Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cairo and Qena

For one person, living is cheaper in Qena: $459 a month against $635 in Cairo, rent and utilities included – about $2,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

31

Cost of Living Index in Cairo
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Cairo Living Index
22

Cost of Living Index in Qena
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Qena Living Index

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Cairo

🇪🇬 Egypt

$635

/mo nomad

Qena

🇪🇬 Egypt

$459

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cairo and in Qena

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

A single person spends $635 per month in Cairo vs $459 in Qena, rent included.

Cairo $635
Qena $459

A couple spends around $1,010 per month in Cairo vs $738 in Qena, rent included.

Cairo $1,010
Qena $738

A family of three spends $1,385 per month in Cairo vs $1,018 in Qena, rent included.

Cairo $1,385
Qena $1,018

Cairo costs about 39% more than Qena, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Cairo and Qena are more affordable than the global median – Cairo 53% lower, Qena 66% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.63 E£247

$3.85 E£205

20.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$27.66 E£1,477

$15.46 E£826

78.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.83 E£311

$5.62 E£300

3.74%

Cappuccino

$1.69 E£90.1

$2.04 E£109

-17.16%

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

$0.35 E£18.79

$0.48 E£25.57

-27.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.13 E£6.86

$0.17 E£9.12

-23.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.47 E£78.3

$1.91 E£102

-23.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.21 E£118

$3.06 E£163

-27.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.94 E£50.5

$0.94 E£50.1

White Bread (500g)

$0.79 E£41.96

$0.77 E£40.94

2.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.70 E£37.41

$0.58 E£31.01

20.69%

Eggs

$1.12 E£59.5

$1.94 E£103

-42.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.08 E£218

$3.29 E£175

24.01%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.77 E£255

$5.63 E£301

-15.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.81 E£470

$9.47 E£506

-6.97%

Apples (1kg)

$1.68 E£89.7

$1.46 E£78.1

15.07%

Banana (1kg)

$0.71 E£38.07

$0.48 E£25.55

47.92%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.59 E£31.31

$0.40 E£21.54

47.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.51 E£27.06

$0.39 E£20.82

30.77%

Potato (1kg)

$0.37 E£19.81

$0.35 E£18.47

5.71%

Onion (1kg)

$0.44 E£23.47

$0.36 E£19.46

22.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.34 E£18.37

$0.27 E£14.31

25.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.21 E£11.16

$0.19 E£10.31

10.53%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.99 E£106

$2.24 E£120

-11.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.49 E£400

$7.19 E£384

4.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.51 E£80.4

$1.25 E£66.7

20.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.08 E£111

$1.72 E£91.9

20.93%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 E£18.29

$0.18 E£9.83

88.89%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.31 E£444

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.40 E£21.48

$0.37 E£19.71

8.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.19 E£9.99

$0.21 E£11.03

-9.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.50 E£80.0

$1.20 E£63.8

25.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.45 E£23.77

$0.42 E£22.55

7.14%

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

$33.1K E£1.8M

$31.6K E£1.7M

4.64%

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

$26.1K E£1.4M

$21.8K E£1.2M

19.91%

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

$27.62 E£1,475

$24.89 E£1,329

10.97%

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

$7.83 E£418

$7.88 E£421

-0.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$14.39 E£769

$9.41 E£503

52.92%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.62 E£1,528

$15.98 E£853

79.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.47 E£399

Cinema Ticket

$4.56 E£244

$3.46 E£185

31.79%

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

$120 E£6,417

$98.5 E£5,261

21.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,476 E£185.6K

$590 E£31.5K

489.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$39.13 E£2,090

$20.53 E£1,096

90.60%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.04 E£2,619

$33.77 E£1,803

45.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 E£5,934

$117 E£6,240

-4.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.0 E£3,043

$29.01 E£1,549

96.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$215 E£11.5K

$131 E£7,012

63.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$196 E£10.5K

$74.6 E£3,984

162.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$542 E£28.9K

$258 E£13.8K

109.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$338 E£18.0K

$146 E£7,795

131.53%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$830 E£44.3K

$761 E£40.6K

9.12%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$512 E£27.3K

$356 E£19.0K

43.93%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$195 E£10.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

16.21

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

Last update for Cairo: October 18, 2026

Last update for Qena: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cairo

$196 30.8%

Qena

$75 16.3% 61.9% $121

Groceries & Markets

Cairo

$137 21.6%

Qena

$137 29.8% 0.5% $0.7

Clothing & Footwear

Cairo

$115 18.2%

Qena

$90 19.6% 21.9% $25

Eating Out

Cairo

$88 13.9%

Qena

$90 19.7% 2.1% $1.9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cairo

$50 7.8%

Qena

$42 9.2% 15.4% $7.7

Sport & Entertainment

Cairo

$38 5.9%

Qena

$23 5% 39.3% $15

Getting Around

Cairo

$11 1.7%

Qena

$2.1 * 0.5% 80.6% $8.9

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $215 in Cairo versus $131 in Qena. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $28.00 in Cairo versus $15.00 in Qena. Groceries tell a different story – $137 in Cairo vs $137 in Qena – so Cairo wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇪🇬 Cairo

🇪🇬 Qena

🕒 Local time

23:03 11:03 PM

Same time as Cairo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,120,350 Capital

235,362

💱 Currency

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 EGP = 1.87 USD

100 EGP = 1.67 EUR

100 EGP = 1.87 USD

100 EGP = 1.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Cairo Qena 460 km

From you

Cairo
Qena

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 Qena: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

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

For a comfortable life, plan on about $953 per month in Cairo and $688 in Qena. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Qena, 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 $635 in Cairo and $459 in Qena. That's a gap of about 39%.

Kindergarten costs $120 per month in Cairo and $98.5 in Qena. 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 $635 in Cairo and $459 in Qena, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Qena – 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 Qena. 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.