Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Essaouira and Damascus

For one person, living is cheaper in Essaouira: $781 a month against $867 in Damascus, rent and utilities included – about $1,000 less a year. The total is higher in Damascus despite lower rent and utilities.

38

Cost of Living Index in Essaouira
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Essaouira Living Index
42

Cost of Living Index in Damascus
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Damascus Living Index

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Essaouira

🇲🇦 Morocco

$781

/mo nomad

Damascus

🇸🇾 Syria

$867

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Essaouira and in Damascus

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $781 in Essaouira versus $867 in Damascus.

Essaouira $781
Damascus $867

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,172 in Essaouira versus $1,405 in Damascus.

Essaouira $1,172
Damascus $1,405

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,563 in Essaouira versus $1,943 in Damascus.

Essaouira $1,563
Damascus $1,943

Living in Essaouira costs roughly 10% less than in Damascus, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.52 MAD 44.11

$9.90 SYP 1,203

-54.34%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.78 MAD 183

$42.05 SYP 5,109

-55.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.36 MAD 71.8

$7.10 SYP 862

3.66%

Cappuccino

$1.33 MAD 12.92

$3.78 SYP 459

-64.81%

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

$0.46 MAD 4.49

$2.29 SYP 278

-79.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.37 MAD 3.64

$0.81 SYP 98.7

-54.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.10 MAD 49.73

$1.85 SYP 225

175.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.39 MAD 42.83

$4.03 SYP 490

8.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.91 MAD 8.87

$1.10 SYP 134

-17.27%

White Bread (500g)

$0.52 MAD 5.08

$0.42 SYP 50.7

23.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.67 MAD 16.33

$1.58 SYP 192

5.70%

Eggs

$1.62 MAD 15.76

$1.63 SYP 198

-0.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.12 MAD 79.1

$3.97 SYP 483

104.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.92 MAD 57.8

$5.86 SYP 713

1.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.67 MAD 104

$13.94 SYP 1,694

-23.46%

Apples (1kg)

$1.28 MAD 12.50

$1.03 SYP 125

24.27%

Banana (1kg)

$1.17 MAD 11.45

$1.42 SYP 172

-17.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.66 MAD 6.45

$1.10 SYP 133

-40.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.77 MAD 7.48

$1.02 SYP 124

-24.51%

Potato (1kg)

$0.58 MAD 5.67

$0.76 SYP 91.9

-23.68%

Onion (1kg)

$0.70 MAD 6.79

$0.76 SYP 92.5

-7.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.35 MAD 3.41

$0.43 SYP 52.5

-18.60%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 MAD 5.72

$0.62 SYP 75.5

-4.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.85 MAD 37.58

$2.76 SYP 335

39.49%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.98 MAD 58.3

$6.03 SYP 732

-0.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 MAD 16.58

$1.11 SYP 134

53.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 MAD 20.34

$2.84 SYP 345

-26.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 MAD 8.32

$0.21 SYP 25.45

304.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$10.19 SYP 1,238

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.62 MAD 6.09

$1.02 SYP 124

-39.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 MAD 6.23

$1.56 SYP 190

-58.97%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.81 SYP 949

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MAD 14.46

$3.71 SYP 451

-60.11%

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

$31.0K MAD 302.6K

$14.8K SYP 1.8M

109.99%

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

$32.1K MAD 313.0K

$19.3K SYP 2.3M

66.36%

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

$24.14 MAD 235

$138 SYP 16.7K

-82.48%

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

$16.96 MAD 165

$9.68 SYP 1,176

75.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.95 MAD 292

$46.92 SYP 5,702

-36.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$27.77 SYP 3,374

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.30 SYP 1,009

Cinema Ticket

$5.10 MAD 49.70

$5.57 SYP 677

-8.44%

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

$67.8 MAD 661

$67.0 SYP 8,142

1.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,803 MAD 17.6K

$1,751 SYP 212.8K

2.98%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$29.33 MAD 286

$28.12 SYP 3,417

4.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.93 MAD 419

$40.32 SYP 4,900

6.47%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$59.1 MAD 576

$60.6 SYP 7,367

-2.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$40.42 MAD 394

$57.9 SYP 7,036

-30.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$386 MAD 3,760

$513 SYP 62.4K

-24.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$334 MAD 3,259

$184 SYP 22.4K

81.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$913 MAD 8,905

$858 SYP 104.2K

6.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$569 MAD 5,547

$462 SYP 56.2K

23.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,744 SYP 212.0K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$616 SYP 74.9K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$254 MAD 2,479

$80.1 SYP 9,728

217.68%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.5

14.25

-54.39%

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

Last update for Essaouira: October 18, 2026

Last update for Damascus: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Essaouira

$334 42.8%

Damascus

$184 21.2% 45% $150

Groceries & Markets

Essaouira

$170 21.7%

Damascus

$170 19.7% 0.5% $0.8

Eating Out

Essaouira

$112 14.3%

Damascus

$176 20.2% 57% $64

Clothing & Footwear

Essaouira

$77 9.9%

Damascus

$84 9.7% 8.9% $6.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Essaouira

$71 9.1%

Damascus

$194 22.4% 174% $123

Sport & Entertainment

Essaouira

$10 * 1.3%

Damascus

$39 4.5% 282% $29

Getting Around

Essaouira

$7.2 * 0.9%

Damascus

$20 2.3% 175% $13

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 $386 in Essaouira and $513 in Damascus. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Essaouira pays 218% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $19.00 in Essaouira vs $42.00 in Damascus for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $170 vs $170 per month, with Essaouira cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇦 Essaouira

🇸🇾 Damascus

🕒 Local time

11:19 11:19 AM

13:19 1:19 PM

2 h ahead of Essaouira

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

77,966

1,414,913 Capital

💱 Currency

Moroccan Dirham MAD د.م.

Syrian Pound SYP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 MAD = 10.26 USD

100 MAD = 9.12 EUR

1,000 SYP = 8.23 USD

1,000 SYP = 7.32 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SYP, USD, EUR to MAD – Moroccan Dirham Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇦 Moroccan Dirham (د.م.)

Moroccan Dirham exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 9.75 MAD (1 MAD = 0.103 USD). 1 EUR = 10.96 MAD (100 MAD = 9.12 EUR).

Syrian Pound exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 122 SYP (1,000 SYP = 8.23 USD). 1 EUR = 137 SYP (1,000 SYP = 7.32 EUR).

USD to MAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Essaouira Damascus 4,290 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Essaouira
Damascus

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

Essaouira vs Damascus: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Essaouira and Damascus differ by about 11% in total monthly costs ($781 vs $867 including rent). Essaouira is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 218% higher in Essaouira, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $386 in Essaouira versus $513 in Damascus. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $67.8 in Essaouira versus $67.0 in Damascus. 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 $42.00 in Damascus. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $781 in Essaouira versus $867 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, Essaouira and Damascus 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.