Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Salalah and Al-Buraimi

For one person, living is cheaper in Al-Buraimi: $916 a month against $1,055 in Salalah, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Salalah outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

52

Cost of Living Index in Salalah
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Salalah Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Al-Buraimi
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Al-Buraimi Living Index

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Salalah

🇴🇲 Oman

$1,055

/mo nomad

Al-Buraimi

🇴🇲 Oman

$916

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Salalah and in Al-Buraimi

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,055 in Salalah versus $916 in Al-Buraimi.

Salalah $1,055
Al-Buraimi $916

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,587 in Salalah versus $1,357 in Al-Buraimi.

Salalah $1,587
Al-Buraimi $1,357

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,118 in Salalah versus $1,797 in Al-Buraimi.

Salalah $2,118
Al-Buraimi $1,797

Living in Salalah is roughly 15% more expensive than in Al-Buraimi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Salalah 22% lower, Al-Buraimi 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.07 OMR 1.95

$5.27 OMR 2.03

-3.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$25.69 OMR 9.89

$13.14 OMR 5.06

95.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.75 OMR 4.91

$7.82 OMR 3.01

63.04%

Cappuccino

$6.05 OMR 2.33

$5.02 OMR 1.93

20.52%

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

$0.90 OMR 0.35

$0.91 OMR 0.35

-1.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 OMR 0.10

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.98 OMR 3.46

$12.89 OMR 4.96

-30.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$10.22 OMR 3.94

$13.20 OMR 5.08

-22.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.89 OMR 0.73

$2.26 OMR 0.87

-16.37%

White Bread (500g)

$1.27 OMR 0.49

$1.20 OMR 0.46

5.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.62 OMR 1.01

$1.58 OMR 0.61

65.82%

Eggs

$1.91 OMR 0.74

$2.99 OMR 1.15

-36.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.58 OMR 1.76

$6.33 OMR 2.44

-27.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.73 OMR 1.82

$5.79 OMR 2.23

-18.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.37 OMR 2.45

$9.31 OMR 3.58

-31.58%

Apples (1kg)

$1.94 OMR 0.75

$2.07 OMR 0.80

-6.28%

Banana (1kg)

$1.85 OMR 0.71

$1.83 OMR 0.70

1.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.05 OMR 0.79

$2.06 OMR 0.79

-0.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.78 OMR 0.69

$1.32 OMR 0.51

34.85%

Potato (1kg)

$1.49 OMR 0.57

$1.20 OMR 0.46

24.17%

Onion (1kg)

$1.01 OMR 0.39

$0.98 OMR 0.38

3.06%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.10 OMR 0.42

$0.91 OMR 0.35

20.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 OMR 0.20

$0.70 OMR 0.27

-25.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.87 OMR 2.26

$5.23 OMR 2.01

12.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.15 OMR 7.76

$15.32 OMR 5.90

31.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.98 OMR 1.53

$5.82 OMR 2.24

-31.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.70 OMR 1.81

$10.15 OMR 3.91

-53.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.33 OMR 0.51

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.8 OMR 21.09

$38.94 OMR 14.99

40.68%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.25 OMR 0.87

$3.28 OMR 1.26

-31.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.27 OMR 0.49

$1.33 OMR 0.51

-4.51%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.87 OMR 4.57

$7.57 OMR 2.92

56.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.64 OMR 0.25

$0.60 OMR 0.23

6.67%

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

$21.1K OMR 8,112

$25.2K OMR 9,711

-16.47%

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

$18.3K OMR 7,061

$22.7K OMR 8,734

-19.16%

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

$77.6 OMR 29.89

$77.5 OMR 29.84

0.18%

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

$48.92 OMR 18.84

$30.24 OMR 11.64

61.77%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$73.7 OMR 28.39

$70.7 OMR 27.23

4.24%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.07 OMR 15.04

$63.9 OMR 24.62

-38.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.08 OMR 10.04

Cinema Ticket

$7.67 OMR 2.95

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

$105 OMR 40.24

$260 OMR 100

-59.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,925 OMR 741

$10.5K OMR 4,036

-81.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$29.01 OMR 11.17

$56.8 OMR 21.86

-48.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.47 OMR 12.12

$43.55 OMR 16.77

-27.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$59.0 OMR 22.69

$90.9 OMR 35.01

-35.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$46.02 OMR 17.72

$88.7 OMR 34.13

-48.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$244 OMR 94.1

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$205 OMR 79.0

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$626 OMR 241

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$387 OMR 149

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,999 OMR 770

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,203 OMR 463

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,769 OMR 681

$3,620 OMR 1,394

-51.14%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.58

5.25

-12.76%

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

Last update for Salalah: October 11, 2026

Last update for Al-Buraimi: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Salalah

$231 21.9%

Al-Buraimi

$262 28.7% 13.7% $32

Eating Out

Salalah

$222 21%

Al-Buraimi

$221 24.2% 0.1% $0.1

Accommodation & Living

Salalah

$205 19.4%

Al-Buraimi

- * 0% 100%

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Salalah

$200 19%

Al-Buraimi

$178 19.5% 10.9% $22

Clothing & Footwear

Salalah

$74 7.1%

Al-Buraimi

$126 13.7% 69.2% $52

Getting Around

Salalah

$69 6.5%

Al-Buraimi

$49 * 5.3% 28.9% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Salalah

$54 5.2%

Al-Buraimi

$79 8.7% 45.7% $25

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

Cost Breakdown

Al-Buraimi pays 105% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $26.00 in Salalah vs $13.00 in Al-Buraimi. Groceries flip the comparison at $231 vs $262, with Salalah cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇴🇲 Salalah

🇴🇲 Al-Buraimi

🕒 Local time

08:27 8:27 AM

Same time as Salalah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

178,469

73,670

💱 Currency

Omani Rial OMR ر.ع.

📈 Exchange rate

1 OMR = 2.6 USD

1 OMR = 2.31 EUR

1 OMR = 2.6 USD

1 OMR = 2.31 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Salalah Al-Buraimi 820 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Salalah
Al-Buraimi

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

Salalah vs Al-Buraimi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Al-Buraimi is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, utilities, and transport. The 15% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 105% lower in Al-Buraimi. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

A monthly transit pass in Al-Buraimi runs roughly 41% less than in Salalah. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $105 in Salalah versus $260 in Al-Buraimi. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $916 in Al-Buraimi versus $1,055 in Salalah, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Al-Buraimi but tight or insufficient in Salalah. The gap between the two cities makes Al-Buraimi 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, Salalah and Al-Buraimi 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 Al-Buraimi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 15% less than in Salalah. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.