Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Benalmadena and Al Khobar

For one person, living is cheaper in Al Khobar: $1,487 a month against $1,849 in Benalmadena, rent and utilities included – about $4,300 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Benalmadena outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

88

Cost of Living Index in Benalmadena
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Benalmadena Living Index
72

Cost of Living Index in Al Khobar
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Al Khobar Living Index

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Benalmadena

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,849

/mo nomad

Al Khobar

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,487

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Benalmadena and in Al Khobar

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,849 in Benalmadena versus $1,487 in Al Khobar.

Benalmadena $1,849
Al Khobar $1,487

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,778 in Benalmadena versus $2,252 in Al Khobar.

Benalmadena $2,778
Al Khobar $2,252

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,707 in Benalmadena versus $3,016 in Al Khobar.

Benalmadena $3,707
Al Khobar $3,016

Living in Benalmadena is roughly 24% more expensive than in Al Khobar, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Benalmadena 36% above, Al Khobar 9% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.63 €13.10

$6.81 SAR 25.57

114.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.7 €60.6

$59.9 SAR 225

12.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.37 €8.39

$8.00 SAR 30.01

17.12%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.61 SAR 9.80

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.64 SAR 9.92

Cappuccino

$2.17 €1.95

$4.43 SAR 16.64

-51.02%

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

$2.13 €1.90

$0.87 SAR 3.26

144.83%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 €1.89

$0.40 SAR 1.52

427.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.25 €2.91

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.40 €3.94

Milk (1 liter)

$1.23 €1.10

$1.69 SAR 6.36

-27.22%

White Bread (500g)

$1.66 €1.49

$1.27 SAR 4.76

30.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$2.54 SAR 9.53

-28.35%

Eggs

$3.32 €2.97

$2.45 SAR 9.21

35.51%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.32 €13.72

$7.28 SAR 27.33

110.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.17 €7.32

$10.16 SAR 38.14

-19.59%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.17 €14.48

$11.86 SAR 44.50

36.34%

Apples (1kg)

$2.56 €2.29

$2.66 SAR 9.97

-3.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.89 €1.70

$1.69 SAR 6.36

11.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.80 €1.61

$2.04 SAR 7.66

-11.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.45 €2.20

$1.75 SAR 6.56

40.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$1.40 SAR 5.27

32.14%

Onion (1kg)

$2.05 €1.83

$1.65 SAR 6.20

24.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.29

$1.75 SAR 6.55

-17.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.74 €0.66

$0.58 SAR 2.18

27.59%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$2.73 SAR 10.26

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.65 SAR 6.18

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 SAR 7.13

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.42 €5.75

$6.75 SAR 25.31

-4.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.83 €6.11

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 €1.06

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.99 €1.78

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.02 €1.81

$0.95 SAR 3.55

112.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.41 €27.23

$61.9 SAR 232

-50.87%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.91 €1.71

$2.90 SAR 10.88

-34.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.21 €1.09

$2.64 SAR 9.89

-54.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$22.35 €20.01

$6.58 SAR 24.68

239.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.83 €1.64

$0.64 SAR 2.39

185.94%

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

$34.2K €30.6K

$67.8K SAR 254.5K

-49.59%

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

$30.9K €27.7K

$21.6K SAR 81.0K

43.24%

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

$140 €125

$99.4 SAR 373

40.91%

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

$12.85 €11.51

$33.37 SAR 125

-61.49%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.12 €28.77

$68.9 SAR 259

-53.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.94 €43.83

$81.3 SAR 305

-39.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.68 €14.04

$36.86 SAR 138

-57.46%

Cinema Ticket

$7.99 €7.16

$15.26 SAR 57.3

-47.64%

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

$566 €507

$607 SAR 2,279

-6.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,540 €8,544

$8,542 SAR 32.1K

11.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.3 €80.0

$63.4 SAR 238

41.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.33 €35.22

$82.3 SAR 309

-52.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.9 €85.9

$97.8 SAR 367

-1.99%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$114 €102

$94.4 SAR 354

20.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$945 €847

$766 SAR 2,876

23.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$910 €815

$583 SAR 2,189

56.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,680 €1,504

$1,247 SAR 4,678

34.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,504 €1,347

$906 SAR 3,401

65.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,126 €3,695

$1,456 SAR 5,464

183.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,499 €3,134

$1,072 SAR 4,025

226.30%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,882 €3,477

$1,877 SAR 7,045

106.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.3

5.88

-43.88%

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

Last update for Benalmadena: October 27, 2026

Last update for Al Khobar: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Benalmadena

$910 49.3%

Al Khobar

$583 39.2% 35.9% $327

Groceries & Markets

Benalmadena

$276 14.9%

Al Khobar

$220 14.8% 20.5% $57

Eating Out

Benalmadena

$213 11.5%

Al Khobar

$137 9.2% 35.8% $76

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Benalmadena

$185 10%

Al Khobar

$202 13.6% 9% $17

Clothing & Footwear

Benalmadena

$152 8.2%

Al Khobar

$152 10.2% 0.2% $0.3

Sport & Entertainment

Benalmadena

$65 3.5%

Al Khobar

$112 7.5% 72.2% $47

Getting Around

Benalmadena

$46 2.5%

Al Khobar

$82 5.5% 76% $35

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $945 in Benalmadena and $766 in Al Khobar. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Benalmadena pays about 2.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $68 in Benalmadena vs $60 in Al Khobar for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $276 vs $220 per month, with Al Khobar cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Benalmadena

🇸🇦 Al Khobar

🕒 Local time

23:16 11:16 PM

01:16 1:16 AM

2 h ahead of Benalmadena

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

75,801

219,679

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.239 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Benalmadena Al Khobar 5,250 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Benalmadena
Al Khobar

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

Benalmadena vs Al Khobar: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Al Khobar wins on cost – living expenses run 20% lower than in Benalmadena. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Al Khobar the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Benalmadena is about 2.1 times higher, 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: $945 in Benalmadena versus $766 in Al Khobar. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Benalmadena runs roughly 51% less than in Al Khobar. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $566 in Benalmadena versus $607 in Al Khobar. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Al Khobar is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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, Benalmadena and Al Khobar are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Al Khobar wins on affordability, Benalmadena on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.