Cost of living comparison

Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

compared to

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Riyadh vs. Ashgabat Cost of Living Summary

Riyadh is 2.9 times more expensive than Ashgabat.

Restaurants: pay 65.3% less in Riyadh
Groceries: pay 56.1% less in Riyadh
Transportation: pay 2.1 times more in Riyadh
Housing: pay 24.7% less in Riyadh
Childcare: pay 15.8 times more in Riyadh
Entertainment and Sports: pay 38.0% less in Riyadh
Clothing: pay 44.0% less in Riyadh

The cost of childcare and transportation in Riyadh are more expensive than in Ashgabat. Expenses including restaurants, groceries, clothing, entertainment and sports, and housing are lower in Riyadh. Notably, childcare and transportation are significantly more expensive in Riyadh.

Riyadh vs. Ashgabat Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Riyadh instead of Ashgabat, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 65.3% less for restaurants

	Ashgabat	Riyadh
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$34.54 TMT121.25	$8.39 SAR31.48	-75.7%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$12.82 TMT45.00	$7.99 SAR29.98	-37.7%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$3.24 TMT11.38	$0.76 SAR2.86	-76.5%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.04 TMT3.67	$0.30 SAR1.12	-71.5%
Average			-65.3%

Ashgabat vs. Riyadh - Cost of restaurants

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pay 56.1% less for groceries

	Ashgabat	Riyadh
Bread 1 loaf	$2.39 TMT8.38	$1.24 SAR4.65	-48.1%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$17.90 TMT62.83	$3.91 SAR14.67	-78.2%
Milk (1 gallon)	$16.12 TMT56.59	$6.64 SAR24.93	-58.8%
Eggs 1 dozen	$6.84 TMT24.00	$2.63 SAR9.89	-61.5%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$5.38 TMT18.90	$3.80 SAR14.26	-29.4%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.71 TMT9.53	$1.03 SAR3.88	-61.9%
Bananas (1 lb)	$4.01 TMT14.06	$0.78 SAR2.95	-80.4%
Oranges (1 lb)	$3.65 TMT12.81	$0.82 SAR3.07	-77.6%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.71 TMT6.01	$0.76 SAR2.84	-55.9%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.03 TMT3.63	$0.60 SAR2.25	-42.1%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.84 TMT2.95	$0.64 SAR2.41	-23.5%
Average			-56.1%

Ashgabat vs. Riyadh - Cost of groceries

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pay 2.1 times more for transportation

	Ashgabat	Riyadh
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$1.56 TMT5.49	$2.31 SAR8.68	+47.8%
Monthly public transit pass	$8.55 TMT30.00	$37.27 SAR139.89	+336.1%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$43,803.42 TMT153,750.00	$33,280.09 SAR124,901.32	-24.0%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$9.69 TMT34.00	$16.70 SAR62.66	+72.4%
Average			+108.1%

Ashgabat vs. Riyadh - Cost of transportation

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pay 24.7% less for housing

	Ashgabat	Riyadh
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$94.97 TMT333.33	$74.70 SAR280.34	-21.3%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,125.36 TMT3,950.00	$1,116.87 SAR4,191.65	-0.8%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$747.86 TMT2,625.00	$782.38 SAR2,936.32	+4.6%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$435.73 TMT1,529.41	$81.80 SAR307.00	-81.2%
Average			-24.7%

Ashgabat vs. Riyadh - Cost of housing

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pay 15.8 times more for childcare

	Ashgabat	Riyadh
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$22.79 TMT80.00	$360.22 SAR1,351.92	+1480.5%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	??	$10,375.93 SAR38,941.24
Average			+1480.5%

Ashgabat vs. Riyadh - Cost of childcare

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pay 38.0% less for entertainment and sports

	Ashgabat	Riyadh
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$5.06 TMT17.75	$2.13 SAR7.99	-57.9%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$6.98 TMT24.50	$4.25 SAR15.95	-39.1%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$28.49 TMT100.00	$7.45 SAR27.98	-73.8%
Monthly membership at local gym	$147.20 TMT516.67	$101.01 SAR379.11	-31.4%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$14.25 TMT50.00	$15.97 SAR59.95	+12.1%
Average			-38.0%

Ashgabat vs. Riyadh - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 44.0% less for clothing

	Ashgabat	Riyadh
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$85.47 TMT300.00	$52.20 SAR195.93	-38.9%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$121.08 TMT425.00	$54.44 SAR204.31	-55.0%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$163.82 TMT575.00	$107.53 SAR403.56	-34.4%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$170.94 TMT600.00	$89.80 SAR337.01	-47.5%
Average			-44.0%

Ashgabat vs. Riyadh - Cost of clothing

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The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: April 2025

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See the cost of living in Turkmenistan vs. Saudi Arabia. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Turkmenistan and Saudi Arabia.

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