Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Saint-Etienne and Cairo

For one person, living is cheaper in Cairo: $647 a month against $1,441 in Saint-Etienne, rent and utilities included – about $9,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

Saint-Etienne
🇫🇷 France
$1,441
/mo nomad
Cairo
🇪🇬 Egypt
$647
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Saint-Etienne 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 Saint-Etienne and in Cairo actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,441 per month in Saint-Etienne vs $647 in Cairo, rent included.

  • Saint-Etienne $1,441
  • Cairo $647

A couple spends around $2,272 per month in Saint-Etienne vs $1,035 in Cairo, rent included.

  • Saint-Etienne $2,272
  • Cairo $1,035

A family of three spends $3,103 per month in Saint-Etienne vs $1,423 in Cairo, rent included.

  • Saint-Etienne $3,103
  • Cairo $1,423

Saint-Etienne costs about 123% more than Cairo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Saint-Etienne sits 7% above the global median, while Cairo is 52% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Saint-Etienne
Cairo
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$16.72 €14.88
$4.64 E£248
260.34%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$56.6 €50.4
$28.12 E£1,501
101.35%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$13.48 €11.99
$6.03 E£322
123.55%
Cappuccino
$2.03 €1.81
$1.72 E£92.1
18.02%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.45 €3.07
$0.36 E£19.38
858.33%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.62 €1.44
$0.12 E£6.41
1250.00%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$5.11 €4.55
$1.51 E£80.4
238.41%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.52 €4.91
$2.32 E£124
137.93%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Saint-Etienne
Cairo
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.31 €1.17
$0.92 E£48.92
42.39%
White Bread (500g)
$1.14 €1.01
$0.73 E£38.92
56.16%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.17 €1.93
$0.74 E£39.64
193.24%
Eggs
$3.04 €2.71
$1.19 E£63.7
155.46%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$17.41 €15.49
$4.33 E£231
302.08%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$10.94 €9.73
$5.03 E£269
117.50%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$16.43 €14.61
$9.28 E£496
77.05%
Apples (1kg)
$3.43 €3.05
$1.77 E£94.4
93.79%
Banana (1kg)
$2.61 €2.32
$0.73 E£39.03
257.53%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.43 €2.17
$0.55 E£29.51
341.82%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.83 €2.52
$0.50 E£26.91
466.00%
Potato (1kg)
$1.60 €1.42
$0.42 E£22.42
280.95%
Onion (1kg)
$1.71 €1.52
$0.41 E£21.81
317.07%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.13 €1.01
$0.33 E£17.51
242.42%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$2.24 €2.00
$0.21 E£11.20
966.67%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$12.22 €10.87
$1.98 E£106
517.17%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.11 €8.99
$7.81 E£417
29.45%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$3.44 €3.06
$1.59 E£84.7
116.35%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.39 €3.02
$2.09 E£112
62.20%
🚌 Getting Around
Saint-Etienne
Cairo
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.81 €1.61
$0.35 E£18.83
417.14%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$39.38 €35.03
$8.69 E£464
353.16%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.71 €2.41
$0.39 E£21.02
594.87%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
-
$0.22 E£11.57
-
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
-
$1.51 E£80.5
-
Gasoline (1 liter)
$2.07 €1.84
$0.43 E£22.88
381.40%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$19.9K €17.7K
$32.7K E£1.7M
-39.00%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$32.5K €28.9K
$27.2K E£1.5M
19.44%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Saint-Etienne
Cairo
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$168 €150
$27.27 E£1,456
517.35%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$29.15 €25.93
$8.58 E£458
239.74%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$18.79 €16.71
$13.99 E£747
34.31%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Saint-Etienne
Cairo
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$30.48 €27.11
$29.69 E£1,585
2.66%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$6.63 €5.90
$7.25 E£387
-8.55%
Cinema Ticket
$9.90 €8.80
$4.86 E£260
103.70%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Saint-Etienne
Cairo
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$984 €875
$121 E£6,438
716.00%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$15.8K €14.0K
$3,560 E£190.1K
342.58%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Saint-Etienne
Cairo
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$70.6 €62.8
$40.28 E£2,151
75.32%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$30.10 €26.77
$49.53 E£2,645
-39.23%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$103 €91.9
$115 E£6,137
-10.13%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$154 €137
$60.0 E£3,206
155.88%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Saint-Etienne
Cairo
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$526 €468
$222 E£11.9K
136.96%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$367 €326
$195 E£10.4K
88.18%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$883 €786
$550 E£29.3K
60.69%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$713 €634
$346 E£18.5K
106.06%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$1,679 €1,494
$800 E£42.7K
109.98%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,631 €1,451
$525 E£28.0K
210.79%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Saint-Etienne
Cairo
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$2,205 €1,961
$200 E£10.7K
1003.68%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
3.67
16.21
-77.36%

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

Last update for Saint-Etienne: October 12, 2026

Last update for Cairo: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Saint-Etienne
$367
Cairo
$195 46.9% $172
Groceries & Markets
Saint-Etienne
$342
Cairo
$142 58.6% $200
Eating Out
Saint-Etienne
$255
Cairo
$90 64.8% $165
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Saint-Etienne
$216
Cairo
$50 77% $166
Clothing & Footwear
Saint-Etienne
$161
Cairo
$119 26% $42
Sport & Entertainment
Saint-Etienne
$50
Cairo
$39 21.6% $11
Getting Around
Saint-Etienne
$49 *
Cairo
$12 76.5% $38

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $526 in Saint-Etienne 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 1004% higher in Saint-Etienne, 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 $57.0 in Saint-Etienne versus $28.00 in Cairo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $342 vs $142 – making Cairo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇫🇷 Saint-Etienne
🇪🇬 Cairo
🕒 Local time
07:47 7:47 AM
08:47 8:47 AM
1 h ahead of Saint-Etienne
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
172,718
9,120,350 Capital
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 53.4 EGP (100 EGP = 1.87 USD). 1 EUR = 60.03 EGP (100 EGP = 1.67 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Saint-Etienne Cairo 2,890 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Saint-Etienne
  • 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
Saint-Etienne vs Cairo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Cairo cheaper than Saint-Etienne?
Yes – Saint-Etienne is pricier by about 123%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,162 per month in Saint-Etienne and $970 in Cairo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has lower housing costs?
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.
How do food prices compare in Saint-Etienne and in Cairo?
Groceries cost about 141% more in Saint-Etienne, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.
Is eating out cheaper in Saint-Etienne or in Cairo?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $57.0 in Saint-Etienne and $28.00 in Cairo. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Saint-Etienne or in Cairo?
A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Cairo, where all-in costs run around $647, than in Saint-Etienne at $1,441. In Cairo it covers expenses comfortably, while in Saint-Etienne it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is Saint-Etienne or Cairo more family-friendly?
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.
Which city is safer, Saint-Etienne or Cairo?
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.
Which city is the better choice to relocate to?
If budget matters most, go with Cairo. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Saint-Etienne makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

Saint-Etienne vs other spots: cost of living compared

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