Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Riyadh and Yanbu

For one person, living is cheaper in Yanbu: $1,021 a month against $1,738 in Riyadh, rent and utilities included – about $8,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

83

Cost of Living Index in Riyadh
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Riyadh Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Yanbu
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Yanbu Living Index

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Riyadh

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,738

/mo nomad

Yanbu

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,021

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Riyadh and in Yanbu

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,738 in Riyadh versus $1,021 in Yanbu.

Riyadh $1,738
Yanbu $1,021

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,587 in Riyadh versus $1,620 in Yanbu.

Riyadh $2,587
Yanbu $1,620

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,437 in Riyadh versus $2,220 in Yanbu.

Riyadh $3,437
Yanbu $2,220

Living in Riyadh is roughly 70% more expensive than in Yanbu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Riyadh is 28% above, Yanbu is 25% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 SAR 30.38

$5.99 SAR 22.48

35.06%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.3 SAR 245

$38.12 SAR 143

71.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.18 SAR 30.69

$6.67 SAR 25.03

22.64%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.16 SAR 8.12

$1.57 SAR 5.88

37.58%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.97 SAR 11.16

$1.65 SAR 6.18

80.00%

Cappuccino

$4.30 SAR 16.14

$3.90 SAR 14.65

10.26%

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

$0.85 SAR 3.18

$0.82 SAR 3.07

3.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 SAR 1.12

$0.18 SAR 0.68

66.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.83 SAR 6.85

$1.71 SAR 6.40

7.02%

White Bread (500g)

$1.31 SAR 4.93

$0.94 SAR 3.52

39.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.37 SAR 8.88

$2.20 SAR 8.26

7.73%

Eggs

$3.04 SAR 11.41

$2.53 SAR 9.49

20.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.77 SAR 40.42

$6.33 SAR 23.76

70.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.38 SAR 35.19

$8.43 SAR 31.64

11.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.98 SAR 56.2

$13.00 SAR 48.78

15.23%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 SAR 10.70

$2.12 SAR 7.97

34.43%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 SAR 7.13

$1.71 SAR 6.41

11.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.47 SAR 9.26

$1.46 SAR 5.46

69.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.71 SAR 6.44

$1.62 SAR 6.06

5.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.18 SAR 4.43

$1.17 SAR 4.39

0.85%

Onion (1kg)

$1.28 SAR 4.82

$1.04 SAR 3.91

23.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.78 SAR 6.70

$1.10 SAR 4.13

61.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 SAR 2.17

$0.54 SAR 2.03

7.41%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$8.15 SAR 30.60

$1.33 SAR 4.98

512.78%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 SAR 6.83

$1.36 SAR 5.10

33.82%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.47 SAR 9.28

$2.20 SAR 8.26

12.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.85 SAR 29.46

$6.48 SAR 24.32

21.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.04 SAR 3.91

$1.06 SAR 3.97

-1.89%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$38.07 SAR 143

$37.43 SAR 140

1.71%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.13 SAR 11.75

$3.15 SAR 11.82

-0.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.91 SAR 7.16

$0.78 SAR 2.94

144.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.31 SAR 49.93

$13.66 SAR 51.3

-2.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.60 SAR 2.26

$0.62 SAR 2.32

-3.23%

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

$26.2K SAR 98.3K

$37.9K SAR 142.4K

-30.96%

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

$22.2K SAR 83.4K

$22.0K SAR 82.5K

1.11%

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

$108 SAR 404

$91.4 SAR 343

17.62%

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

$29.62 SAR 111

$22.38 SAR 84.0

32.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$71.0 SAR 266

$67.0 SAR 251

5.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$83.0 SAR 312

$95.6 SAR 359

-13.15%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$57.3 SAR 215

$26.53 SAR 99.6

115.87%

Cinema Ticket

$13.31 SAR 49.96

$11.78 SAR 44.21

12.99%

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

$554 SAR 2,078

$263 SAR 987

110.59%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.1K SAR 37.9K

$3,844 SAR 14.4K

162.44%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.7 SAR 217

$74.3 SAR 279

-22.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.4 SAR 204

$57.7 SAR 217

-5.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 SAR 391

$99.2 SAR 372

4.96%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$105 SAR 393

$93.5 SAR 351

12.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,149 SAR 4,312

$315 SAR 1,181

265.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$833 SAR 3,128

$211 SAR 790

295.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,166 SAR 8,128

$610 SAR 2,288

255.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 SAR 4,788

$414 SAR 1,552

208.48%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,779 SAR 10.4K

$1,702 SAR 6,387

63.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,718 SAR 6,446

$1,237 SAR 4,644

38.80%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,052 SAR 7,702

$3,411 SAR 12.8K

-39.83%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.54

5.39

2.78%

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

Last update for Riyadh: October 25, 2026

Last update for Yanbu: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Riyadh

$833 48%

Yanbu

$210 20.6% 74.7% $623

Groceries & Markets

Riyadh

$241 13.9%

Yanbu

$197 19.3% 18.5% $45

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Riyadh

$208 12%

Yanbu

$181 17.7% 13.1% $27

Eating Out

Riyadh

$145 8.4%

Yanbu

$119 11.6% 18.4% $27

Clothing & Footwear

Riyadh

$144 8.3%

Yanbu

$146 14.3% 1.2% $1.7

Sport & Entertainment

Riyadh

$110 6.3%

Yanbu

$119 11.7% 8.7% $9.5

Getting Around

Riyadh

$55 3.2%

Yanbu

$49 4.8% 11.2% $6.2

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,149 in Riyadh and $315 in Yanbu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Yanbu pays 66% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $65 in Riyadh vs $38 in Yanbu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $241 vs $197 per month, with Yanbu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Riyadh

🇸🇦 Yanbu

🕒 Local time

06:45 6:45 AM

Same time as Riyadh

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,188,286 Capital

233,236

💱 Currency

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.239 EUR

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.239 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Riyadh Yanbu 880 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Riyadh
Yanbu

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

Riyadh vs Yanbu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,738 in Riyadh and $1,021 in Yanbu, so Yanbu is about 41% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 40% lower in Riyadh. 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: $1,149 in Riyadh versus $315 in Yanbu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 23% higher in Riyadh. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,738 per month in Riyadh versus $1,021 in Yanbu – Yanbu is about 41% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Yanbu is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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, Riyadh and Yanbu are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.