.7K

-45.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$34.57 IQD 52.2K

$33.01 IQD 49.9K

4.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$208 IQD 313.5K

$187 IQD 282.6K

10.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$135 IQD 204.6K

$147 IQD 221.9K

-7.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$371 IQD 561.3K

$419 IQD 632.8K

-11.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 IQD 466.6K

$314 IQD 474.4K

-1.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,244 IQD 1.9M

$695 IQD 1.1M

78.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$495 IQD 748.2K

$548 IQD 828.2K

-9.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$902 IQD 1.4M

$501 IQD 757.3K

80.07%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.12

5.77

-28.60%

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

Last update for Al Kufah: October 25, 2026

Last update for Sulaymaniyah: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Al Kufah

$226 32.2%

Sulaymaniyah

$119 18% 47.3% $107

Groceries & Markets

Al Kufah

$138 19.6%

Sulaymaniyah

$164 24.7% 19% $26

Accommodation & Living

Al Kufah

$135 19.3%

Sulaymaniyah

$147 22.2% 8.4% $11

Eating Out

Al Kufah

$116 16.6%

Sulaymaniyah

$104 15.6% 11.1% $13

Clothing & Footwear

Al Kufah

$42 6%

Sulaymaniyah

$49 7.4% 15.5% $6.6

Sport & Entertainment

Al Kufah

$34 4.9%

Sulaymaniyah

$47 7.1% 36.7% $13

Getting Around

Al Kufah

$10 * 1.4%

Sulaymaniyah

$34 5.1% 237% $24

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $208 in Al Kufah and $187 in Sulaymaniyah. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Al Kufah pays 80% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $26 in Al Kufah vs $20 in Sulaymaniyah. Groceries flip the comparison at $138 vs $164, with Al Kufah cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇮🇶 Al Kufah

🇮🇶 Sulaymaniyah

🕒 Local time

23:51 11:51 PM

Same time as Al Kufah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

230,000

823,199

💱 Currency

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.95 EUR

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.95 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Al Kufah Sulaymaniyah 400 km

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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

Al Kufah vs Sulaymaniyah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sulaymaniyah is about 6% cheaper overall, especially in eating out and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 80% higher in Al Kufah, 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: $208 in Al Kufah versus $187 in Sulaymaniyah. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Al Kufah pay roughly 16% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you’ll spend $703 per month in Al Kufah versus $663 in Sulaymaniyah – Sulaymaniyah is about 6% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Sulaymaniyah 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.

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