Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Jeddah and Mecca

For one person, living is cheaper in Mecca: $936 a month against $1,374 in Jeddah, rent and utilities included – about $5,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

67

Cost of Living Index in Jeddah
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Jeddah Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Mecca
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Mecca Living Index

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Jeddah

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,374

/mo nomad

Mecca

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Jeddah and in Mecca

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

A single person spends $1,374 per month in Jeddah vs $936 in Mecca, rent included.

Jeddah $1,374
Mecca $936

A couple spends around $2,148 per month in Jeddah vs $1,453 in Mecca, rent included.

Jeddah $2,148
Mecca $1,453

A family of three spends $2,922 per month in Jeddah vs $1,970 in Mecca, rent included.

Jeddah $2,922
Mecca $1,970

Jeddah costs about 47% more than Mecca, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Jeddah sits 2% above the global median, while Mecca is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.04 SAR 22.67

$4.57 SAR 17.14

32.17%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$80.3 SAR 301

$26.89 SAR 101

198.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 SAR 35.65

$7.07 SAR 26.52

34.37%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.38 SAR 8.95

$1.55 SAR 5.81

53.55%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 SAR 9.88

$1.49 SAR 5.61

76.51%

Cappuccino

$3.73 SAR 13.98

$2.61 SAR 9.79

42.91%

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

$0.97 SAR 3.62

$0.67 SAR 2.51

44.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.26 SAR 0.98

$0.23 SAR 0.86

13.04%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.68 SAR 6.32

$1.75 SAR 6.57

-4.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.26 SAR 4.71

$1.03 SAR 3.85

22.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.34 SAR 8.76

$2.11 SAR 7.91

10.90%

Eggs

$2.43 SAR 9.13

$2.52 SAR 9.46

-3.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.36 SAR 23.88

$5.92 SAR 22.20

7.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.30 SAR 31.14

$8.08 SAR 30.33

2.72%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.23 SAR 49.66

$12.95 SAR 48.59

2.16%

Apples (1kg)

$2.13 SAR 7.98

$2.09 SAR 7.84

1.91%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 SAR 6.33

$1.58 SAR 5.94

6.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.62 SAR 6.07

$1.61 SAR 6.05

0.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.69 SAR 6.32

$1.47 SAR 5.52

14.97%

Potato (1kg)

$1.12 SAR 4.22

$1.12 SAR 4.21

Onion (1kg)

$1.26 SAR 4.71

$1.30 SAR 4.87

-3.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 SAR 4.01

$1.05 SAR 3.94

1.90%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 SAR 1.99

$0.50 SAR 1.86

6.00%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$4.21 SAR 15.81

$4.06 SAR 15.24

3.69%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 SAR 6.59

$1.85 SAR 6.95

-4.86%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.49 SAR 9.36

$1.59 SAR 5.97

56.60%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.71 SAR 25.17

$6.81 SAR 25.56

-1.47%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.96 SAR 3.61

$1.34 SAR 5.03

-28.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$55.4 SAR 208

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.16 SAR 11.85

$2.43 SAR 9.11

30.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.76 SAR 6.62

$1.75 SAR 6.57

0.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.90 SAR 52.2

$13.15 SAR 49.33

5.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.64 SAR 2.41

$0.63 SAR 2.38

1.59%

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

$47.3K SAR 177.3K

$47.5K SAR 178.2K

-0.49%

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

$22.0K SAR 82.4K

$21.1K SAR 79.3K

3.92%

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

$90.4 SAR 339

$66.9 SAR 251

35.19%

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

$38.29 SAR 144

$35.35 SAR 133

8.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$68.0 SAR 255

$63.2 SAR 237

7.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$78.0 SAR 293

$80.7 SAR 303

-3.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$38.19 SAR 143

$42.52 SAR 160

-10.18%

Cinema Ticket

$11.91 SAR 44.69

$11.96 SAR 44.88

-0.42%

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

$769 SAR 2,887

$775 SAR 2,907

-0.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.7K SAR 62.8K

$16.2K SAR 60.8K

3.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.4 SAR 272

$13.57 SAR 50.9

433.53%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.1 SAR 211

$56.9 SAR 214

-1.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.9 SAR 375

$39.67 SAR 149

151.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.6 SAR 351

$53.3 SAR 200

75.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$789 SAR 2,961

$533 SAR 2,001

48.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$532 SAR 1,998

$290 SAR 1,088

83.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,427 SAR 5,356

$830 SAR 3,114

72.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$832 SAR 3,121

$523 SAR 1,963

58.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,767 SAR 6,631

$6,375 SAR 23.9K

-72.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,143 SAR 4,290

$2,298 SAR 8,624

-50.25%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,665 SAR 6,248

$1,083 SAR 4,063

53.78%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.39

5.25

2.67%

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

Last update for Jeddah: October 10, 2026

Last update for Mecca: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Jeddah

$532 38.7%

Mecca

$290 31% 45.5% $242

Groceries & Markets

Jeddah

$201 14.6%

Mecca

$193 20.6% 3.9% $7.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Jeddah

$197 14.3%

Mecca

$165 17.7% 15.9% $31

Clothing & Footwear

Jeddah

$145 10.5%

Mecca

$74 7.9% 49.2% $71

Eating Out

Jeddah

$126 9.2%

Mecca

$93 9.9% 26.7% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Jeddah

$102 7.4%

Mecca

$105 11.2% 2.8% $2.8

Getting Around

Jeddah

$71 5.2%

Mecca

$17 * 1.8% 76.8% $55

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $789 in Jeddah versus $533 in Mecca. 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 54% higher in Jeddah, 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 $80.0 in Jeddah versus $27.00 in Mecca. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $201 vs $193 – making Mecca the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Jeddah

🇸🇦 Mecca

🕒 Local time

20:59 8:59 PM

Same time as Jeddah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,430,697

1,675,368

💱 Currency

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Jeddah Mecca 69 km

From you

Jeddah
Mecca

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

Jeddah vs Mecca: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,374 in Jeddah, $936 in Mecca – roughly 47% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,062 per month in Jeddah and $1,404 in Mecca. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Mecca, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $80.0 in Jeddah and $27.00 in Mecca. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 4% more in Jeddah, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Mecca, where all-in costs run around $936, than in Jeddah at $1,374. In Mecca it covers expenses comfortably, while in Jeddah it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Mecca – 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 Mecca. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Jeddah makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.