Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mashhad, Iraq and Sulaymaniyah

For one person, living is cheaper in Sulaymaniyah: $667 a month against $756 in Mashhad, rent and utilities included – about $1,100 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Mashhad outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

36

Cost of Living Index in Mashhad
Learn more

Mashhad Living Index
32

Cost of Living Index in Sulaymaniyah
Learn more

Sulaymaniyah Living Index

Jump to prices

Mashhad

🇮🇶 Iraq

$756

/mo nomad

Sulaymaniyah

🇮🇶 Iraq

$667

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mashhad and in Sulaymaniyah

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $756 in Mashhad versus $667 in Sulaymaniyah.

Mashhad $756
Sulaymaniyah $667

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,119 in Mashhad versus $1,035 in Sulaymaniyah.

Mashhad $1,119
Sulaymaniyah $1,035

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,481 in Mashhad versus $1,403 in Sulaymaniyah.

Mashhad $1,481
Sulaymaniyah $1,403

Living in Mashhad is roughly 13% more expensive than in Sulaymaniyah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities sit below the global median: Mashhad 44% lower, Sulaymaniyah 51% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.49 IQD 6,781

$4.35 IQD 6,570

3.22%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$26.73 IQD 40.4K

$20.15 IQD 30.5K

32.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.73 IQD 10.2K

$5.91 IQD 8,935

13.87%

Cappuccino

$2.71 IQD 4,100

$2.37 IQD 3,580

14.35%

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

$0.36 IQD 542

$0.43 IQD 644

-16.28%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.20 IQD 302

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.37 IQD 5,090

$3.24 IQD 4,890

4.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.39 IQD 5,126

$2.03 IQD 3,071

67.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.91 IQD 1,368

$1.15 IQD 1,732

-20.87%

White Bread (500g)

$0.73 IQD 1,106

$0.86 IQD 1,306

-15.12%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.32 IQD 1,997

$1.68 IQD 2,534

-21.43%

Eggs

$0.82 IQD 1,242

$1.53 IQD 2,306

-46.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.41 IQD 5,157

$4.31 IQD 6,514

-20.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$1.98 IQD 2,985

$3.72 IQD 5,627

-46.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$2.95 IQD 4,463

$12.96 IQD 19.6K

-77.24%

Apples (1kg)

$1.03 IQD 1,556

$1.11 IQD 1,684

-7.21%

Banana (1kg)

$0.91 IQD 1,377

$1.08 IQD 1,631

-15.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.87 IQD 1,321

$0.99 IQD 1,496

-12.12%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.64 IQD 971

$0.55 IQD 833

16.36%

Potato (1kg)

$0.59 IQD 898

$0.45 IQD 683

31.11%

Onion (1kg)

$0.56 IQD 840

$0.62 IQD 940

-9.68%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.31 IQD 474

$0.58 IQD 881

-46.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.21 IQD 321

$0.42 IQD 634

-50.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$0.77 IQD 1,168

$1.96 IQD 2,956

-60.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.82 IQD 17.9K

$10.04 IQD 15.2K

17.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.92 IQD 2,898

$1.68 IQD 2,532

14.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 IQD 2,832

$1.23 IQD 1,855

52.03%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 IQD 520

$0.47 IQD 705

-27.66%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.85 IQD 30.0K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.96 IQD 2,965

$2.00 IQD 3,017

-2.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.31 IQD 1,972

$1.95 IQD 2,951

-32.82%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.42 IQD 9,699

$4.74 IQD 7,164

35.44%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.54 IQD 810

$0.57 IQD 864

-5.26%

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

$16.8K IQD 25.4M

$17.6K IQD 26.7M

-4.81%

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

$16.5K IQD 25.0M

$16.7K IQD 25.2M

-0.88%

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

$191 IQD 288.5K

$86.4 IQD 130.6K

120.93%

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

$19.44 IQD 29.4K

$9.75 IQD 14.7K

99.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$38.59 IQD 58.3K

$23.74 IQD 35.9K

62.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.79 IQD 55.6K

$34.60 IQD 52.3K

6.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.82 IQD 26.9K

Cinema Ticket

$9.69 IQD 14.6K

$6.43 IQD 9,711

50.70%

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

$143 IQD 215.6K

$150 IQD 226.9K

-4.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,191 IQD 4.8M

$2,562 IQD 3.9M

24.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$25.57 IQD 38.6K

$16.49 IQD 24.9K

55.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.03 IQD 51.4K

$22.41 IQD 33.9K

51.85%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$58.7 IQD 88.8K

$36.43 IQD 55.0K

61.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$42.44 IQD 64.1K

$36.62 IQD 55.3K

15.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$212 IQD 319.9K

$187 IQD 282.3K

13.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$139 IQD 210.6K

$150 IQD 225.9K

-6.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$378 IQD 571.7K

$412 IQD 621.8K

-8.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$319 IQD 482.6K

$308 IQD 464.7K

3.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$862 IQD 1.3M

$703 IQD 1.1M

22.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$491 IQD 742.5K

$541 IQD 817.5K

-9.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 IQD 758.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.12

5.77

-28.60%

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

Last update for Mashhad: October 31, 2026

Last update for Sulaymaniyah: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mashhad

$249 32.9%

Sulaymaniyah

$120 18% 51.8% $129

Accommodation & Living

Mashhad

$139 18.4%

Sulaymaniyah

$150 22.4% 7.3% $10

Groceries & Markets

Mashhad

$115 15.2%

Sulaymaniyah

$163 24.4% 41.8% $48

Eating Out

Mashhad

$115 15.1%

Sulaymaniyah

$104 15.5% 9.4% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Mashhad

$72 9.6%

Sulaymaniyah

$50 7.6% 30.4% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Mashhad

$56 7.4%

Sulaymaniyah

$47 7.1% 15.5% $8.7

Getting Around

Mashhad

$9.9 * 1.3%

Sulaymaniyah

$33 5% 239% $24

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 $212 in Mashhad and $187 in Sulaymaniyah. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $27 in Mashhad vs $20 in Sulaymaniyah. Groceries flip the comparison at $115 vs $163, with Mashhad cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇮🇶 Mashhad

🇮🇶 Sulaymaniyah

🕒 Local time

12:51 12:51 PM

Same time as Mashhad

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

13,000

823,199

💱 Currency

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.9 EUR

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.9 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mashhad Sulaymaniyah 350 km

From you

Mashhad
Sulaymaniyah

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

Mashhad vs Sulaymaniyah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $756 in Mashhad and $667 in Sulaymaniyah, so Sulaymaniyah is about 12% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,134 in Mashhad and $1,001 in Sulaymaniyah to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $212 in Mashhad versus $187 in Sulaymaniyah. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $143 in Mashhad versus $150 in Sulaymaniyah. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Sulaymaniyah – a meal for two runs $20 versus $27 in Mashhad. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Sulaymaniyah gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Safety-wise, Mashhad and Sulaymaniyah are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.