Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sulaymaniyah and Tikrit

For one person, living is cheaper in Tikrit: $646 a month against $663 in Sulaymaniyah, rent and utilities included – about $200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

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Cost of Living Index in Sulaymaniyah
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Sulaymaniyah Living Index
32

Cost of Living Index in Tikrit
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Tikrit Living Index

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Sulaymaniyah

🇮🇶 Iraq

$663

/mo nomad

Tikrit

🇮🇶 Iraq

$646

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sulaymaniyah and in Tikrit

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 Tikrit actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $663 in Sulaymaniyah versus $646 in Tikrit.

Sulaymaniyah $663
Tikrit $646

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,034 in Sulaymaniyah versus $997 in Tikrit.

Sulaymaniyah $1,034
Tikrit $997

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,406 in Sulaymaniyah versus $1,349 in Tikrit.

Sulaymaniyah $1,406
Tikrit $1,349

Living in Sulaymaniyah is roughly 3% more expensive than in Tikrit, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Sulaymaniyah 51% lower, Tikrit 53% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.21 IQD 6,363

$4.21 IQD 6,365

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.75 IQD 29.8K

$20.27 IQD 30.6K

-2.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.90 IQD 8,916

$6.52 IQD 9,850

-9.51%

Cappuccino

$2.45 IQD 3,702

$2.66 IQD 4,019

-7.89%

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

$0.43 IQD 650

$0.34 IQD 511

26.47%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.20 IQD 302

$0.23 IQD 352

-13.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.22 IQD 4,873

$3.15 IQD 4,755

2.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 IQD 3,080

$2.49 IQD 3,762

-18.07%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.11 IQD 1,677

$1.14 IQD 1,719

-2.63%

White Bread (500g)

$0.89 IQD 1,339

$0.60 IQD 905

48.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.66 IQD 2,516

$1.32 IQD 1,992

25.76%

Eggs

$1.55 IQD 2,345

$1.56 IQD 2,353

-0.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.31 IQD 6,509

$4.21 IQD 6,361

2.38%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.66 IQD 5,536

$3.67 IQD 5,544

-0.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.27 IQD 20.1K

$10.24 IQD 15.5K

29.59%

Apples (1kg)

$1.11 IQD 1,680

$0.98 IQD 1,479

13.27%

Banana (1kg)

$1.09 IQD 1,646

$1.05 IQD 1,588

3.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.04 IQD 1,579

$0.86 IQD 1,306

20.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.56 IQD 843

$0.62 IQD 935

-9.68%

Potato (1kg)

$0.49 IQD 740

$0.65 IQD 987

-24.62%

Onion (1kg)

$0.63 IQD 957

$0.53 IQD 803

18.87%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.58 IQD 883

$0.56 IQD 844

3.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.45 IQD 685

$0.55 IQD 831

-18.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.02 IQD 3,049

$1.64 IQD 2,485

23.17%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.76 IQD 14.7K

$10.59 IQD 16.0K

-7.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 IQD 2,509

$1.59 IQD 2,404

4.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.25 IQD 1,896

$1.59 IQD 2,403

-21.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.52 IQD 786

$0.37 IQD 552

40.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.74 IQD 29.8K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.92 IQD 2,904

$1.87 IQD 2,830

2.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.96 IQD 2,961

$1.26 IQD 1,901

55.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.48 IQD 6,774

$4.98 IQD 7,523

-10.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.57 IQD 865

$0.54 IQD 819

5.56%

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

$17.6K IQD 26.6M

$15.6K IQD 23.6M

12.37%

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

$17.0K IQD 25.6M

$18.1K IQD 27.3M

-6.08%

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

$85.2 IQD 128.7K

$89.4 IQD 135.0K

-4.70%

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

$10.12 IQD 15.3K

$14.36 IQD 21.7K

-29.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.03 IQD 36.3K

$29.25 IQD 44.2K

-17.85%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.78 IQD 51.0K

$31.36 IQD 47.4K

7.72%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.92 IQD 27.1K

Cinema Ticket

$6.56 IQD 9,916

$10.09 IQD 15.2K

-34.99%

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

$153 IQD 231.1K

$129 IQD 194.8K

18.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,546 IQD 3.8M

$2,947 IQD 4.5M

-13.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$16.75 IQD 25.3K

$21.87 IQD 33.0K

-23.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.28 IQD 33.7K

$20.35 IQD 30.7K

9.48%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$36.83 IQD 55.7K

$51.3 IQD 77.5K

-28.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$33.01 IQD 49.9K

$38.33 IQD 57.9K

-13.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$187 IQD 282.6K

$183 IQD 276.0K

2.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$147 IQD 221.9K

$131 IQD 198.5K

11.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$419 IQD 632.8K

$398 IQD 601.7K

5.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$314 IQD 474.4K

$292 IQD 441.4K

7.48%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$695 IQD 1.1M

$958 IQD 1.4M

-27.41%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$548 IQD 828.2K

$543 IQD 820.3K

0.96%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 IQD 757.3K

$302 IQD 457.0K

65.71%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.77

4.12

40.05%

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

Last update for Sulaymaniyah: October 25, 2026

Last update for Tikrit: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Sulaymaniyah

$164 24.7%

Tikrit

$152 23.6% 6.9% $11

Accommodation & Living

Sulaymaniyah

$147 22.2%

Tikrit

$131 20.4% 10.5% $15

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sulaymaniyah

$119 18%

Tikrit

$133 20.6% 11.4% $14

Eating Out

Sulaymaniyah

$104 15.6%

Tikrit

$108 16.8% 4.5% $4.7

Clothing & Footwear

Sulaymaniyah

$49 7.4%

Tikrit

$59 9.2% 21.1% $10

Sport & Entertainment

Sulaymaniyah

$47 7.1%

Tikrit

$52 8% 9.8% $4.6

Getting Around

Sulaymaniyah

$34 5.1%

Tikrit

$9.6 * 1.5% 71.3% $24

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 $187 in Sulaymaniyah and $183 in Tikrit. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sulaymaniyah pays 66% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $20 in Sulaymaniyah vs $20 in Tikrit. Groceries flip the comparison at $164 vs $152, with Tikrit cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇮🇶 Sulaymaniyah

🇮🇶 Tikrit

🕒 Local time

10:17 10:17 AM

Same time as Sulaymaniyah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

823,199

260,000

💱 Currency

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.91 EUR

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.91 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Sulaymaniyah Tikrit 190 km

From you

Sulaymaniyah
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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

Sulaymaniyah vs Tikrit: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Tikrit is about 3% cheaper overall, especially in transport and groceries. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 66% higher in Sulaymaniyah, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $187 in Sulaymaniyah versus $183 in Tikrit. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 7% higher in Sulaymaniyah. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Childcare runs $153 in Sulaymaniyah versus $129 in Tikrit. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Tikrit 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 – Tikrit wins on affordability, Sulaymaniyah on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.