Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rabat and Cairo

For one person, living is cheaper in Cairo: $647 a month against $1,928 in Rabat, rent and utilities included – about $15,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

88

Cost of Living Index in Rabat
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Rabat Living Index
32

Cost of Living Index in Cairo
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Cairo Living Index

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Rabat

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,928

/mo nomad

Cairo

🇪🇬 Egypt

$647

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Rabat and in Cairo

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

A single person spends $1,928 per month in Rabat vs $647 in Cairo, rent included.

Rabat $1,928
Cairo $647

A couple spends around $2,701 per month in Rabat vs $1,035 in Cairo, rent included.

Rabat $2,701
Cairo $1,035

A family of three spends $3,474 per month in Rabat vs $1,423 in Cairo, rent included.

Rabat $3,474
Cairo $1,423

Rabat costs about 198% more than Cairo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Rabat sits 43% above the global median, while Cairo is 52% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.55 €14.72

$4.64 E£248

256.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.4 €44.82

$28.12 E£1,501

79.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.19 €9.96

$6.03 E£322

85.57%

Cappuccino

$2.25 €2.00

$1.72 E£92.1

30.81%

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

$2.48 €2.20

$0.36 E£19.38

588.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 €1.51

$0.12 E£6.41

1308.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.33 €2.97

$1.51 E£80.4

120.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.43 €3.05

$2.32 E£124

47.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.11 €0.99

$0.92 E£48.92

20.65%

White Bread (500g)

$1.34 €1.19

$0.73 E£38.92

83.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.26 €2.01

$0.74 E£39.64

205.41%

Eggs

$3.50 €3.11

$1.19 E£63.7

194.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.97 €7.09

$4.33 E£231

84.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.87 €7.00

$5.03 E£269

56.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.51 €11.13

$9.28 E£496

34.81%

Apples (1kg)

$4.12 €3.67

$1.77 E£94.4

132.77%

Banana (1kg)

$2.18 €1.94

$0.73 E£39.03

198.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.55 €3.16

$0.55 E£29.51

545.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.21 €1.97

$0.50 E£26.91

342.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.15 €1.02

$0.42 E£22.42

173.81%

Onion (1kg)

$1.14 €1.01

$0.41 E£21.81

178.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.09 €0.97

$0.33 E£17.51

230.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.09 €0.97

$0.21 E£11.20

419.05%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.80 €6.05

$1.98 E£106

243.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.23 €7.32

$7.81 E£417

5.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 €1.57

$1.59 E£84.7

10.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.44 €2.17

$2.09 E£112

16.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.71 €2.41

$0.35 E£18.83

674.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.69 E£464

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.73 €5.09

$0.39 E£21.02

1369.23%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.21 €1.96

$0.22 E£11.57

904.55%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.77 €23.81

$1.51 E£80.5

1672.85%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 €1.34

$0.43 E£22.88

251.16%

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

$37.7K €33.6K

$32.7K E£1.7M

15.44%

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

$38.6K €34.3K

$27.2K E£1.5M

41.81%

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

$101 €90.2

$27.27 E£1,456

271.84%

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

$12.17 €10.82

$8.58 E£458

41.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.85 €38.12

$13.99 E£747

206.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$62.1 €55.3

$29.69 E£1,585

109.20%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.18 €19.73

$7.25 E£387

205.93%

Cinema Ticket

$10.09 €8.98

$4.86 E£260

107.61%

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

$369 €328

$121 E£6,438

206.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K €10.0K

$3,560 E£190.1K

217.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.2 €76.7

$40.28 E£2,151

114.05%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.60 €24.55

$49.53 E£2,645

-44.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.7 €65.6

$115 E£6,137

-35.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$76.8 €68.3

$60.0 E£3,206

27.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,051 €934

$222 E£11.9K

373.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,049 €933

$195 E£10.4K

437.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,735 €1,543

$550 E£29.3K

215.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,460 €1,299

$346 E£18.5K

321.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,396 €3,910

$800 E£42.7K

449.70%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,149 €2,801

$525 E£28.0K

499.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,318 €1,173

$200 E£10.7K

560.00%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.9

16.21

-82.11%

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

Last update for Rabat: October 10, 2026

Last update for Cairo: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rabat

$1K 54.4%

Cairo

$195 30.2% 81.4% $854

Groceries & Markets

Rabat

$261 13.5%

Cairo

$142 21.9% 45.6% $119

Eating Out

Rabat

$233 12.1%

Cairo

$90 13.9% 61.4% $143

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rabat

$156 8.1%

Cairo

$50 7.7% 68.1% $107

Clothing & Footwear

Rabat

$119 6.2%

Cairo

$119 18.4% 0.2% $0.2

Sport & Entertainment

Rabat

$82 4.3%

Cairo

$39 6.1% 52.1% $43

Getting Around

Rabat

$28 * 1.4%

Cairo

$12 1.8% 58% $16

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,051 in Rabat versus $222 in Cairo. 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 560% higher in Rabat, 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 $50.0 in Rabat versus $28.00 in Cairo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $261 vs $142 – making Cairo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇹 Rabat

🇪🇬 Cairo

🕒 Local time

17:01 5:01 PM

18:01 6:01 PM

1 h ahead of Rabat

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

11,497

9,120,350 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 EGP = 1.87 USD

100 EGP = 1.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 53.4 EGP (100 EGP = 1.87 USD). 1 EUR = 60.03 EGP (100 EGP = 1.67 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

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Between locations

Rabat Cairo 1,700 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Rabat
Cairo

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

Rabat vs Cairo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Rabat is pricier by about 198%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,892 per month in Rabat and $970 in Cairo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,928 in Rabat and $647 in Cairo. That's a gap of about 198%.

Kindergarten costs $369 per month in Rabat and $121 in Cairo. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Cairo, where all-in costs run around $647, than in Rabat at $1,928. In Cairo it covers expenses comfortably, while in Rabat it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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