Cost of Living inJeddah, Saudi Arabia
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Purchasing Power vs. United States
Based on GDP per capita (PPP). Saudi Arabia: $62,793/capita.
How Far Your Money Goes
Prices are 56% lower than the global benchmark (New York City = 100).
Income Category
Happiness
6.6 / 10
#28 globally
GDP per Capita
City Population
Monthly Costs
Rent
Food
Transport
Utilities
Education
Child Education
Public-school quality + expat access, alongside international and private school cost โ the two paths a relocating family weighs.
Public schools
Public-schooling rules are set nationally for Saudi Arabia; Jeddah-specific enrollment notes are still being verified.
Quality
Public schools are for nationals
Expat access
Not practical for most expat families
not practicalInstruction
Arabic
Language fit is more manageable.
PISA / outcomes
Qualitative only
Using curated quality notes for now.
Why this quality rating
Saudi public schools are Arabic-medium and limited to Saudi nationals and other Arabs in some contexts. Riyadh, Jeddah, and Khobar have large international school sectors serving the substantial expat population.
Why the expat-access rating looks like this
Public schools are reserved for Saudi nationals. Expat families rely heavily on international schools, which are abundant in major cities.
๐ Homeschooling
Legal with approvalSaudi Arabia allows homeschooling with approval from the Ministry of Education. Typically granted for medical or distance reasons. Growing acceptance but still relatively uncommon.
Homeschool legality in Saudi Arabia โ check current regulations before committing.
Source: User-curated family relocation research (initial seed) (2026-04-14)
International & private schools
Childcare & Domestic Help
Estimate-only country fallback for the family-support costs we track in Saudi Arabia.
Full-time nanny (5 days)
$775-$1,050
Estimate-only country fallback
Live-in / 24-7 nanny
$1,300-$1,750
Estimate-only country fallback
Source: curated family relocation research(derived country fallback)
Getting Around
Neighborhood mobility profiles are rolling out city by city.Jeddah is still missing a verified walkability, transit, airport, and rideshare profile.
Healthcare
System strength, outcome signals, facility coverage, and self-pay visibility in Saudi Arabia.
Method: country metrics come from public system indicators, facility coverage reflects mapped providers we can inventory, direct pricing only reflects observed self-pay pages, and relative care cost can fall back to broad cost-of-living healthcare indices. Sparse pricing does not imply sparse healthcare availability.
Healthcare system
StrongGood national coverage, strong doctor availability, and low out-of-pocket burden support this rating.
Public care
StrongBroad public coverage, strong public funding, and relatively low patient cost-sharing support this rating.
Private care
MixedA meaningful tracked hospital and clinic network help, but self-pay pricing transparency is still sparse.
UHC coverage
83/100
2023
Physicians
3.41/1k
2023
Hospital beds
2.41/1k
2023
Out of pocket
14%
2023
Outcome signals
Life expectancy
79.0 yrs
2024
Maternal mortality
7/100k
2023
Neonatal mortality
2.9/1k
2024
International patient readiness
MixedMultiple facilities have websites and there is visible specialty depth help, but price transparency is still sparse.
Pricing transparency
LimitedMultiple facilities have crawlable websites help, but published self-pay prices are scarce.
Facility coverage
Self-pay pricing visibility
No verified self-pay prices are published for the tracked facilities in Saudi Arabia yet.
This usually reflects low online price transparency rather than a lack of healthcare providers.
Notable facilities
System metrics: World Bank WDI ยท Updated 2026-06-01
Safety & Governance
Street Safety
Source: Numbeo where a city row is matched; otherwise World Bank WGI and country-level safety context.
Political Stability
World Bank WGI scale: -2.5 to +2.5.
Wages by Sector
| Sector | Median |
|---|---|
| Administrative & Support Services | โ |
| Agriculture & Farming | โ |
| Arts, Entertainment & Recreation | โ |
| Construction | โ |
| Education | โ |
| Finance & Insurance | โ |
| Healthcare & Social Work | โ |
| Hospitality & Food Service | โ |
| Information & Technology | โ |
| Manufacturing | โ |
| Mining & Quarrying | โ |
| Other Services | โ |
| Professional & Scientific Services | โ |
| Public Administration & Defence | โ |
| Real Estate | โ |
| Retail & Wholesale Trade | โ |
| Transport & Logistics | โ |
| Utilities | โ |
2022 annual wages in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia ยท Source: GASTAT (region-adjusted)
Price Comparison vs. US
Visa Information (US passport)
Short-stay entry
US passport holders can obtain a visa on arrival.
Quick comparison FAQ
Structured from the deltas already shown on this page โ no invented facts, no extra data sources.
How far does your money go in Jeddah compared with the US?
Your money goes about 2.1x further in Jeddah than in the US, based on the current PPP estimate.
Is Jeddah cheaper or more expensive overall than New York City?
Jeddah is cheaper overall than New York City โ overall living costs are about 56% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City) for Jeddah.
How does rent in Jeddah compare with New York City?
Rent in Jeddah is about 87% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City).
How expensive are groceries and restaurants in Jeddah?
Groceries in Jeddah are about 61% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City), and restaurant prices are about 64% cheaper than the same benchmark.
About Jeddah
Jeddah is Saudi Arabia's principal Red Sea port and historically its most cosmopolitan city, the entry point for Hajj pilgrims for over a millennium and the country's commercial counterweight to Riyadh. For relocators it has long been the easier Saudi posting: more relaxed social norms than the capital, a coastal climate that is humid but moderated by the sea, and a corniche-oriented urban culture. Recent reforms have opened tourist visas, expanded entertainment licensing, and pulled women into the workforce at scale. The constraints remain real: summer heat regularly exceeds forty Celsius, alcohol is prohibited, and tax-free salaries are paired with employer-tied iqama residency that complicates career mobility.
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