Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Al-mawsil and Sulaymaniyah

For one person, living is cheaper in Al-mawsil: $598 a month against $663 in Sulaymaniyah, rent and utilities included – about $780 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

29

Cost of Living Index in Al-mawsil
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Al-mawsil Living Index
32

Cost of Living Index in Sulaymaniyah
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Sulaymaniyah Living Index

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Al-mawsil

🇮🇶 Iraq

$598

/mo nomad

Sulaymaniyah

🇮🇶 Iraq

$663

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Al-mawsil 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-mawsil and in Sulaymaniyah actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $598 in Al-mawsil versus $663 in Sulaymaniyah.

Al-mawsil $598
Sulaymaniyah $663

Estimated couple costs with rent: $903 in Al-mawsil versus $1,034 in Sulaymaniyah.

Al-mawsil $903
Sulaymaniyah $1,034

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,207 in Al-mawsil versus $1,406 in Sulaymaniyah.

Al-mawsil $1,207
Sulaymaniyah $1,406

Living in Al-mawsil costs roughly 10% less than in Sulaymaniyah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Al-mawsil 56% lower, Sulaymaniyah 51% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.07 IQD 6,148

$4.21 IQD 6,363

-3.33%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$10.40 IQD 15.7K

$19.75 IQD 29.8K

-47.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.01 IQD 7,571

$5.90 IQD 8,916

-15.08%

Cappuccino

$0.64 IQD 974

$2.45 IQD 3,702

-73.88%

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

$0.35 IQD 522

$0.43 IQD 650

-18.60%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.18 IQD 279

$0.20 IQD 302

-10.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.87 IQD 1,311

$3.22 IQD 4,873

-72.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.36 IQD 2,051

$2.04 IQD 3,080

-33.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.64 IQD 970

$1.11 IQD 1,677

-42.34%

White Bread (500g)

$0.65 IQD 978

$0.89 IQD 1,339

-26.97%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.55 IQD 830

$1.66 IQD 2,516

-66.87%

Eggs

$0.95 IQD 1,440

$1.55 IQD 2,345

-38.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.19 IQD 10.9K

$4.31 IQD 6,509

66.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.88 IQD 4,353

$3.66 IQD 5,536

-21.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.14 IQD 12.3K

$13.27 IQD 20.1K

-38.66%

Apples (1kg)

$0.64 IQD 963

$1.11 IQD 1,680

-42.34%

Banana (1kg)

$0.64 IQD 972

$1.09 IQD 1,646

-41.28%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.48 IQD 728

$1.04 IQD 1,579

-53.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.22 IQD 331

$0.56 IQD 843

-60.71%

Potato (1kg)

$0.25 IQD 375

$0.49 IQD 740

-48.98%

Onion (1kg)

$0.31 IQD 474

$0.63 IQD 957

-50.79%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.60 IQD 911

$0.58 IQD 883

3.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 IQD 740

$0.45 IQD 685

8.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.61 IQD 2,439

$2.02 IQD 3,049

-20.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.94 IQD 16.5K

$9.76 IQD 14.7K

12.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.45 IQD 2,195

$1.66 IQD 2,509

-12.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 IQD 2,714

$1.25 IQD 1,896

44.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 IQD 475

$0.52 IQD 786

-40.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.19 IQD 39.6K

$19.74 IQD 29.8K

32.67%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.61 IQD 2,438

$1.92 IQD 2,904

-16.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.60 IQD 2,420

$1.96 IQD 2,961

-18.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.98 IQD 6,021

$4.48 IQD 6,774

-11.16%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.31 IQD 472

$0.57 IQD 865

-45.61%

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

$13.0K IQD 19.7M

$17.6K IQD 26.6M

-25.90%

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

$15.3K IQD 23.2M

$17.0K IQD 25.6M

-9.51%

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

$93.7 IQD 141.5K

$85.2 IQD 128.7K

9.97%

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

$12.00 IQD 18.1K

$10.12 IQD 15.3K

18.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.95 IQD 34.7K

$24.03 IQD 36.3K

-4.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.48 IQD 56.6K

$33.78 IQD 51.0K

10.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.48 IQD 9,784

$17.92 IQD 27.1K

-63.84%

Cinema Ticket

$6.42 IQD 9,708

$6.56 IQD 9,916

-2.13%

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

$301 IQD 455.1K

$153 IQD 231.1K

96.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$604 IQD 912.4K

$2,546 IQD 3.8M

-76.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$16.49 IQD 24.9K

$16.75 IQD 25.3K

-1.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$12.99 IQD 19.6K

$22.28 IQD 33.7K

-41.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$60.0 IQD 90.6K

$36.83 IQD 55.7K

62.80%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$15.65 IQD 23.6K

$33.01 IQD 49.9K

-52.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$211 IQD 318.8K

$187 IQD 282.6K

12.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$139 IQD 209.6K

$147 IQD 221.9K

-5.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$369 IQD 557.1K

$419 IQD 632.8K

-11.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 IQD 466.9K

$314 IQD 474.4K

-1.59%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$851 IQD 1.3M

$695 IQD 1.1M

22.42%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$435 IQD 657.4K

$548 IQD 828.2K

-20.62%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$521 IQD 787.2K

$501 IQD 757.3K

3.95%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.53

5.77

-56.15%

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

Last update for Al-mawsil: October 25, 2026

Last update for Sulaymaniyah: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Al-mawsil

$139 23.2%

Sulaymaniyah

$147 22.2% 5.8% $8.1

Groceries & Markets

Al-mawsil

$132 22%

Sulaymaniyah

$164 24.7% 24.3% $32

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Al-mawsil

$129 21.5%

Sulaymaniyah

$119 18% 7.2% $9.3

Eating Out

Al-mawsil

$64 10.8%

Sulaymaniyah

$104 15.6% 60.5% $39

Sport & Entertainment

Al-mawsil

$50 8.4%

Sulaymaniyah

$47 7.1% 6.8% $3.4

Clothing & Footwear

Al-mawsil

$47 7.9%

Sulaymaniyah

$49 7.4% 3.6% $1.7

Getting Around

Al-mawsil

$37 6.2%

Sulaymaniyah

$34 5.1% 9.5% $3.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $211 in Al-mawsil and $187 in Sulaymaniyah. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Al-mawsil pays 4% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $10 in Al-mawsil vs $20 in Sulaymaniyah for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $132 vs $164 per month, with Al-mawsil cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇶 Al-mawsil

🇮🇶 Sulaymaniyah

🕒 Local time

19:02 7:02 PM

Same time as Al-mawsil

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,683,000

823,199

💱 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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Al-mawsil Sulaymaniyah 230 km

From you

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

Al-mawsil is about 10% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 4% higher in Al-mawsil, 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: $211 in Al-mawsil versus $187 in Sulaymaniyah. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $301 in Al-mawsil versus $153 in Sulaymaniyah. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 24% higher in Sulaymaniyah. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Al-mawsil 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.