Cost of living comparison

Asmara, Eritrea

compared to

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Riyadh vs. Asmara Cost of Living Summary

Riyadh is 3.3 times more expensive than Asmara.

Restaurants: pay 39.1% less in Riyadh
Groceries: pay 18.2% more in Riyadh
Transportation: pay 2.1 times more in Riyadh
Housing: pay 2.1 times more in Riyadh
Childcare: pay 10.3 times more in Riyadh
Entertainment and Sports: pay 5.9 times more in Riyadh
Clothing: pay 29.0% less in Riyadh

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

Riyadh vs. Asmara Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 39.1% less for restaurants

	Asmara	Riyadh
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$18.14 ERN272.04	$8.39 SAR31.47	-53.8%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.99 ERN89.85	$7.99 SAR29.97	+33.3%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.83 ERN27.50	$0.76 SAR2.86	-58.4%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.33 ERN20.00	$0.30 SAR1.12	-77.7%
Average			-39.1%

Asmara vs. Riyadh - Cost of restaurants

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pay 18.2% more for groceries

	Asmara	Riyadh
Bread 1 loaf	$0.50 ERN7.50	$1.24 SAR4.65	+147.6%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$1.50 ERN22.50	$3.91 SAR14.67	+160.7%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.14 ERN92.11	$6.64 SAR24.92	+8.2%
Eggs 1 dozen	$4.52 ERN67.80	$2.63 SAR9.89	-41.7%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$12.17 ERN182.57	$3.80 SAR14.26	-68.8%
Apples (1 lb)	$5.54 ERN83.16	$1.03 SAR3.88	-81.4%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.58 ERN8.69	$0.78 SAR2.94	+35.4%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.86 ERN12.85	$0.82 SAR3.07	-4.6%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.55 ERN8.32	$0.76 SAR2.84	+36.3%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.80 ERN11.94	$0.60 SAR2.25	-24.8%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.48 ERN7.26	$0.64 SAR2.41	+32.9%
Average			+18.2%

Asmara vs. Riyadh - Cost of groceries

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pay 2.1 times more for transportation

	Asmara	Riyadh
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$8.83 ERN132.49	$2.31 SAR8.67	-73.8%
Monthly public transit pass	$8.00 ERN120.00	$37.27 SAR139.85	+365.9%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$66,666.00 ERN999,990.00	$33,280.09 SAR124,867.15	-50.1%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$5.73 ERN85.99	$16.70 SAR62.64	+191.2%
Average			+108.3%

Asmara vs. Riyadh - Cost of transportation

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pay 2.1 times more for housing

	Asmara	Riyadh
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$200.00 ERN3,000.00	$74.70 SAR280.26	-62.7%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$475.00 ERN7,125.00	$1,116.87 SAR4,190.50	+135.1%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$400.00 ERN6,000.00	$782.38 SAR2,935.51	+95.6%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$21.03 ERN315.44	$81.80 SAR306.92	+289.0%
Average			+114.2%

Asmara vs. Riyadh - Cost of housing

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pay 10.3 times more for childcare

	Asmara	Riyadh
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$25.00 ERN375.00	$360.22 SAR1,351.55	+1340.9%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$1,675.00 ERN25,125.00	$10,375.93 SAR38,930.58	+519.5%
Average			+930.2%

Asmara vs. Riyadh - Cost of childcare

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pay 5.9 times more for entertainment and sports

	Asmara	Riyadh
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.00 ERN15.00	$2.13 SAR7.99	+113.0%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$0.77 ERN11.58	$4.25 SAR15.95	+450.4%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.00 ERN30.00	$7.45 SAR27.97	+272.8%
Monthly membership at local gym	$27.00 ERN405.00	$101.01 SAR379.00	+274.1%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$1.10 ERN16.50	$15.97 SAR59.94	+1352.2%
Average			+492.5%

Asmara vs. Riyadh - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 29.0% less for clothing

	Asmara	Riyadh
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$82.50 ERN1,237.50	$52.20 SAR195.87	-36.7%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$75.00 ERN1,125.00	$54.44 SAR204.26	-27.4%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$200.00 ERN3,000.00	$107.53 SAR403.45	-46.2%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$95.00 ERN1,425.00	$89.80 SAR336.91	-5.5%
Average			-29.0%

Asmara 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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