Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sinjar and Baghdad

For one person, living is cheaper in Sinjar: $540 a month against $1,048 in Baghdad, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

26

Cost of Living Index in Sinjar
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Sinjar Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Baghdad
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Baghdad Living Index

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Sinjar

🇮🇶 Iraq

$540

/mo nomad

Baghdad

🇮🇶 Iraq

$1,048

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sinjar and in Baghdad

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $540 in Sinjar versus $1,048 in Baghdad.

Sinjar $540
Baghdad $1,048

Estimated couple costs with rent: $842 in Sinjar versus $1,508 in Baghdad.

Sinjar $842
Baghdad $1,508

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,145 in Sinjar versus $1,968 in Baghdad.

Sinjar $1,145
Baghdad $1,968

Living in Sinjar costs roughly 49% less than in Baghdad, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Sinjar 60% lower, Baghdad 23% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.07 IQD 6,152

$4.54 IQD 6,866

-10.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$7.72 IQD 11.7K

$26.64 IQD 40.3K

-71.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.14 IQD 10.8K

$6.47 IQD 9,781

10.36%

Cappuccino

$0.68 IQD 1,023

$2.68 IQD 4,054

-74.63%

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

$0.34 IQD 519

$0.39 IQD 584

-12.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.17 IQD 263

$0.20 IQD 302

-15.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.97 IQD 1,470

$3.31 IQD 5,009

-70.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 IQD 2,557

$3.22 IQD 4,866

-47.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.69 IQD 1,041

$0.92 IQD 1,390

-25.00%

White Bread (500g)

$0.69 IQD 1,037

$0.71 IQD 1,078

-2.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.63 IQD 955

$1.32 IQD 1,999

-52.27%

Eggs

$1.57 IQD 2,374

$1.71 IQD 2,577

-8.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$2.00 IQD 3,030

$3.30 IQD 4,989

-39.39%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.05 IQD 6,124

$4.15 IQD 6,269

-2.41%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.39 IQD 15.7K

$12.24 IQD 18.5K

-15.11%

Apples (1kg)

$0.69 IQD 1,037

$1.00 IQD 1,513

-31.00%

Banana (1kg)

$0.67 IQD 1,017

$0.98 IQD 1,487

-31.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.63 IQD 952

$0.95 IQD 1,440

-33.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.68 IQD 1,024

$0.68 IQD 1,021

Potato (1kg)

$0.65 IQD 977

$0.58 IQD 877

12.07%

Onion (1kg)

$0.59 IQD 894

$0.57 IQD 854

3.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.66 IQD 993

$0.60 IQD 903

10.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.32 IQD 477

$0.61 IQD 927

-47.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.63 IQD 2,458

$1.67 IQD 2,531

-2.40%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.44 IQD 9,726

$11.64 IQD 17.6K

-44.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.01 IQD 1,522

$1.99 IQD 3,005

-49.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 IQD 2,466

$1.96 IQD 2,962

-16.84%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 IQD 456

$0.32 IQD 480

-6.25%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.04 IQD 30.3K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.62 IQD 2,443

$2.02 IQD 3,045

-19.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 IQD 2,318

$1.30 IQD 1,964

17.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.51 IQD 8,319

$6.67 IQD 10.1K

-17.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.29 IQD 437

$0.58 IQD 870

-50.00%

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

$16.2K IQD 24.5M

$16.5K IQD 25.0M

-1.92%

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

$17.1K IQD 25.9M

$16.7K IQD 25.2M

2.51%

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

$39.11 IQD 59.1K

$188 IQD 284.5K

-79.23%

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

$12.27 IQD 18.5K

$19.25 IQD 29.1K

-36.26%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.36 IQD 36.8K

$37.51 IQD 56.7K

-35.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.27 IQD 56.3K

$39.97 IQD 60.4K

-6.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$33.40 IQD 50.5K

$18.38 IQD 27.8K

81.72%

Cinema Ticket

$9.76 IQD 14.7K

$9.70 IQD 14.7K

0.62%

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

$292 IQD 441.8K

$145 IQD 219.6K

101.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,747 IQD 4.2M

$3,297 IQD 5.0M

-16.68%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$10.19 IQD 15.4K

$25.60 IQD 38.7K

-60.20%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$9.82 IQD 14.8K

$33.32 IQD 50.3K

-70.53%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$59.4 IQD 89.7K

$60.2 IQD 90.9K

-1.36%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$58.8 IQD 88.8K

$41.85 IQD 63.2K

40.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$211 IQD 318.4K

$537 IQD 811.6K

-60.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$138 IQD 208.5K

$364 IQD 550.5K

-62.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$412 IQD 623.1K

$963 IQD 1.5M

-57.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$281 IQD 424.3K

$624 IQD 943.1K

-55.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$733 IQD 1.1M

$4,276 IQD 6.5M

-82.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$552 IQD 834.2K

$1,379 IQD 2.1M

-59.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$197 IQD 297.0K

$518 IQD 782.8K

-62.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.53

4.12

-38.59%

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

Last update for Sinjar: October 24, 2026

Last update for Baghdad: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sinjar

$138 25.6%

Baghdad

$364 34.8% 164% $226

Groceries & Markets

Sinjar

$124 23%

Baghdad

$164 15.6% 31.9% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sinjar

$76 14%

Baghdad

$245 23.4% 224% $169

Eating Out

Sinjar

$72 13.4%

Baghdad

$113 10.8% 56.5% $41

Clothing & Footwear

Sinjar

$62 11.5%

Baghdad

$72 6.9% 16.5% $10

Sport & Entertainment

Sinjar

$57 10.5%

Baghdad

$59 5.7% 4.6% $2.6

Getting Around

Sinjar

$11 * 1.9%

Baghdad

$30 2.9% 184% $19

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $211 in Sinjar and $537 in Baghdad. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Baghdad pays about 2.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $8 in Sinjar vs $27 in Baghdad for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $124 vs $164 per month, with Sinjar cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇶 Sinjar

🇮🇶 Baghdad

🕒 Local time

17:54 5:54 PM

Same time as Sinjar

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

88,023

7,216,040 Capital

💱 Currency

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.95 EUR

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.95 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Sinjar Baghdad 410 km

From you

Sinjar
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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

Sinjar vs Baghdad: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sinjar wins on cost – living expenses run 49% lower than in Baghdad. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Sinjar the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 62% lower in Sinjar. 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: $211 in Sinjar versus $537 in Baghdad. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 32% higher in Baghdad. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $540 per month in Sinjar versus $1,048 in Baghdad – a 94% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Sinjar gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Sinjar wins on affordability, Baghdad on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.