Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mecca and Ad Dammam

For one person, living is cheaper in Mecca: $936 a month against $1,198 in Ad Dammam, rent and utilities included – about $3,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Mecca
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Mecca Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Ad Dammam
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Ad Dammam Living Index

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Mecca

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$936

/mo nomad

Ad Dammam

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,198

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mecca and in Ad Dammam

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $936 in Mecca versus $1,198 in Ad Dammam.

Mecca $936
Ad Dammam $1,198

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,453 in Mecca versus $1,835 in Ad Dammam.

Mecca $1,453
Ad Dammam $1,835

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,970 in Mecca versus $2,471 in Ad Dammam.

Mecca $1,970
Ad Dammam $2,471

Living in Mecca costs roughly 22% less than in Ad Dammam, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Mecca 31% lower, Ad Dammam 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.57 SAR 17.14

$7.24 SAR 27.17

-36.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$26.89 SAR 101

$35.15 SAR 132

-23.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.07 SAR 26.52

$6.63 SAR 24.89

6.64%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.55 SAR 5.81

$1.82 SAR 6.84

-14.84%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.49 SAR 5.61

$2.32 SAR 8.70

-35.78%

Cappuccino

$2.61 SAR 9.79

$3.06 SAR 11.48

-14.71%

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

$0.67 SAR 2.51

$0.70 SAR 2.64

-4.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.23 SAR 0.86

$0.19 SAR 0.72

21.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.75 SAR 6.57

$1.82 SAR 6.82

-3.85%

White Bread (500g)

$1.03 SAR 3.85

$1.33 SAR 5.00

-22.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.11 SAR 7.91

$1.93 SAR 7.26

9.33%

Eggs

$2.52 SAR 9.46

$2.16 SAR 8.12

16.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.92 SAR 22.20

$7.52 SAR 28.21

-21.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.08 SAR 30.33

$8.07 SAR 30.28

0.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.95 SAR 48.59

$12.76 SAR 47.89

1.49%

Apples (1kg)

$2.09 SAR 7.84

$2.20 SAR 8.27

-5.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.58 SAR 5.94

$1.66 SAR 6.23

-4.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.61 SAR 6.05

$1.65 SAR 6.18

-2.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.47 SAR 5.52

$1.60 SAR 6.01

-8.13%

Potato (1kg)

$1.12 SAR 4.21

$1.09 SAR 4.08

2.75%

Onion (1kg)

$1.30 SAR 4.87

$1.19 SAR 4.48

9.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.05 SAR 3.94

$1.28 SAR 4.80

-17.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.50 SAR 1.86

$0.57 SAR 2.14

-12.28%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$4.06 SAR 15.24

$4.07 SAR 15.26

-0.25%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.85 SAR 6.95

$1.50 SAR 5.61

23.33%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.59 SAR 5.97

$2.16 SAR 8.12

-26.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.81 SAR 25.56

$7.54 SAR 28.30

-9.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.34 SAR 5.03

$0.92 SAR 3.44

45.65%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$35.31 SAR 132

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.43 SAR 9.11

$2.59 SAR 9.73

-6.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.75 SAR 6.57

$2.63 SAR 9.86

-33.46%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.15 SAR 49.33

$13.24 SAR 49.69

-0.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.63 SAR 2.38

$0.60 SAR 2.24

5.00%

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

$47.5K SAR 178.2K

$65.8K SAR 247.1K

-27.88%

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

$21.1K SAR 79.3K

$21.0K SAR 78.8K

0.58%

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

$66.9 SAR 251

$130 SAR 486

-48.42%

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

$35.35 SAR 133

$33.20 SAR 125

6.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$63.2 SAR 237

$62.2 SAR 233

1.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$80.7 SAR 303

$77.1 SAR 289

4.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$42.52 SAR 160

$27.97 SAR 105

52.02%

Cinema Ticket

$11.96 SAR 44.88

$13.47 SAR 50.5

-11.21%

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

$775 SAR 2,907

$414 SAR 1,555

86.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.2K SAR 60.8K

$7,796 SAR 29.3K

107.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$13.57 SAR 50.9

$41.50 SAR 156

-67.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.9 SAR 214

$48.82 SAR 183

16.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$39.67 SAR 149

$94.6 SAR 355

-58.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$53.3 SAR 200

$91.4 SAR 343

-41.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$533 SAR 2,001

$580 SAR 2,176

-8.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$290 SAR 1,088

$370 SAR 1,388

-21.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$830 SAR 3,114

$1,002 SAR 3,760

-17.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$523 SAR 1,963

$677 SAR 2,539

-22.68%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,375 SAR 23.9K

$1,405 SAR 5,271

353.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,298 SAR 8,624

$604 SAR 2,268

280.26%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,083 SAR 4,063

$1,487 SAR 5,581

-27.20%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.25

5.9

-11.02%

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

Last update for Mecca: October 11, 2026

Last update for Ad Dammam: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mecca

$290 31%

Ad Dammam

$370 30.9% 27.5% $80

Groceries & Markets

Mecca

$193 20.6%

Ad Dammam

$202 16.9% 4.7% $9.1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mecca

$165 17.7%

Ad Dammam

$225 18.8% 36% $60

Sport & Entertainment

Mecca

$105 11.2%

Ad Dammam

$104 8.7% 0.6% $0.6

Eating Out

Mecca

$93 9.9%

Ad Dammam

$118 9.9% 27.5% $26

Clothing & Footwear

Mecca

$74 7.9%

Ad Dammam

$124 10.4% 69% $51

Getting Around

Mecca

$17 * 1.8%

Ad Dammam

$55 4.6% 231% $38

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 $533 in Mecca and $580 in Ad Dammam. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ad Dammam pays 37% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $27.00 in Mecca vs $35.00 in Ad Dammam for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $193 vs $202 per month, with Mecca cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Mecca

🇸🇦 Ad Dammam

🕒 Local time

06:25 6:25 AM

Same time as Mecca

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,675,368

903,312

💱 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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mecca Ad Dammam 1,180 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Mecca
Ad Dammam

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

Mecca vs Ad Dammam: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mecca wins on cost – living expenses run 28% lower than in Ad Dammam. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Mecca the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 37% lower in Ad Dammam. 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: $533 in Mecca versus $580 in Ad Dammam. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 5% higher in Ad Dammam. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $936 per month in Mecca versus $1,198 in Ad Dammam – a 28% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $936 in Mecca versus $1,198 in Ad Dammam, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Mecca but tight or insufficient in Ad Dammam. The gap between the two cities makes Mecca 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, Mecca and Ad Dammam 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 Mecca gentler on the wallet – expenses run 28% less than in Ad Dammam. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.