Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cairo and Elbasan

For one person, living is cheaper in Cairo: $647 a month against $882 in Elbasan, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

32

Cost of Living Index in Cairo
Learn more

Cairo Living Index
43

Cost of Living Index in Elbasan
Learn more

Elbasan Living Index

Jump to prices

Cairo

🇪🇬 Egypt

$647

/mo nomad

Elbasan

🇦🇱 Albania

$882

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cairo and in Elbasan

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

A single person spends $647 per month in Cairo vs $882 in Elbasan, rent included.

Cairo $647
Elbasan $882

A couple spends around $1,035 per month in Cairo vs $1,391 in Elbasan, rent included.

Cairo $1,035
Elbasan $1,391

A family of three spends $1,423 per month in Cairo vs $1,901 in Elbasan, rent included.

Cairo $1,423
Elbasan $1,901

Cairo is about 27% cheaper than Elbasan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Cairo and Elbasan are more affordable than the global median – Cairo 52% lower, Elbasan 35% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.64 E£248

$9.79 ALL 788

-52.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$28.12 E£1,501

$36.36 ALL 2,928

-22.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.03 E£322

$6.85 ALL 552

-11.97%

Cappuccino

$1.72 E£92.1

$1.68 ALL 135

2.38%

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

$0.36 E£19.38

$1.35 ALL 109

-73.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.12 E£6.41

$0.63 ALL 50.8

-80.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.51 E£80.4

$2.16 ALL 174

-30.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.32 E£124

$2.83 ALL 228

-18.02%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.92 E£48.92

$1.88 ALL 151

-51.06%

White Bread (500g)

$0.73 E£38.92

$0.91 ALL 73.4

-19.78%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.74 E£39.64

$1.62 ALL 131

-54.32%

Eggs

$1.19 E£63.7

$2.70 ALL 218

-55.93%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.33 E£231

$9.98 ALL 804

-56.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.03 E£269

$5.87 ALL 473

-14.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.28 E£496

$11.19 ALL 901

-17.07%

Apples (1kg)

$1.77 E£94.4

$1.20 ALL 96.3

47.50%

Banana (1kg)

$0.73 E£39.03

$2.28 ALL 184

-67.98%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.55 E£29.51

$1.36 ALL 109

-59.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.50 E£26.91

$1.07 ALL 86.1

-53.27%

Potato (1kg)

$0.42 E£22.42

$0.98 ALL 79.0

-57.14%

Onion (1kg)

$0.41 E£21.81

$1.09 ALL 87.5

-62.39%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.33 E£17.51

$0.81 ALL 65.1

-59.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.21 E£11.20

$0.65 ALL 52.1

-67.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.98 E£106

$4.38 ALL 353

-54.79%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.81 E£417

$8.07 ALL 649

-3.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 E£84.7

$1.02 ALL 82.0

55.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 E£112

$1.85 ALL 149

12.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.35 E£18.83

$0.48 ALL 38.46

-27.08%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.69 E£464

$19.51 ALL 1,571

-55.46%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.39 E£21.02

$3.77 ALL 303

-89.66%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.22 E£11.57

$1.51 ALL 122

-85.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.51 E£80.5

$14.94 ALL 1,203

-89.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.43 E£22.88

$2.15 ALL 173

-80.00%

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

$32.7K E£1.7M

$28.9K ALL 2.3M

13.05%

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

$27.2K E£1.5M

$29.9K ALL 2.4M

-8.94%

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

$27.27 E£1,456

$61.1 ALL 4,918

-55.35%

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

$8.58 E£458

$15.20 ALL 1,224

-43.55%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.99 E£747

$12.00 ALL 966

16.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.69 E£1,585

$56.6 ALL 4,558

-47.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.25 E£387

$17.22 ALL 1,386

-57.90%

Cinema Ticket

$4.86 E£260

$4.33 ALL 349

12.24%

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

$121 E£6,438

$139 ALL 11.2K

-13.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,560 E£190.1K

$1,835 ALL 147.8K

93.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$40.28 E£2,151

$72.1 ALL 5,804

-44.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.53 E£2,645

$44.85 ALL 3,611

10.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$115 E£6,137

$94.8 ALL 7,630

21.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.0 E£3,206

$96.3 ALL 7,754

-37.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$222 E£11.9K

$299 ALL 24.1K

-25.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$195 E£10.4K

$204 ALL 16.4K

-4.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$550 E£29.3K

$442 ALL 35.6K

24.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$346 E£18.5K

$311 ALL 25.1K

11.23%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$800 E£42.7K

$1,361 ALL 109.6K

-41.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$525 E£28.0K

$858 ALL 69.1K

-38.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$200 E£10.7K

$539 ALL 43.4K

-62.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

16.21

6.1

165.74%

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

Last update for Cairo: October 11, 2026

Last update for Elbasan: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cairo

$195 30.2%

Elbasan

$204 23.1% 4.5% $8.8

Groceries & Markets

Cairo

$142 21.9%

Elbasan

$210 23.8% 47.8% $68

Clothing & Footwear

Cairo

$119 18.4%

Elbasan

$139 15.7% 16.3% $19

Eating Out

Cairo

$90 13.9%

Elbasan

$143 16.3% 59.3% $53

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cairo

$50 7.7%

Elbasan

$88 10% 77.1% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Cairo

$39 6.1%

Elbasan

$65 7.4% 65.6% $26

Getting Around

Cairo

$12 1.8%

Elbasan

$33 3.7% 183% $21

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $222 in Cairo versus $299 in Elbasan. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 170% higher in Elbasan, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $28.00 in Cairo versus $36.00 in Elbasan. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $142 vs $210 – making Cairo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇪🇬 Cairo

🇦🇱 Elbasan

🕒 Local time

05:21 5:21 AM

04:21 4:21 AM

1 h behind Cairo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,120,350 Capital

78,703

💱 Currency

Egyptian Pound EGP £

Albanian Lek ALL L

📈 Exchange rate

100 EGP = 1.87 USD

100 EGP = 1.67 EUR

100 ALL = 1.24 USD

100 ALL = 1.1 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ALL, USD, EUR to EGP – Egyptian Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇬 Egyptian Pound (£)

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 53.4 EGP (100 EGP = 1.87 USD). 1 EUR = 60.03 EGP (100 EGP = 1.67 EUR).

Albanian Lek exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 80.53 ALL (100 ALL = 1.24 USD). 1 EUR = 90.53 ALL (100 ALL = 1.1 EUR).

USD to EGP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cairo Elbasan 1,590 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Cairo
Elbasan

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

Cairo vs Elbasan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Elbasan is pricier by about 36%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $970 per month in Cairo and $1,322 in Elbasan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cairo, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Groceries cost about 48% more in Elbasan, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $28.00 in Cairo and $36.00 in Elbasan. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

$1,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $647 in Cairo and $882 in Elbasan, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Cairo – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Cairo. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Elbasan makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.