Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ar-rass and Riyadh

For one person, living is cheaper in Ar-rass: $1,162 a month against $1,738 in Riyadh, rent and utilities included – about $6,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

55

Cost of Living Index in Ar-rass
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Ar-rass Living Index
82

Cost of Living Index in Riyadh
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Riyadh Living Index

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Ar-rass

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,162

/mo nomad

Riyadh

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,738

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ar-rass and in Riyadh

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,162 in Ar-rass versus $1,738 in Riyadh.

Ar-rass $1,162
Riyadh $1,738

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,717 in Ar-rass versus $2,575 in Riyadh.

Ar-rass $1,717
Riyadh $2,575

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,272 in Ar-rass versus $3,413 in Riyadh.

Ar-rass $2,272
Riyadh $3,413

Living in Ar-rass costs roughly 33% less than in Riyadh, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Ar-rass is 14% below, Riyadh is 29% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.73 SAR 25.27

$8.20 SAR 30.79

-17.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.53 SAR 141

$65.6 SAR 246

-42.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.20 SAR 30.78

$8.05 SAR 30.20

1.86%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.81 SAR 6.79

$2.10 SAR 7.87

-13.81%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.19 SAR 8.23

$2.86 SAR 10.74

-23.43%

Cappuccino

$3.29 SAR 12.36

$4.43 SAR 16.64

-25.73%

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

$0.88 SAR 3.30

$0.87 SAR 3.28

1.15%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 SAR 1.01

$0.33 SAR 1.25

-18.18%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.81 SAR 6.81

$1.80 SAR 6.75

0.56%

White Bread (500g)

$0.38 SAR 1.43

$1.29 SAR 4.83

-70.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.82 SAR 6.85

$2.34 SAR 8.80

-22.22%

Eggs

$3.67 SAR 13.78

$3.11 SAR 11.67

18.01%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.77 SAR 25.40

$10.65 SAR 39.96

-36.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.99 SAR 29.97

$9.36 SAR 35.12

-14.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.90 SAR 48.43

$15.07 SAR 56.6

-14.40%

Apples (1kg)

$2.14 SAR 8.03

$2.92 SAR 10.95

-26.71%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 SAR 6.48

$1.95 SAR 7.32

-11.28%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.64 SAR 6.17

$2.49 SAR 9.35

-34.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.56 SAR 5.84

$1.70 SAR 6.39

-8.24%

Potato (1kg)

$1.25 SAR 4.68

$1.18 SAR 4.43

5.93%

Onion (1kg)

$1.33 SAR 5.01

$1.33 SAR 5.00

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.26 SAR 4.73

$1.75 SAR 6.58

-28.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 SAR 2.17

$0.53 SAR 2.00

9.43%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$3.01 SAR 11.29

$7.91 SAR 29.69

-61.95%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.95 SAR 7.33

$1.73 SAR 6.51

12.72%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.12 SAR 7.94

$2.39 SAR 8.97

-11.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.88 SAR 29.58

$7.85 SAR 29.45

0.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.96 SAR 3.60

$1.03 SAR 3.86

-6.80%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$42.22 SAR 158

$36.93 SAR 139

14.32%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.61 SAR 9.78

$3.22 SAR 12.10

-18.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 SAR 5.60

$1.91 SAR 7.18

-21.99%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.93 SAR 52.3

$13.08 SAR 49.10

6.50%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.61 SAR 2.27

$0.64 SAR 2.41

-4.69%

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

$25.3K SAR 95.1K

$26.6K SAR 99.9K

-4.79%

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

$21.7K SAR 81.4K

$22.4K SAR 84.1K

-3.14%

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

$94.9 SAR 356

$105 SAR 394

-9.65%

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

$24.18 SAR 90.7

$29.43 SAR 110

-17.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$60.3 SAR 226

$69.3 SAR 260

-12.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.79 SAR 164

$77.4 SAR 291

-43.45%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$55.7 SAR 209

Cinema Ticket

$13.26 SAR 49.79

$14.00 SAR 52.6

-5.29%

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

$417 SAR 1,565

$555 SAR 2,082

-24.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.2K SAR 42.0K

$17.0K SAR 63.7K

-34.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.38 SAR 159

$58.3 SAR 219

-27.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.8 SAR 209

$53.8 SAR 202

3.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$97.9 SAR 368

$104 SAR 391

-6.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$74.6 SAR 280

$104 SAR 391

-28.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$562 SAR 2,110

$1,138 SAR 4,270

-50.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$416 SAR 1,560

$842 SAR 3,160

-50.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$383 SAR 1,439

$2,159 SAR 8,102

-82.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$620 SAR 2,327

$1,263 SAR 4,739

-50.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,915 SAR 7,189

$2,706 SAR 10.2K

-29.22%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,353 SAR 5,078

$1,655 SAR 6,212

-18.25%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,732 SAR 6,502

$2,088 SAR 7,837

-17.04%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.54

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

Last update for Ar-rass: November 2, 2026

Last update for Riyadh: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ar-rass

$416 35.8%

Riyadh

$842 48.5% 103% $426

Groceries & Markets

Ar-rass

$197 16.9%

Riyadh

$241 13.9% 22.5% $44

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ar-rass

$179 15.4%

Riyadh

$204 11.7% 13.6% $24

Eating Out

Ar-rass

$123 10.5%

Riyadh

$148 8.5% 20.6% $25

Clothing & Footwear

Ar-rass

$122 10.5%

Riyadh

$144 8.3% 18.4% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Ar-rass

$70 6.1%

Riyadh

$105 6.1% 49.9% $35

Getting Around

Ar-rass

$56 4.8%

Riyadh

$54 3.1% 4.1% $2.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $562 in Ar-rass and $1,138 in Riyadh. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Riyadh pays 21% 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: $38 in Ar-rass vs $66 in Riyadh for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $197 vs $241 per month, with Ar-rass cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Ar-rass

🇸🇦 Riyadh

🕒 Local time

19:05 7:05 PM

Same time as Ar-rass

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

121,359

5,188,286 Capital

💱 Currency

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.238 EUR

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.238 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Ar-rass Riyadh 350 km

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Ar-rass
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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

Ar-rass vs Riyadh: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,162 in Ar-rass and $1,738 in Riyadh, so Ar-rass is about 33% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 17% lower in Ar-rass. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $562 in Ar-rass versus $1,138 in Riyadh. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $417 in Ar-rass versus $555 in Riyadh. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 23% higher in Riyadh. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Ar-rass 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 – Ar-rass wins on affordability, Riyadh on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.