Cost of living comparison

Kazakhstan

compared to

Saudi Arabia

Mecca vs. Almaty Cost of Living Summary

Mecca is 19.8% cheaper than Almaty.

Restaurants: pay 54.1% less in Mecca
Groceries: pay 8.7% less in Mecca
Transportation: pay 44.5% more in Mecca
Housing: pay 32.2% less in Mecca
Childcare: pay 49.8% more in Mecca
Entertainment and Sports: pay 7.7% more in Mecca
Clothing: pay 63.3% less in Mecca

The cost of childcare, transportation, and entertainment and sports in Mecca are more expensive than in Almaty. Expenses including clothing, restaurants, housing, and groceries are lower in Mecca.

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Mecca vs. Almaty Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Mecca instead of Almaty, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 54.1% less for restaurants

	Almaty	Mecca
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$13.42 KZT6,099.57	$4.53 SAR17.00	-66.2%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$8.95 KZT4,066.38	$6.93 SAR25.99	-22.6%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.36 KZT617.13	$0.69 SAR2.60	-49.0%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.91 KZT412.02	$0.24 SAR0.90	-73.5%
Average			-54.1%

Almaty vs. Mecca - Cost of restaurants

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pay 8.7% less for groceries

	Almaty	Mecca
Bread 1 loaf	$0.94 KZT426.37	$0.98 SAR3.67	+4.1%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$6.46 KZT2,933.52	$2.98 SAR11.16	-53.9%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.48 KZT2,946.83	$6.49 SAR24.36	+0.1%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.45 KZT1,113.01	$2.46 SAR9.23	+0.5%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$3.09 KZT1,405.42	$3.71 SAR13.92	+20.0%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.86 KZT388.80	$0.93 SAR3.48	+8.3%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.06 KZT482.99	$0.73 SAR2.72	-31.8%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.37 KZT623.28	$0.71 SAR2.67	-48.0%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.34 KZT607.00	$0.68 SAR2.57	-48.7%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.35 KZT161.04	$0.52 SAR1.95	+46.7%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.26 KZT119.57	$0.58 SAR2.17	+119.5%
Average			-8.7%

Almaty vs. Mecca - Cost of groceries

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pay 44.5% more for transportation

	Almaty	Mecca
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$2.64 KZT1,201.50	$2.35 SAR8.82	-11.1%
Monthly public transit pass	$22.15 KZT10,064.29	??
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$22,370.46 KZT10M	$47,965.95 SAR180K	+114.4%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$6.71 KZT3,049.79	$16.26 SAR60.99	+142.2%
Average			+44.5%

Almaty vs. Mecca - Cost of transportation

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pay 32.2% less for housing

	Almaty	Mecca
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$18.11 KZT8,230.36	$62.84 SAR235.78	+247.0%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$802.28 KZT365K	$524.96 SAR1,969.59	-34.6%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$513.47 KZT233K	$286.20 SAR1,073.77	-44.3%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$69.56 KZT31,612.36	$50.94 SAR191.14	-26.8%
Average			-32.2%

Almaty vs. Mecca - Cost of housing

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pay 49.8% more for childcare

	Almaty	Mecca
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$456.34 KZT207K	$760.49 SAR2,853.27	+66.7%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$12,216.13 KZT6M	$16,442.55 SAR61,690.38	+34.6%
Average			+49.8%

Almaty vs. Mecca - Cost of childcare

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pay 7.7% more for entertainment and sports

	Almaty	Mecca
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.24 KZT1,474.06	$1.53 SAR5.75	-52.8%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.30 KZT1,501.79	$2.60 SAR9.74	-21.5%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.63 KZT1,194.50	$6.66 SAR24.99	+153.4%
Monthly membership at local gym	$70.49 KZT32,033.34	$81.01 SAR303.94	+14.9%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$6.71 KZT3,049.79	$11.99 SAR44.99	+78.7%
Average			+7.7%

Almaty vs. Mecca - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 63.3% less for clothing

	Almaty	Mecca
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$96.07 KZT43,657.12	$13.32 SAR49.99	-86.1%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$47.45 KZT21,560.94	$57.02 SAR213.95	+20.2%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$145.68 KZT66,202.14	$39.97 SAR149.97	-72.6%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$134.22 KZT60,995.72	$53.30 SAR199.96	-60.3%
Average			-63.3%

Almaty vs. Mecca - Cost of clothing

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We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this

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