Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Beirut and Salalah

For one person, living is cheaper in Salalah: $1,055 a month against $1,666 in Beirut, rent and utilities included – about $7,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Beirut
🇱🇧 Lebanon
$1,666
/mo nomad
Salalah
🇴🇲 Oman
$1,055
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Beirut and in Salalah

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,666 in Beirut versus $1,055 in Salalah.

  • Beirut $1,666
  • Salalah $1,055

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,656 in Beirut versus $1,587 in Salalah.

  • Beirut $2,656
  • Salalah $1,587

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,646 in Beirut versus $2,118 in Salalah.

  • Beirut $3,646
  • Salalah $2,118

Living in Beirut is roughly 58% more expensive than in Salalah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Beirut is 23% above, Salalah is 22% below.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Beirut
Salalah
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$12.20 LBP 1.1M
$5.07 OMR 1.95
140.63%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$69.7 LBP 6.2M
$25.69 OMR 9.89
171.47%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.10 LBP 903.6K
$12.75 OMR 4.91
-20.78%
Cappuccino
$4.48 LBP 400.8K
$6.05 OMR 2.33
-25.95%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.26 LBP 202.4K
$0.90 OMR 0.35
151.11%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.89 LBP 79.8K
$0.27 OMR 0.10
229.63%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$5.03 LBP 450.1K
$8.98 OMR 3.46
-43.99%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.79 LBP 428.8K
$10.22 OMR 3.94
-53.13%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Beirut
Salalah
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.92 LBP 172.1K
$1.89 OMR 0.73
1.59%
White Bread (500g)
$0.86 LBP 76.8K
$1.27 OMR 0.49
-32.28%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.31 LBP 207.2K
$2.62 OMR 1.01
-11.83%
Eggs
$3.63 LBP 324.6K
$1.91 OMR 0.74
90.05%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$11.19 LBP 1.0M
$4.58 OMR 1.76
144.32%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$10.40 LBP 930.8K
$4.73 OMR 1.82
119.87%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$15.04 LBP 1.3M
$6.37 OMR 2.45
136.11%
Apples (1kg)
$3.15 LBP 281.5K
$1.94 OMR 0.75
62.37%
Banana (1kg)
$1.71 LBP 152.9K
$1.85 OMR 0.71
-7.57%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.62 LBP 144.6K
$2.05 OMR 0.79
-20.98%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.48 LBP 132.2K
$1.78 OMR 0.69
-16.85%
Potato (1kg)
$1.21 LBP 108.6K
$1.49 OMR 0.57
-18.79%
Onion (1kg)
$1.61 LBP 144.1K
$1.01 OMR 0.39
59.41%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.16 LBP 103.9K
$1.10 OMR 0.42
5.45%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.72 LBP 64.7K
$0.52 OMR 0.20
38.46%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.02 LBP 270.2K
$5.87 OMR 2.26
-48.55%
Wine (Bottle)
$11.14 LBP 997.3K
$20.15 OMR 7.76
-44.71%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.32 LBP 118.3K
$3.98 OMR 1.53
-66.83%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.58 LBP 231.0K
$4.70 OMR 1.81
-45.11%
🚌 Getting Around
Beirut
Salalah
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.28 LBP 204.1K
$1.33 OMR 0.51
71.43%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$77.9 LBP 7.0M
$54.8 OMR 21.09
42.15%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.91 LBP 439.2K
$2.25 OMR 0.87
118.22%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.26 LBP 202.3K
$1.27 OMR 0.49
77.95%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$22.59 LBP 2.0M
$11.87 OMR 4.57
90.31%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.08 LBP 96.8K
$0.64 OMR 0.25
68.75%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$53.2K LBP 4.8B
$21.1K OMR 8,112
152.31%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$32.3K LBP 2.9B
$18.3K OMR 7,061
76.23%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Beirut
Salalah
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$232 LBP 20.7M
$77.6 OMR 29.89
198.60%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$21.83 LBP 2.0M
$48.92 OMR 18.84
-55.38%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$38.27 LBP 3.4M
$73.7 OMR 28.39
-48.10%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Beirut
Salalah
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$83.5 LBP 7.5M
$39.07 OMR 15.04
113.77%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$34.39 LBP 3.1M
$26.08 OMR 10.04
31.86%
Cinema Ticket
$9.91 LBP 887.2K
$7.67 OMR 2.95
29.20%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Beirut
Salalah
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$683 LBP 61.1M
$105 OMR 40.24
553.44%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$10.8K LBP 969.2M
$1,925 OMR 741
462.66%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Beirut
Salalah
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$68.3 LBP 6.1M
$29.01 OMR 11.17
135.40%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$49.77 LBP 4.5M
$31.47 OMR 12.12
58.15%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$138 LBP 12.3M
$59.0 OMR 22.69
133.40%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$119 LBP 10.7M
$46.02 OMR 17.72
158.58%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Beirut
Salalah
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$944 LBP 84.5M
$244 OMR 94.1
286.15%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$493 LBP 44.2M
$205 OMR 79.0
140.49%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,191 LBP 196.1M
$626 OMR 241
250.11%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,053 LBP 94.3M
$387 OMR 149
172.20%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,042 LBP 361.7M
$1,999 OMR 770
102.15%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,848 LBP 165.4M
$1,203 OMR 463
53.55%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Beirut
Salalah
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$698 LBP 62.5M
$1,769 OMR 681
-60.54%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11
4.58
140.17%

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

Last update for Beirut: October 12, 2026

Last update for Salalah: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Beirut
$493
Salalah
$205 58.4% $288
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Beirut
$292
Salalah
$200 31.4% $92
Groceries & Markets
Beirut
$276
Salalah
$231 16.4% $45
Eating Out
Beirut
$229
Salalah
$222 3.2% $7.4
Clothing & Footwear
Beirut
$169
Salalah
$74 55.8% $94
Getting Around
Beirut
$103
Salalah
$69 33.4% $34
Sport & Entertainment
Beirut
$103
Salalah
$54 47.3% $49

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $944 in Beirut and $244 in Salalah. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Salalah pays 153% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $70.0 in Beirut vs $26.00 in Salalah for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $276 vs $231 per month, with Salalah cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇱🇧 Beirut
🇴🇲 Salalah
🕒 Local time
20:07 8:07 PM
21:07 9:07 PM
1 h ahead of Beirut
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
1,916,100 Capital
178,469
💱 Currency
Omani Rial OMR ر.ع.
Exchange rates and currency converter

OMR, USD, EUR to LBP – Lebanese Pound Converter

Lebanese Pound exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 89,500 LBP (100,000 LBP = 1.12 USD). 1 EUR = 100,630 LBP (1,000,000 LBP = 9.94 EUR).

Omani Rial exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.385 OMR (1 OMR = 2.6 USD). 1 EUR = 0.433 OMR (1 OMR = 2.31 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Beirut Salalah 2,640 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Beirut
  • Salalah

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
Beirut vs Salalah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Salalah cheaper than Beirut?
Salalah is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 58% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.
Where can you earn more: Beirut or Salalah?
On paper, salaries run 153% lower in Salalah. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.
What is the rent difference between Beirut and Salalah?
Rent for a central apartment: $944 in Beirut versus $244 in Salalah. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
What are total monthly expenses in Beirut and in Salalah?
All in, you'll spend $1,666 per month in Beirut versus $1,055 in Salalah – a 58% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.
Which city has cheaper public transport?
A monthly transit pass in Salalah runs roughly 42% less than in Beirut. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.
Is $1,000 a realistic budget for living in Beirut or in Salalah?
At $1,055 in Salalah versus $1,666 in Beirut, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Salalah but tight or insufficient in Beirut. The gap between the two cities makes Salalah the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Is it better to live in Beirut or in Salalah?
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.
Which city is safer, Beirut or Salalah?
Safety-wise, Beirut and Salalah are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.
Which city is easier to live in as a foreigner?
Expats usually find Salalah gentler on the wallet – expenses run 58% less than in Beirut. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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