Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Arendal and Cairo

For one person, living is cheaper in Cairo: $647 a month against $2,679 in Arendal, rent and utilities included – about $24,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

131

Cost of Living Index in Arendal
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Arendal Living Index
32

Cost of Living Index in Cairo
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Cairo Living Index

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Arendal

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,679

/mo nomad

Cairo

🇪🇬 Egypt

$647

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Arendal and in Cairo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,679 in Arendal versus $647 in Cairo.

Arendal $2,679
Cairo $647

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,805 in Arendal versus $1,035 in Cairo.

Arendal $3,805
Cairo $1,035

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,931 in Arendal versus $1,423 in Cairo.

Arendal $4,931
Cairo $1,423

Living in Arendal is roughly 314% more expensive than in Cairo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Arendal is 98% above, Cairo is 52% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.51 NOK 184

$4.64 E£248

320.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.8 NOK 619

$28.12 E£1,501

134.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.52 NOK 146

$6.03 E£322

157.38%

Cappuccino

$5.33 NOK 50.2

$1.72 E£92.1

209.88%

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

$3.49 NOK 32.84

$0.36 E£19.38

869.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.25 NOK 30.62

$0.12 E£6.41

2608.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$11.55 NOK 109

$1.51 E£80.4

664.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$12.08 NOK 114

$2.32 E£124

420.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.31 NOK 21.78

$0.92 E£48.92

151.09%

White Bread (500g)

$3.47 NOK 32.63

$0.73 E£38.92

375.34%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.78 NOK 35.56

$0.74 E£39.64

410.81%

Eggs

$4.93 NOK 46.38

$1.19 E£63.7

314.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.81 NOK 139

$4.33 E£231

242.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.35 NOK 135

$5.03 E£269

185.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$33.30 NOK 314

$9.28 E£496

258.84%

Apples (1kg)

$3.49 NOK 32.83

$1.77 E£94.4

97.18%

Banana (1kg)

$2.63 NOK 24.75

$0.73 E£39.03

260.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.48 NOK 32.74

$0.55 E£29.51

532.73%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.74 NOK 44.63

$0.50 E£26.91

848.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.55 NOK 23.97

$0.42 E£22.42

507.14%

Onion (1kg)

$3.10 NOK 29.18

$0.41 E£21.81

656.10%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.82 NOK 26.55

$0.33 E£17.51

754.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.24 NOK 21.13

$0.21 E£11.20

966.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$17.67 NOK 166

$1.98 E£106

792.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.46 NOK 136

$7.81 E£417

85.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.74 NOK 35.19

$1.59 E£84.7

135.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.38 NOK 41.27

$2.09 E£112

109.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.69 NOK 34.72

$0.35 E£18.83

954.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$90.2 NOK 849

$8.69 E£464

937.40%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.11 NOK 57.5

$0.39 E£21.02

1466.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.70 NOK 16.03

$0.22 E£11.57

672.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$105 NOK 986

$1.51 E£80.5

6837.09%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.26 NOK 21.31

$0.43 E£22.88

425.58%

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

$48.3K NOK 454.3K

$32.7K E£1.7M

47.59%

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

$41.0K NOK 385.9K

$27.2K E£1.5M

50.55%

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

$252 NOK 2,372

$27.27 E£1,456

824.02%

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

$34.68 NOK 326

$8.58 E£458

304.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$79.7 NOK 751

$13.99 E£747

469.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.61 NOK 345

$29.69 E£1,585

23.31%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.25 E£387

Cinema Ticket

$15.38 NOK 145

$4.86 E£260

216.46%

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

$314 NOK 2,952

$121 E£6,438

160.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.8K NOK 129.9K

$3,560 E£190.1K

287.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$125 NOK 1,176

$40.28 E£2,151

210.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.59 NOK 410

$49.53 E£2,645

-11.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$124 NOK 1,165

$115 E£6,137

7.71%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$204 NOK 1,922

$60.0 E£3,206

240.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,109 NOK 10.4K

$222 E£11.9K

399.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,039 NOK 9,783

$195 E£10.4K

432.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,556 NOK 14.6K

$550 E£29.3K

183.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,453 NOK 13.7K

$346 E£18.5K

319.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,112 NOK 38.7K

$800 E£42.7K

414.25%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,134 NOK 29.5K

$525 E£28.0K

497.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,151 NOK 39.1K

$200 E£10.7K

1977.99%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.68

16.21

-71.13%

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

Last update for Arendal: October 12, 2026

Last update for Cairo: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Arendal

$1K 38.8%

Cairo

$195 30.2% 81.2% $844

Groceries & Markets

Arendal

$488 18.2%

Cairo

$142 21.9% 70.9% $346

Eating Out

Arendal

$375 14%

Cairo

$90 13.9% 76% $285

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Arendal

$366 13.7%

Cairo

$50 7.7% 86.4% $317

Clothing & Footwear

Arendal

$223 8.3%

Cairo

$119 18.4% 46.7% $104

Getting Around

Arendal

$120 4.5%

Cairo

$12 1.8% 90.3% $108

Sport & Entertainment

Arendal

$67 2.5%

Cairo

$39 6.1% 41.5% $28

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,109 in Arendal and $222 in Cairo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Arendal pays 1978% 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: $66.0 in Arendal vs $28.00 in Cairo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $488 vs $142 per month, with Cairo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Arendal

🇪🇬 Cairo

🕒 Local time

17:33 5:33 PM

18:33 6:33 PM

1 h ahead of Arendal

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

46,406

9,120,350 Capital

💱 Currency

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

100 EGP = 1.87 USD

100 EGP = 1.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, USD, EUR to NOK – Norwegian Krone Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇴 Norwegian Krone (kr)

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 53.4 EGP (100 EGP = 1.87 USD). 1 EUR = 60.04 EGP (100 EGP = 1.67 EUR).

USD to NOK in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Arendal Cairo 3,590 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Arendal
Cairo

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

Arendal vs Cairo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Arendal and Cairo differ by about 314% in total monthly costs ($2,679 vs $647 including rent). Cairo is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 1978% higher in Arendal, 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: $1,109 in Arendal versus $222 in Cairo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $314 in Arendal versus $121 in Cairo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 244% higher in Arendal. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $647 in Cairo versus $2,679 in Arendal, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cairo but tight or insufficient in Arendal. The gap between the two cities makes Cairo the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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, Arendal and Cairo are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Cairo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 314% less than in Arendal. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.