Cost of living comparison
compared to
Saudi Arabia vs. San Diego Cost of Living Summary
Saudi Arabia is 46.2% cheaper than San Diego.
- Restaurants
-
pay 70.8% less in Saudi Arabia
- Groceries
-
pay 42.8% less in Saudi Arabia
- Transportation
-
pay 31.4% less in Saudi Arabia
- Housing
-
pay 58.5% less in Saudi Arabia
- Childcare
-
pay 78.7% less in Saudi Arabia
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 22.3% less in Saudi Arabia
- Clothing
-
pay 18.7% less in Saudi Arabia
Expenses including childcare, restaurants, housing, groceries, transportation, and entertainment and sports are lower in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia vs. San Diego Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Saudi Arabia instead of San Diego, you would:
pay 70.8% less for restaurants
|
San Diego
|
Saudi Arabia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$21.00
|
$6.32
SAR23.72
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$15.00
|
$7.73
SAR29.02
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.03
|
$0.74
SAR2.79
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.50
|
$0.27
SAR1.02
|
|
San Diego vs. Saudi Arabia - Cost of restaurants
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pay 42.8% less for groceries
|
San Diego
|
Saudi Arabia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.57
|
$0.92
SAR3.43
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.36
|
$3.62
SAR13.57
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.78
|
$6.74
SAR25.28
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.84
|
$2.52
SAR9.48
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.07
|
$3.28
SAR12.29
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.22
|
$0.97
SAR3.63
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.78
|
$0.78
SAR2.92
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.91
|
$0.80
SAR3.00
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.26
|
$0.74
SAR2.77
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.42
|
$0.66
SAR2.49
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.12
|
$0.65
SAR2.44
|
|
San Diego vs. Saudi Arabia - Cost of groceries
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pay 31.4% less for transportation
|
San Diego
|
Saudi Arabia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.76
|
$2.32
SAR8.72
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$72.00
|
$33.84
SAR127.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$31,965.00
|
$25,756.63
SAR96,663.93
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$19.40
|
$19.00
SAR71.30
|
|
San Diego vs. Saudi Arabia - Cost of transportation
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pay 58.5% less for housing
|
San Diego
|
Saudi Arabia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$82.19
|
$74.04
SAR277.85
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$3,033.00
|
$434.87
SAR1,632.07
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,538.64
|
$360.33
SAR1,352.30
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$205.84
|
$97.42
SAR365.63
|
|
San Diego vs. Saudi Arabia - Cost of housing
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pay 78.7% less for childcare
|
San Diego
|
Saudi Arabia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,750.00
|
$350.88
SAR1,316.84
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$28,750.00
|
$6,485.70
SAR24,340.66
|
|
San Diego vs. Saudi Arabia - Cost of childcare
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pay 22.3% less for entertainment and sports
|
San Diego
|
Saudi Arabia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$1.89
SAR7.09
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.90
|
$3.48
SAR13.07
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$12.00
|
$7.47
SAR28.02
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$73.21
|
$106.43
SAR399.41
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$17.50
|
$17.24
SAR64.71
|
|
San Diego vs. Saudi Arabia - Cost of entertainment and sports
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pay 18.7% less for clothing
|
San Diego
|
Saudi Arabia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$60.72
|
$48.71
SAR182.80
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$58.44
|
$57.50
SAR215.81
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$105.68
|
$88.56
SAR332.35
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$126.25
|
$79.17
SAR297.13
|
|
San Diego vs. Saudi Arabia - 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: December 2025
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cost of living in United States vs. Saudi Arabia.
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