Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sulaymaniyah and Dubai

For one person, living is cheaper in Sulaymaniyah: $773 a month against $2,854 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $25,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

37

Cost of Living Index in Sulaymaniyah
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Sulaymaniyah Living Index
139

Cost of Living Index in Dubai
Learn more

Dubai Living Index

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Sulaymaniyah

🇮🇶 Iraq

$773

/mo nomad

Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,854

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sulaymaniyah and in Dubai

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $773 in Sulaymaniyah versus $2,854 in Dubai.

Sulaymaniyah $773
Dubai $2,854

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,194 in Sulaymaniyah versus $4,321 in Dubai.

Sulaymaniyah $1,194
Dubai $4,321

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,615 in Sulaymaniyah versus $5,788 in Dubai.

Sulaymaniyah $1,615
Dubai $5,788

Living in Sulaymaniyah costs roughly 73% less than in Dubai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Sulaymaniyah is 42% below, Dubai is 113% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.07 IQD 7,660

$13.04 AED 47.89

-61.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.93 IQD 34.6K

$81.4 AED 299

-71.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.04 IQD 10.6K

$9.32 AED 34.25

-24.46%

Cappuccino

$2.88 IQD 4,344

$5.97 AED 21.93

-51.76%

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

$0.50 IQD 759

$1.63 AED 5.98

-69.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.25 IQD 378

$0.81 AED 2.99

-69.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.93 IQD 5,943

$13.65 AED 50.1

-71.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 IQD 3,427

$13.38 AED 49.15

-83.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.28 IQD 1,935

$1.81 AED 6.64

-29.28%

White Bread (500g)

$1.01 IQD 1,519

$1.57 AED 5.78

-35.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.86 IQD 2,812

$2.49 AED 9.16

-25.30%

Eggs

$1.77 IQD 2,672

$3.28 AED 12.04

-46.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.96 IQD 7,490

$12.67 AED 46.53

-60.85%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.22 IQD 6,382

$9.75 AED 35.80

-56.72%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.30 IQD 23.1K

$13.18 AED 48.40

16.08%

Apples (1kg)

$1.28 IQD 1,935

$2.61 AED 9.57

-50.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.28 IQD 1,937

$1.93 AED 7.09

-33.68%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.15 IQD 1,737

$1.92 AED 7.05

-40.10%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.68 IQD 1,025

$1.36 AED 5.00

-50.00%

Potato (1kg)

$0.56 IQD 847

$1.17 AED 4.29

-52.14%

Onion (1kg)

$0.73 IQD 1,096

$1.01 AED 3.71

-27.72%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.73 IQD 1,101

$1.51 AED 5.56

-51.66%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.50 IQD 752

$0.62 AED 2.29

-19.35%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.28 IQD 3,444

$5.85 AED 21.50

-61.03%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.23 IQD 17.0K

$16.14 AED 59.3

-30.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.95 IQD 2,949

$2.65 AED 9.74

-26.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 IQD 2,141

$2.95 AED 10.82

-51.86%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.60 IQD 902

$1.64 AED 6.03

-63.41%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.68 IQD 34.3K

$73.6 AED 270

-69.19%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.22 IQD 3,361

$3.17 AED 11.66

-29.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.34 IQD 3,531

$0.71 AED 2.63

229.58%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.50 IQD 8,306

$7.96 AED 29.23

-30.90%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.69 IQD 1,045

$0.99 AED 3.64

-30.30%

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

$20.9K IQD 31.5M

$27.4K AED 100.5K

-23.74%

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

$18.9K IQD 28.6M

$22.5K AED 82.8K

-15.96%

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

$100 IQD 151.7K

$250 AED 920

-59.92%

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

$11.49 IQD 17.4K

$54.2 AED 199

-78.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.04 IQD 42.4K

$91.8 AED 337

-69.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.70 IQD 60.0K

$98.6 AED 362

-59.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.09 IQD 30.4K

$42.61 AED 156

-52.85%

Cinema Ticket

$7.58 IQD 11.5K

$16.03 AED 58.9

-52.71%

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

$173 IQD 261.0K

$843 AED 3,098

-79.52%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,946 IQD 4.5M

$18.3K AED 67.1K

-83.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$18.91 IQD 28.6K

$68.0 AED 250

-72.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.19 IQD 38.1K

$57.9 AED 213

-56.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$43.24 IQD 65.3K

$101 AED 370

-57.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$38.64 IQD 58.4K

$101 AED 371

-61.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$215 IQD 324.7K

$2,380 AED 8,741

-90.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$175 IQD 264.2K

$1,506 AED 5,531

-88.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$492 IQD 743.9K

$4,437 AED 16.3K

-88.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$363 IQD 548.8K

$3,010 AED 11.1K

-87.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$786 IQD 1.2M

$7,121 AED 26.2K

-88.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$630 IQD 952.4K

$4,135 AED 15.2K

-84.76%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$584 IQD 882.1K

$3,391 AED 12.5K

-82.78%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.77

4.54

27.09%

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

Last update for Sulaymaniyah: October 5, 2026

Last update for Dubai: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Sulaymaniyah

$188 24.2%

Dubai

$293 10.2% 55.3% $104

Accommodation & Living

Sulaymaniyah

$175 22.5%

Dubai

$1.5K 52.5% 761% $1.3K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sulaymaniyah

$140 18%

Dubai

$396 13.8% 183% $257

Eating Out

Sulaymaniyah

$123 15.9%

Dubai

$309 10.8% 150% $185

Clothing & Footwear

Sulaymaniyah

$57 7.3%

Dubai

$147 5.1% 160% $91

Sport & Entertainment

Sulaymaniyah

$55 7.1%

Dubai

$131 4.6% 138% $76

Getting Around

Sulaymaniyah

$39 5%

Dubai

$87 3% 123% $48

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $215 in Sulaymaniyah and $2,380 in Dubai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dubai pays 481% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $23.00 in Sulaymaniyah vs $81.0 in Dubai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $188 vs $293 per month, with Sulaymaniyah cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇶 Sulaymaniyah

🇦🇪 Dubai

🕒 Local time

15:35 3:35 PM

16:35 4:35 PM

1 h ahead of Sulaymaniyah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

823,199

3,790,000

💱 Currency

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.91 EUR

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.243 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AED, USD, EUR to IQD – Iraqi Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇶 Iraqi Dinar (ع.د)

Iraqi Dinar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,511 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,693 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.91 EUR).

UAE Dirham exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.12 AED (1 AED = 0.243 EUR).

USD to IQD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Sulaymaniyah Dubai 1,490 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Sulaymaniyah
Dubai

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

Sulaymaniyah vs Dubai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sulaymaniyah is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 269% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 481% lower in Dubai. 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: $215 in Sulaymaniyah versus $2,380 in Dubai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Sulaymaniyah runs roughly 225% less than in Dubai. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $173 in Sulaymaniyah versus $843 in Dubai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $773 in Sulaymaniyah versus $2,854 in Dubai, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Sulaymaniyah but tight or insufficient in Dubai. The gap between the two cities makes Sulaymaniyah the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Sulaymaniyah is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Dubai, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Sulaymaniyah and Dubai 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 Sulaymaniyah gentler on the wallet – expenses run 269% less than in Dubai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.