Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Damascus and Essaouira

For one person, living is cheaper in Essaouira: $782 a month against $869 in Damascus, rent and utilities included – about $1,000 less a year. The total is higher in Damascus despite lower rent and utilities.

42

Cost of Living Index in Damascus
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Damascus Living Index
38

Cost of Living Index in Essaouira
Learn more

Essaouira Living Index

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Damascus

🇸🇾 Syria

$869

/mo nomad

Essaouira

🇲🇦 Morocco

$782

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Damascus and in Essaouira

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $869 in Damascus versus $782 in Essaouira.

Damascus $869
Essaouira $782

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,412 in Damascus versus $1,172 in Essaouira.

Damascus $1,412
Essaouira $1,172

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,954 in Damascus versus $1,562 in Essaouira.

Damascus $1,954
Essaouira $1,562

Living in Damascus is roughly 11% more expensive than in Essaouira, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Damascus 36% lower, Essaouira 42% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.19 SYP 1,238

$4.62 MAD 45.00

120.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.87 SYP 5,209

$18.81 MAD 183

127.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.87 SYP 835

$7.12 MAD 69.4

-3.51%

Cappuccino

$3.75 SYP 455

$1.35 MAD 13.14

177.78%

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

$2.21 SYP 269

$0.47 MAD 4.58

370.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.89 SYP 108

$0.38 MAD 3.68

134.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.05 SYP 249

$5.31 MAD 51.8

-61.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.03 SYP 489

$4.61 MAD 44.93

-12.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.06 SYP 128

$0.90 MAD 8.79

17.78%

White Bread (500g)

$0.41 SYP 50.1

$0.54 MAD 5.25

-24.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.52 SYP 184

$1.67 MAD 16.28

-8.98%

Eggs

$1.62 SYP 197

$1.68 MAD 16.37

-3.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.96 SYP 482

$8.27 MAD 80.6

-52.12%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.60 SYP 680

$5.81 MAD 56.6

-3.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.69 SYP 1,664

$10.62 MAD 104

28.91%

Apples (1kg)

$1.06 SYP 129

$1.30 MAD 12.63

-18.46%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 SYP 166

$1.14 MAD 11.12

20.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.15 SYP 139

$0.72 MAD 7.02

59.72%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.05 SYP 128

$0.77 MAD 7.52

36.36%

Potato (1kg)

$0.79 SYP 96.2

$0.58 MAD 5.67

36.21%

Onion (1kg)

$0.79 SYP 96.5

$0.68 MAD 6.66

16.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.40 SYP 49.16

$0.38 MAD 3.67

5.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.62 SYP 75.2

$0.58 MAD 5.68

6.90%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.81 SYP 342

$3.84 MAD 37.44

-26.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.09 SYP 740

$6.32 MAD 61.6

-3.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.06 SYP 128

$1.82 MAD 17.76

-41.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 SYP 345

$2.13 MAD 20.77

33.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.23 SYP 28.02

$0.82 MAD 7.99

-71.95%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$9.85 SYP 1,198

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.02 SYP 124

$0.64 MAD 6.22

59.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 SYP 179

$0.63 MAD 6.19

134.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.72 SYP 938

Gasoline (1 liter)

$3.70 SYP 450

$1.45 MAD 14.16

155.17%

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

$14.8K SYP 1.8M

$34.6K MAD 337.3K

-57.19%

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

$19.5K SYP 2.4M

$29.5K MAD 287.8K

-33.92%

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

$138 SYP 16.8K

$23.89 MAD 233

479.07%

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

$9.86 SYP 1,198

$17.25 MAD 168

-42.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$45.41 SYP 5,518

$30.01 MAD 293

51.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$27.67 SYP 3,363

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.68 SYP 1,055

Cinema Ticket

$5.56 SYP 675

$5.30 MAD 51.7

4.91%

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

$66.4 SYP 8,068

$69.0 MAD 672

-3.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,758 SYP 213.6K

$1,875 MAD 18.3K

-6.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$28.98 SYP 3,522

$29.38 MAD 286

-1.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.38 SYP 4,907

$44.72 MAD 436

-9.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$59.4 SYP 7,215

$59.0 MAD 576

0.58%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$59.2 SYP 7,197

$41.76 MAD 407

41.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$525 SYP 63.8K

$393 MAD 3,835

33.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$188 SYP 22.8K

$330 MAD 3,217

-43.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$834 SYP 101.3K

$930 MAD 9,071

-10.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$471 SYP 57.3K

$557 MAD 5,433

-15.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,700 SYP 206.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$607 SYP 73.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$72.9 SYP 8,855

$256 MAD 2,498

-71.56%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

14.25

6.5

119.23%

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

Last update for Damascus: October 11, 2026

Last update for Essaouira: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Damascus

$194 22.3%

Essaouira

$71 9.1% 63.2% $122

Accommodation & Living

Damascus

$188 21.6%

Essaouira

$330 42.2% 75.7% $142

Eating Out

Damascus

$178 20.5%

Essaouira

$114 14.5% 36.1% $64

Groceries & Markets

Damascus

$168 19.3%

Essaouira

$171 21.9% 2.1% $3.5

Clothing & Footwear

Damascus

$85 9.7%

Essaouira

$79 10.1% 7% $5.9

Sport & Entertainment

Damascus

$39 4.5%

Essaouira

$11 * 1.4% 72.7% $28

Getting Around

Damascus

$19 2.2%

Essaouira

$7.1 * 0.9% 63% $12

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $525 in Damascus and $393 in Essaouira. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Essaouira pays 252% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $43.00 in Damascus vs $19.00 in Essaouira. Groceries flip the comparison at $168 vs $171, with Damascus cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇸🇾 Damascus

🇲🇦 Essaouira

🕒 Local time

16:25 4:25 PM

14:25 2:25 PM

2 h behind Damascus

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,414,913 Capital

77,966

💱 Currency

Syrian Pound SYP £

Moroccan Dirham MAD د.م.

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 SYP = 8.23 USD

1,000 SYP = 7.32 EUR

100 MAD = 10.26 USD

100 MAD = 9.12 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MAD, USD, EUR to SYP – Syrian Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇾 Syrian Pound (£)

Syrian Pound exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 122 SYP (1,000 SYP = 8.23 USD). 1 EUR = 137 SYP (1,000 SYP = 7.32 EUR).

Moroccan Dirham exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 9.75 MAD (1 MAD = 0.103 USD). 1 EUR = 10.96 MAD (100 MAD = 9.12 EUR).

USD to SYP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Damascus Essaouira 4,290 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Damascus
Essaouira

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated March 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Damascus vs Essaouira: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Damascus and Essaouira differ by about 11% in total monthly costs ($869 vs $782 including rent). Essaouira is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 252% lower in Essaouira. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $525 in Damascus versus $393 in Essaouira. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $66.4 in Damascus versus $69.0 in Essaouira. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Essaouira – a meal for two runs $19.00 versus $43.00 in Damascus. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $782 in Essaouira versus $869 in Damascus, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Essaouira but tight or insufficient in Damascus. The gap between the two cities makes Essaouira the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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, Damascus and Essaouira are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Essaouira gentler on the wallet – expenses run 11% less than in Damascus. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.