Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Al-musayyib and Sulaymaniyah

For one person, living is cheaper in Sulaymaniyah: $663 a month against $768 in Al-musayyib, rent and utilities included – about $1,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

38

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

Cost of Living Index in Sulaymaniyah
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Sulaymaniyah Living Index

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Al-musayyib

🇮🇶 Iraq

$768

/mo nomad

Sulaymaniyah

🇮🇶 Iraq

$663

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $768 in Al-musayyib versus $663 in Sulaymaniyah.

Al-musayyib $768
Sulaymaniyah $663

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,152 in Al-musayyib versus $1,034 in Sulaymaniyah.

Al-musayyib $1,152
Sulaymaniyah $1,034

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,536 in Al-musayyib versus $1,406 in Sulaymaniyah.

Al-musayyib $1,536
Sulaymaniyah $1,406

Living in Al-musayyib is roughly 16% more expensive than in Sulaymaniyah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities sit below the global median: Al-musayyib 44% lower, Sulaymaniyah 51% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.50 IQD 6,793

$4.21 IQD 6,363

6.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$25.91 IQD 39.1K

$19.75 IQD 29.8K

31.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.43 IQD 9,721

$5.90 IQD 8,916

8.98%

Cappuccino

$2.82 IQD 4,267

$2.45 IQD 3,702

15.10%

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

$0.38 IQD 576

$0.43 IQD 650

-11.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.22 IQD 332

$0.20 IQD 302

10.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.33 IQD 5,026

$3.22 IQD 4,873

3.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.25 IQD 4,904

$2.04 IQD 3,080

59.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.90 IQD 1,359

$1.11 IQD 1,677

-18.92%

White Bread (500g)

$0.67 IQD 1,019

$0.89 IQD 1,339

-24.72%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.30 IQD 1,971

$1.66 IQD 2,516

-21.69%

Eggs

$1.29 IQD 1,951

$1.55 IQD 2,345

-16.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.42 IQD 5,163

$4.31 IQD 6,509

-20.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.28 IQD 4,962

$3.66 IQD 5,536

-10.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.03 IQD 15.1K

$13.27 IQD 20.1K

-24.42%

Apples (1kg)

$1.02 IQD 1,540

$1.11 IQD 1,680

-8.11%

Banana (1kg)

$0.90 IQD 1,357

$1.09 IQD 1,646

-17.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.94 IQD 1,415

$1.04 IQD 1,579

-9.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.48 IQD 721

$0.56 IQD 843

-14.29%

Potato (1kg)

$0.54 IQD 817

$0.49 IQD 740

10.20%

Onion (1kg)

$0.48 IQD 732

$0.63 IQD 957

-23.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.48 IQD 730

$0.58 IQD 883

-17.24%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.34 IQD 518

$0.45 IQD 685

-24.44%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.68 IQD 2,531

$2.02 IQD 3,049

-16.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.98 IQD 18.1K

$9.76 IQD 14.7K

22.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.89 IQD 2,862

$1.66 IQD 2,509

13.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 IQD 2,831

$1.25 IQD 1,896

49.60%

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)

$2.01 IQD 3,043

$1.92 IQD 2,904

4.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.30 IQD 1,961

$1.96 IQD 2,961

-33.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.75 IQD 10.2K

$4.48 IQD 6,774

50.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.55 IQD 825

$0.57 IQD 865

-3.51%

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

$16.5K IQD 25.0M

$17.6K IQD 26.6M

-5.96%

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

$16.5K IQD 25.0M

$17.0K IQD 25.6M

-2.49%

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

$187 IQD 282.9K

$85.2 IQD 128.7K

119.82%

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

$19.82 IQD 30.0K

$10.12 IQD 15.3K

95.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$38.37 IQD 58.0K

$24.03 IQD 36.3K

59.68%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.70 IQD 50.9K

$33.78 IQD 51.0K

-0.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.92 IQD 27.1K

Cinema Ticket

$10.19 IQD 15.4K

$6.56 IQD 9,916

55.34%

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

$146 IQD 220.6K

$153 IQD 231.1K

-4.52%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,199 IQD 4.8M

$2,546 IQD 3.8M

25.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$25.73 IQD 38.9K

$16.75 IQD 25.3K

53.61%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.53 IQD 50.7K

$22.28 IQD 33.7K

50.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$58.9 IQD 89.0K

$36.83 IQD 55.7K

59.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$41.11 IQD 62.1K

$33.01 IQD 49.9K

24.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$206 IQD 311.9K

$187 IQD 282.6K

10.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$127 IQD 192.6K

$147 IQD 221.9K

-13.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$321 IQD 485.3K

$419 IQD 632.8K

-23.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$308 IQD 465.5K

$314 IQD 474.4K

-1.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$974 IQD 1.5M

$695 IQD 1.1M

40.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$537 IQD 811.4K

$548 IQD 828.2K

-2.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 IQD 757.3K

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-musayyib: October 26, 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-musayyib

$245 31.9%

Sulaymaniyah

$119 18% 51.4% $126

Groceries & Markets

Al-musayyib

$145 18.9%

Sulaymaniyah

$164 24.7% 12.7% $18

Accommodation & Living

Al-musayyib

$127 16.6%

Sulaymaniyah

$147 22.2% 15.2% $19

Eating Out

Al-musayyib

$115 14.9%

Sulaymaniyah

$104 15.6% 9.7% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Al-musayyib

$72 9.3%

Sulaymaniyah

$49 7.4% 31.7% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Al-musayyib

$54 7%

Sulaymaniyah

$47 7.1% 13.2% $7.2

Getting Around

Al-musayyib

$9.8 * 1.3%

Sulaymaniyah

$34 5.1% 243% $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 $206 in Al-musayyib and $187 in Sulaymaniyah. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $26 in Al-musayyib vs $20 in Sulaymaniyah. Groceries flip the comparison at $145 vs $164, with Al-musayyib cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇮🇶 Al-musayyib

🇮🇶 Sulaymaniyah

🕒 Local time

07:56 7:56 AM

Same time as Al-musayyib

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

279,939

823,199

💱 Currency

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.94 EUR

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.94 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Al-musayyib Sulaymaniyah 330 km

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

Al-musayyib and Sulaymaniyah differ by about 16% in total monthly costs ($768 vs $663 including rent). Sulaymaniyah is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,153 in Al-musayyib and $994 in Sulaymaniyah 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: $206 in Al-musayyib versus $187 in Sulaymaniyah. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $146 in Al-musayyib versus $153 in Sulaymaniyah. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Sulaymaniyah – a meal for two runs $20 versus $26 in Al-musayyib. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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.