Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buraydah and Al Khobar

For one person, living is cheaper in Buraydah: $1,226 a month against $1,487 in Al Khobar, rent and utilities included – about $3,100 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Al Khobar outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

60

Cost of Living Index in Buraydah
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Buraydah Living Index
72

Cost of Living Index in Al Khobar
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Al Khobar Living Index

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Buraydah

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,226

/mo nomad

Al Khobar

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,487

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,226 in Buraydah versus $1,487 in Al Khobar.

Buraydah $1,226
Al Khobar $1,487

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,036 in Buraydah versus $2,252 in Al Khobar.

Buraydah $2,036
Al Khobar $2,252

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,845 in Buraydah versus $3,016 in Al Khobar.

Buraydah $2,845
Al Khobar $3,016

Living in Buraydah costs roughly 18% less than in Al Khobar, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Buraydah is 10% below, Al Khobar is 9% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.15 SAR 49.33

$6.81 SAR 25.56

93.10%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.53 SAR 148

$59.9 SAR 225

-34.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.99 SAR 29.98

$8.00 SAR 30.00

-0.12%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.88 SAR 7.07

$2.61 SAR 9.79

-27.97%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 SAR 4.91

$2.64 SAR 9.91

-50.38%

Cappuccino

$3.54 SAR 13.26

$4.43 SAR 16.63

-20.09%

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

$0.79 SAR 2.96

$0.87 SAR 3.26

-9.20%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.26 SAR 0.97

$0.40 SAR 1.52

-35.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 SAR 6.25

$1.69 SAR 6.36

-1.18%

White Bread (500g)

$1.10 SAR 4.14

$1.27 SAR 4.76

-13.39%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.53 SAR 9.50

$2.54 SAR 9.53

-0.39%

Eggs

$2.89 SAR 10.82

$2.45 SAR 9.21

17.96%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.31 SAR 31.18

$7.28 SAR 27.33

14.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.57 SAR 24.64

$10.16 SAR 38.13

-35.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.54 SAR 50.8

$11.86 SAR 44.48

14.17%

Apples (1kg)

$2.28 SAR 8.56

$2.66 SAR 9.97

-14.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.83 SAR 6.87

$1.69 SAR 6.36

8.28%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.74 SAR 6.53

$2.04 SAR 7.66

-14.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.75 SAR 6.58

$1.75 SAR 6.56

Potato (1kg)

$1.40 SAR 5.25

$1.40 SAR 5.27

Onion (1kg)

$1.30 SAR 4.88

$1.65 SAR 6.20

-21.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.05 SAR 3.94

$1.75 SAR 6.55

-40.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 SAR 2.52

$0.58 SAR 2.18

15.52%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.81 SAR 6.81

$2.73 SAR 10.26

-33.70%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 SAR 5.54

$1.65 SAR 6.18

-10.30%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.58 SAR 9.67

$1.90 SAR 7.13

35.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.23 SAR 23.36

$6.75 SAR 25.31

-7.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.08 SAR 4.04

$0.95 SAR 3.55

13.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$37.57 SAR 141

$61.9 SAR 232

-39.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.62 SAR 9.85

$2.90 SAR 10.88

-9.66%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.70 SAR 10.13

$2.64 SAR 9.89

2.27%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.75 SAR 62.8

$6.58 SAR 24.67

154.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.59 SAR 2.22

$0.64 SAR 2.39

-7.81%

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

$42.2K SAR 158.3K

$67.8K SAR 254.4K

-37.76%

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

$23.0K SAR 86.1K

$21.6K SAR 81.0K

6.40%

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

$69.9 SAR 262

$99.4 SAR 373

-29.64%

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

$31.54 SAR 118

$33.37 SAR 125

-5.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$70.1 SAR 263

$68.9 SAR 258

1.68%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$138 SAR 517

$81.3 SAR 305

69.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.66 SAR 134

$36.86 SAR 138

-3.26%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 SAR 56.6

$15.26 SAR 57.3

-1.11%

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

$269 SAR 1,010

$607 SAR 2,278

-55.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,800 SAR 14.3K

$8,542 SAR 32.0K

-55.51%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.1 SAR 195

$63.4 SAR 238

-17.76%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.4 SAR 204

$82.3 SAR 309

-33.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.4 SAR 301

$97.8 SAR 367

-17.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$70.9 SAR 266

$94.4 SAR 354

-24.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$700 SAR 2,627

$766 SAR 2,875

-8.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$332 SAR 1,245

$583 SAR 2,189

-43.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$905 SAR 3,396

$1,247 SAR 4,677

-27.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$827 SAR 3,103

$906 SAR 3,400

-8.73%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,949 SAR 7,311

$1,456 SAR 5,462

33.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,335 SAR 5,007

$1,072 SAR 4,023

24.45%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,467 SAR 9,254

$1,877 SAR 7,043

31.39%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.98

5.88

-32.31%

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

Last update for Buraydah: 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

Buraydah

$332 27.1%

Al Khobar

$583 39.2% 75.8% $252

Groceries & Markets

Buraydah

$205 16.7%

Al Khobar

$220 14.8% 7.2% $15

Eating Out

Buraydah

$176 14.3%

Al Khobar

$137 9.2% 22.2% $39

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buraydah

$172 14%

Al Khobar

$202 13.6% 17.6% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Buraydah

$168 13.7%

Al Khobar

$112 7.5% 33.4% $56

Clothing & Footwear

Buraydah

$116 9.5%

Al Khobar

$152 10.2% 31.1% $36

Getting Around

Buraydah

$58 4.7%

Al Khobar

$82 5.5% 41% $24

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $700 in Buraydah and $766 in Al Khobar. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Buraydah pays 31% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $40 in Buraydah vs $60 in Al Khobar for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $205 vs $220 per month, with Buraydah cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Buraydah

🇸🇦 Al Khobar

🕒 Local time

06:08 6:08 AM

Same time as Buraydah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

467,410

219,679

💱 Currency

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

1 SAR = 0.267 USD

1 SAR = 0.239 EUR

1 SAR = 0.267 USD

1 SAR = 0.239 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Buraydah Al Khobar 620 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Buraydah
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

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

Buraydah wins on cost – living expenses run 18% lower than in Al Khobar. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Buraydah the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 31% higher in Buraydah, 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: $700 in Buraydah 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 Buraydah runs roughly 39% less than in Al Khobar. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $269 in Buraydah 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. Buraydah 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, Buraydah and Al Khobar are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Buraydah gentler on the wallet – expenses run 18% less than in Al Khobar. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.