Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cairo and Masallatah

For one person, living is cheaper in Masallatah: $369 a month against $647 in Cairo, rent and utilities included – about $3,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

Cairo
🇪🇬 Egypt
$647
/mo nomad
Masallatah
🇱🇾 Libya
$369
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cairo and in Masallatah

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

A single person spends $647 per month in Cairo vs $369 in Masallatah, rent included.

  • Cairo $647
  • Masallatah $369

A couple spends around $1,035 per month in Cairo vs $571 in Masallatah, rent included.

  • Cairo $1,035
  • Masallatah $571

A family of three spends $1,423 per month in Cairo vs $773 in Masallatah, rent included.

  • Cairo $1,423
  • Masallatah $773

Cairo costs about 75% more than Masallatah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Cairo and Masallatah are more affordable than the global median – Cairo 52% lower, Masallatah 73% lower.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Cairo
Masallatah
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$4.64 E£248
$3.83 LYD 24.54
21.15%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$28.12 E£1,501
$15.66 LYD 100
79.57%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$6.03 E£322
$2.56 LYD 16.42
135.55%
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)
-
$0.65 LYD 4.15
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$0.72 LYD 4.60
-
Cappuccino
$1.72 E£92.1
$0.48 LYD 3.08
258.33%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.36 E£19.38
$0.46 LYD 2.94
-21.74%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.12 E£6.41
$0.10 LYD 0.63
20.00%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.51 E£80.4
-
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.32 E£124
-
-
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Cairo
Masallatah
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$0.92 E£48.92
$0.92 LYD 5.91
-
White Bread (500g)
$0.73 E£38.92
$0.20 LYD 1.28
265.00%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$0.74 E£39.64
$1.17 LYD 7.51
-36.75%
Eggs
$1.19 E£63.7
$1.42 LYD 9.12
-16.20%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$4.33 E£231
$5.35 LYD 34.29
-19.07%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$5.03 E£269
$3.49 LYD 22.35
44.13%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$9.28 E£496
$9.36 LYD 60.0
-0.85%
Apples (1kg)
$1.77 E£94.4
$2.26 LYD 14.48
-21.68%
Banana (1kg)
$0.73 E£39.03
$1.49 LYD 9.52
-51.01%
Oranges (1kg)
$0.55 E£29.51
$0.68 LYD 4.37
-19.12%
Tomato (1kg)
$0.50 E£26.91
$0.56 LYD 3.56
-10.71%
Potato (1kg)
$0.42 E£22.42
$0.71 LYD 4.52
-40.85%
Onion (1kg)
$0.41 E£21.81
$0.47 LYD 3.00
-12.77%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.33 E£17.51
$0.39 LYD 2.52
-15.38%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.21 E£11.20
$0.16 LYD 1.04
31.25%
Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)
-
$1.75 LYD 11.23
-
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
-
$0.97 LYD 6.23
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$0.82 LYD 5.25
-
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$1.98 E£106
$1.96 LYD 12.59
1.02%
Wine (Bottle)
$7.81 E£417
-
-
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.59 E£84.7
-
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.09 E£112
-
-
🚌 Getting Around
Cairo
Masallatah
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.35 E£18.83
-
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$8.69 E£464
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.39 E£21.02
$0.75 LYD 4.82
-48.00%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.22 E£11.57
$0.45 LYD 2.87
-51.11%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$1.51 E£80.5
-
-
Gasoline (1 liter)
$0.43 E£22.88
$0.02 LYD 0.13
2050.00%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$32.7K E£1.7M
$23.2K LYD 148.4K
41.17%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$27.2K E£1.5M
$21.1K LYD 135.2K
29.06%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cairo
Masallatah
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$27.27 E£1,456
$93.4 LYD 598
-70.79%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$8.58 E£458
$6.20 LYD 39.71
38.39%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$13.99 E£747
$27.43 LYD 176
-49.00%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Cairo
Masallatah
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$29.69 E£1,585
-
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$7.25 E£387
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$4.86 E£260
-
-
🧸 Childcare & Education
Cairo
Masallatah
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$121 E£6,438
$52.9 LYD 339
127.92%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$3,560 E£190.1K
$1,528 LYD 9,792
132.96%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Cairo
Masallatah
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$40.28 E£2,151
$22.85 LYD 146
76.28%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$49.53 E£2,645
$17.53 LYD 112
182.54%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$115 E£6,137
$65.2 LYD 418
76.28%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$60.0 E£3,206
$65.1 LYD 417
-7.77%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Cairo
Masallatah
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$222 E£11.9K
-
-
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$195 E£10.4K
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$550 E£29.3K
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$346 E£18.5K
-
-
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$800 E£42.7K
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$525 E£28.0K
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Cairo
Masallatah
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$200 E£10.7K
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
16.21
0
-

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

Last update for Cairo: October 11, 2026

Last update for Masallatah: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Cairo
$195
Masallatah
- * 100%
Groceries & Markets
Cairo
$142
Masallatah
$115 18.5% $26
Clothing & Footwear
Cairo
$119
Masallatah
$77 35.5% $42
Eating Out
Cairo
$90
Masallatah
$46 48.6% $44
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cairo
$50
Masallatah
$127 155% $77
Sport & Entertainment
Cairo
$39
Masallatah
- * 100%
Getting Around
Cairo
$12
Masallatah
$3 * 74.2% $8.6

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $28.00 in Cairo versus $16.00 in Masallatah. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $142 vs $115 – making Masallatah the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇪🇬 Cairo
🇱🇾 Masallatah
🕒 Local time
20:23 8:23 PM
19:23 7:23 PM
1 h behind Cairo
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
9,120,350 Capital
💱 Currency
Libyan Dinar LYD ل.د
Exchange rates and currency converter

LYD, USD, EUR to EGP – Egyptian Pound Converter

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).

Libyan Dinar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 6.41 LYD (1 LYD = 0.156 USD). 1 EUR = 7.2 LYD (1 LYD = 0.139 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Cairo Masallatah 1,660 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Cairo
  • Masallatah

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 Masallatah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Masallatah cheaper than Cairo?
Yes – Cairo is pricier by about 75%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $970 per month in Cairo and $553 in Masallatah. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
What are total monthly expenses in Cairo and in Masallatah?
Monthly expenses with rent come to $647 in Cairo and $369 in Masallatah. That's a gap of about 75%.
Which city has cheaper kindergarten?
Kindergarten costs $121 per month in Cairo and $52.9 in Masallatah. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.
Is $1,000 enough for either Cairo or Masallatah?
$1,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $647 in Cairo and $369 in Masallatah, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.
Is Cairo or Masallatah more family-friendly?
Families tend to lean toward Masallatah – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.
Which city is the better choice to relocate to?
If budget matters most, go with Masallatah. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Cairo makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

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