Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cairo and Istočno Sarajevo

For one person, living is cheaper in Cairo: $647 a month against $897 in Istočno Sarajevo, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

32

Cost of Living Index in Cairo
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Cairo Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Istočno Sarajevo
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Istočno Sarajevo Living Index

Jump to prices

Cairo

🇪🇬 Egypt

$647

/mo nomad

Istočno Sarajevo

🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina

$897

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cairo and in Istočno Sarajevo

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 Istočno Sarajevo actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $647 per month in Cairo vs $897 in Istočno Sarajevo, rent included.

Cairo $647
Istočno Sarajevo $897

A couple spends around $1,035 per month in Cairo vs $1,364 in Istočno Sarajevo, rent included.

Cairo $1,035
Istočno Sarajevo $1,364

A family of three spends $1,423 per month in Cairo vs $1,830 in Istočno Sarajevo, rent included.

Cairo $1,423
Istočno Sarajevo $1,830

Cairo is about 28% cheaper than Istočno Sarajevo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Cairo and Istočno Sarajevo are more affordable than the global median – Cairo 52% lower, Istočno Sarajevo 34% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.64 E£245

$8.61 BAM 15.02

-46.11%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$28.12 E£1,483

$37.53 BAM 65.5

-25.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.03 E£318

$6.83 BAM 11.92

-11.71%

Cappuccino

$1.72 E£91.0

$1.74 BAM 3.05

-1.15%

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

$0.36 E£19.14

$2.02 BAM 3.53

-82.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.12 E£6.33

$1.47 BAM 2.57

-91.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.51 E£79.4

$2.30 BAM 4.02

-34.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.32 E£122

$2.25 BAM 3.92

3.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.92 E£48.32

$1.45 BAM 2.54

-36.55%

White Bread (500g)

$0.73 E£38.44

$1.30 BAM 2.27

-43.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.74 E£39.15

$2.14 BAM 3.73

-65.42%

Eggs

$1.19 E£62.9

$3.16 BAM 5.51

-62.34%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.33 E£229

$10.31 BAM 18.00

-58.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.03 E£265

$7.76 BAM 13.54

-35.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.28 E£489

$14.34 BAM 25.03

-35.29%

Apples (1kg)

$1.77 E£93.2

$1.48 BAM 2.58

19.59%

Banana (1kg)

$0.73 E£38.55

$1.59 BAM 2.78

-54.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.55 E£29.15

$1.56 BAM 2.72

-64.74%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.50 E£26.58

$1.72 BAM 3.00

-70.93%

Potato (1kg)

$0.42 E£22.14

$0.99 BAM 1.74

-57.58%

Onion (1kg)

$0.41 E£21.54

$1.10 BAM 1.93

-62.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.33 E£17.30

$1.08 BAM 1.88

-69.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.21 E£11.06

$0.91 BAM 1.58

-76.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.98 E£104

$3.86 BAM 6.74

-48.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.81 E£412

$7.86 BAM 13.72

-0.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 E£83.6

$0.89 BAM 1.56

78.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 E£110

$1.54 BAM 2.69

35.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.35 E£18.60

$1.47 BAM 2.57

-76.19%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.69 E£458

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.39 E£20.76

$1.39 BAM 2.43

-71.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.22 E£11.43

$1.17 BAM 2.04

-81.20%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.51 E£79.5

$8.32 BAM 14.53

-81.85%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.43 E£22.59

$1.58 BAM 2.76

-72.78%

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

$32.7K E£1.7M

$29.3K BAM 51.2K

11.50%

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

$27.2K E£1.4M

$21.8K BAM 38.1K

24.70%

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

$27.27 E£1,438

$91.6 BAM 160

-70.23%

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

$8.58 E£453

$18.17 BAM 31.71

-52.78%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.99 E£738

$28.32 BAM 49.44

-50.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.69 E£1,566

$33.17 BAM 57.9

-10.49%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.25 E£383

$13.57 BAM 23.68

-46.57%

Cinema Ticket

$4.86 E£256

$5.70 BAM 9.95

-14.74%

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

$121 E£6,359

$133 BAM 232

-9.13%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,560 E£187.7K

$3,916 BAM 6,835

-9.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$40.28 E£2,125

$87.7 BAM 153

-54.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.53 E£2,612

$32.35 BAM 56.5

53.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$115 E£6,061

$89.7 BAM 157

28.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.0 E£3,167

$99.2 BAM 173

-39.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$222 E£11.7K

$213 BAM 372

4.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$195 E£10.3K

$185 BAM 323

5.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$550 E£29.0K

$261 BAM 455

110.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$346 E£18.3K

$210 BAM 367

64.61%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$800 E£42.2K

$1,747 BAM 3,050

-54.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$525 E£27.7K

$1,393 BAM 2,432

-62.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$200 E£10.5K

$717 BAM 1,252

-72.15%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

16.21

4.08

297.30%

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

Last update for Cairo: October 11, 2026

Last update for Istočno Sarajevo: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cairo

$195 30.2%

Istočno Sarajevo

$185 20.6% 5.2% $10

Groceries & Markets

Cairo

$142 21.9%

Istočno Sarajevo

$237 26.4% 67.1% $95

Clothing & Footwear

Cairo

$119 18.4%

Istočno Sarajevo

$139 15.5% 16.7% $20

Eating Out

Cairo

$90 13.9%

Istočno Sarajevo

$140 15.6% 55.8% $50

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cairo

$50 7.7%

Istočno Sarajevo

$138 15.4% 177% $88

Sport & Entertainment

Cairo

$39 6.1%

Istočno Sarajevo

$45 5% 13.1% $5.2

Getting Around

Cairo

$12 1.8%

Istočno Sarajevo

$13 * 1.5% 13.4% $1.6

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $222 in Cairo versus $213 in Istočno Sarajevo. 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 259% higher in Istočno Sarajevo, 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 $38.00 in Istočno Sarajevo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $142 vs $237 – making Cairo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇪🇬 Cairo

🇧🇦 Istočno Sarajevo

🕒 Local time

15:02 3:02 PM

14:02 2:02 PM

1 h behind Cairo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,120,350 Capital

10,642

💱 Currency

Egyptian Pound EGP £

Bosnia and Herzegovina Convertible Mark BAM KM

📈 Exchange rate

100 EGP = 1.9 USD

100 EGP = 1.69 EUR

1 BAM = 0.573 USD

1 BAM = 0.511 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BAM, USD, EUR to EGP – Egyptian Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇬 Egyptian Pound (£)

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 52.74 EGP (100 EGP = 1.9 USD). 1 EUR = 59.09 EGP (100 EGP = 1.69 EUR).

Bosnia and Herzegovina Convertible Mark exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 1.75 BAM (1 BAM = 0.573 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BAM (1 BAM = 0.511 EUR).

USD to EGP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cairo Istočno Sarajevo 1,900 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Cairo
Istočno Sarajevo

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 Istočno Sarajevo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Istočno Sarajevo is pricier by about 39%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $970 per month in Cairo and $1,345 in Istočno Sarajevo. 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.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $647 in Cairo and $897 in Istočno Sarajevo. That's a gap of about 39%.

Kindergarten costs $121 per month in Cairo and $133 in Istočno Sarajevo. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $647 in Cairo and $897 in Istočno Sarajevo, 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.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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