Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Salalah and Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

For one person, living is cheaper in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos: $958 a month against $1,062 in Salalah, rent and utilities included – about $1,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

51

Cost of Living Index in Salalah
Learn more

Salalah Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos
Learn more

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos Living Index

Jump to prices

Salalah

🇴🇲 Oman

$1,062

/mo nomad

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

🇴🇲 Oman

$958

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Salalah and in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

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 Madinat As Sultan Qaboos actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,062 in Salalah versus $958 in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos.

Salalah $1,062
Madinat As Sultan Qaboos $958

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,598 in Salalah versus $1,438 in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos.

Salalah $1,598
Madinat As Sultan Qaboos $1,438

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,134 in Salalah versus $1,918 in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos.

Salalah $2,134
Madinat As Sultan Qaboos $1,918

Living in Salalah is roughly 11% more expensive than in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Salalah 22% lower, Madinat As Sultan Qaboos 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.17 OMR 1.99

$5.04 OMR 1.94

2.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$25.56 OMR 9.84

$39.10 OMR 15.05

-34.63%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.24 OMR 5.10

$8.03 OMR 3.09

64.88%

Cappuccino

$6.42 OMR 2.47

$5.04 OMR 1.94

27.38%

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

$0.85 OMR 0.33

$0.86 OMR 0.33

-1.16%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 OMR 0.10

$0.29 OMR 0.11

-6.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.88 OMR 3.42

$13.05 OMR 5.03

-31.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$10.34 OMR 3.98

$12.94 OMR 4.98

-20.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.93 OMR 0.74

$2.36 OMR 0.91

-18.22%

White Bread (500g)

$1.22 OMR 0.47

$1.25 OMR 0.48

-2.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.63 OMR 1.01

$1.95 OMR 0.75

34.87%

Eggs

$1.89 OMR 0.73

$3.01 OMR 1.16

-37.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.78 OMR 1.84

$7.21 OMR 2.77

-33.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.56 OMR 1.76

$7.14 OMR 2.75

-36.13%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.35 OMR 2.45

$10.40 OMR 4.01

-38.94%

Apples (1kg)

$1.90 OMR 0.73

$3.56 OMR 1.37

-46.63%

Banana (1kg)

$1.79 OMR 0.69

$2.02 OMR 0.78

-11.39%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.07 OMR 0.80

$2.37 OMR 0.91

-12.66%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.87 OMR 0.72

$1.27 OMR 0.49

47.24%

Potato (1kg)

$1.44 OMR 0.55

$1.20 OMR 0.46

20.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.06 OMR 0.41

$1.24 OMR 0.48

-14.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.06 OMR 0.41

$1.86 OMR 0.72

-43.01%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.48 OMR 0.19

$0.70 OMR 0.27

-31.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.88 OMR 2.26

$6.31 OMR 2.43

-6.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.95 OMR 7.68

$15.75 OMR 6.06

26.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.84 OMR 1.48

$6.03 OMR 2.32

-36.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.65 OMR 1.79

$10.11 OMR 3.89

-54.01%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.32 OMR 0.51

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.9 OMR 21.13

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.32 OMR 0.89

$3.20 OMR 1.23

-27.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.28 OMR 0.49

$2.63 OMR 1.01

-51.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.54 OMR 4.44

$7.74 OMR 2.98

49.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.64 OMR 0.25

$0.65 OMR 0.25

-1.54%

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

$20.7K OMR 7,971

$25.1K OMR 9,676

-17.62%

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

$17.9K OMR 6,900

$20.8K OMR 8,018

-13.94%

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

$79.2 OMR 30.50

$181 OMR 69.6

-56.19%

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

$49.43 OMR 19.03

$30.50 OMR 11.74

62.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$73.9 OMR 28.45

$69.8 OMR 26.88

5.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.35 OMR 15.54

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.24 OMR 10.10

Cinema Ticket

$7.84 OMR 3.02

$10.41 OMR 4.01

-24.69%

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

$105 OMR 40.39

$499 OMR 192

-78.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,970 OMR 758

$10.7K OMR 4,117

-81.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$28.71 OMR 11.05

$57.5 OMR 22.14

-50.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.42 OMR 12.10

$44.01 OMR 16.95

-28.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$57.6 OMR 22.16

$90.6 OMR 34.86

-36.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$44.75 OMR 17.23

$86.9 OMR 33.46

-48.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$247 OMR 95.1

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$205 OMR 78.9

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$634 OMR 244

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$391 OMR 151

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,980 OMR 762

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,228 OMR 473

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,778 OMR 684

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 26, 2026

Last update for Madinat As Sultan Qaboos: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Salalah

$229 21.5%

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

$294 30.7% 28.6% $65

Eating Out

Salalah

$228 21.5%

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

$221 23% 3.1% $7

Accommodation & Living

Salalah

$205 19.3%

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

- * 0% 100%

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Salalah

$203 19.1%

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

$281 29.3% 38.8% $79

Clothing & Footwear

Salalah

$73 6.9%

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

$126 13.1% 71.8% $52

Getting Around

Salalah

$69 6.5%

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

$16 * 1.7% 76.3% $53

Sport & Entertainment

Salalah

$56 5.3%

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

$21 * 2.2% 62.8% $35

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $26 in Salalah vs $39 in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $229 vs $294 per month, with Salalah cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇴🇲 Salalah

🇴🇲 Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

🕒 Local time

20:59 8:59 PM

Same time as Salalah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

178,469

💱 Currency

Omani Rial OMR ر.ع.

📈 Exchange rate

1 OMR = 2.6 USD

1 OMR = 2.33 EUR

1 OMR = 2.6 USD

1 OMR = 2.33 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Salalah Madinat As Sultan Qaboos 860 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Salalah
Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

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 Madinat As Sultan Qaboos: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos wins on cost – living expenses run 10% lower than in Salalah. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Madinat As Sultan Qaboos the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,593 in Salalah and $1,438 in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Shoppers in Salalah pay roughly 22% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you’ll spend $1,062 per month in Salalah versus $958 in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos – a 11% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Madinat As Sultan Qaboos 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, Salalah and Madinat As Sultan Qaboos are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.