Cost of Living inSfax, Tunisia
Image credit: M.Rais
Purchasing Power vs. United States
Based on GDP per capita (PPP). Tunisia: $12,775/capita.
How Far Your Money Goes
Prices are 71% lower than the global benchmark (New York City = 100).
Using the country-level NYC comparison for now. We do not have a defensible city-level aggregate cost index for this city yet.
Income Category
Happiness
4.4 / 10
#113 globally
GDP per Capita
City Population
Child Education
Public-school quality + expat access, alongside international and private school cost — the two paths a relocating family weighs.
Public schools
Public-schooling rules are set nationally for Tunisia; Sfax-specific enrollment notes are still being verified.
Quality
Mixed public schools
Assessment snapshot: 2022
Expat access
Language-heavy for non-Arabic speakers
hardInstruction
Arabic / French
Language fit is more manageable.
PISA / outcomes
374
Well below OECD avg
PISA 2022 · OECD avg ~480
Why this quality rating
Tunisia has a reasonably structured public school system by North African standards, with Arabic and French as instruction languages. Quality varies significantly by region. International schools in Tunis serve expatriate families.
Why the expat-access rating looks like this
Enrollment is technically open to resident families, but the Arabic-first (with French) instruction model typically pushes international families toward private or international schools.
📋 Homeschooling
Legal with school enrollmentTunisia allows "individual education" with registration at the Ministry of Education. Students must take official exams at a recognized school. No mandatory curriculum at home but must meet exam standards. Growing digital nomad scene in Tunis.
Homeschool legality in Tunisia — 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 Tunisia.
Full-time nanny (5 days)
$450-$650
Estimate-only country fallback
Live-in / 24-7 nanny
$850-$1,150
Estimate-only country fallback
Source: curated family relocation research(derived country fallback)
Getting Around
Neighborhood mobility profiles are rolling out city by city.Sfax is still missing a verified walkability, transit, airport, and rideshare profile.
Healthcare
System strength, outcome signals, facility coverage, and self-pay visibility in Tunisia.
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
GoodGood national coverage support this rating.
Public care
LimitedPatients still shoulder a meaningful share of costs and the tracked facility mix leans away from public providers weigh on this rating.
Private care
MixedA clearly private facility base help, but self-pay pricing transparency is still sparse.
UHC coverage
76/100
2023
Physicians
1.31/1k
2021
Hospital beds
1.82/1k
2023
Out of pocket
38%
2023
Outcome signals
Life expectancy
76.7 yrs
2024
Maternal mortality
36/100k
2023
Neonatal mortality
7.7/1k
2024
International patient readiness
MixedA visible private hospital base help, but price transparency is still sparse.
Pricing transparency
LimitedPublished self-pay prices are scarce and few facilities expose web pages we can verify weigh on this rating.
Facility coverage
Self-pay pricing visibility
No verified self-pay prices are published for the tracked facilities in Tunisia yet.
This usually reflects low online price transparency rather than a lack of healthcare providers.
Notable facilities
System metrics: World Bank WDI · 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 | — |
| Agriculture & Farming | — |
| Arts, Entertainment & Recreation | — |
| Construction | — |
| Education | — |
| Finance & Insurance | — |
| Healthcare & Social Work | — |
| Hospitality & Food Service | — |
| Information & Technology | — |
| Manufacturing | — |
| Mining & Quarrying | — |
| Other Services | — |
| Professional & Scientific Services | — |
| Public Administration & Defence | — |
| Real Estate | — |
| Retail & Wholesale Trade | — |
| Transport & Logistics | — |
| Utilities | — |
2019 annual wages in Sfax, Tunisia · Source: ILO ILOSTAT (national)
Price Comparison vs. US
Visa Information (US passport)
Short-stay entry
US passport holders can stay up to 120 days without a visa.
Quick comparison FAQ
Structured from the deltas already shown on this page — no invented facts, no extra data sources.
How far does your money go in Sfax compared with the US?
Your money goes about 3.3x further in Sfax than in the US, based on the current PPP estimate. We are using the country-level cost index for Tunisia here because a defensible city-level aggregate index is not available yet.
Is Sfax cheaper or more expensive overall than New York City?
Sfax is cheaper overall than New York City — overall living costs are about 71% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City) for Sfax. We are using the country-level cost index for Tunisia here because a defensible city-level aggregate index is not available yet.
How does rent in Sfax compare with New York City?
Rent in Sfax is about 95% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City). We are using the country-level cost index for Tunisia here because a defensible city-level aggregate index is not available yet.
How expensive are groceries and restaurants in Sfax?
Groceries in Sfax are about 65% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City), and restaurant prices are about 82% cheaper than the same benchmark. We are using the country-level cost index for Tunisia here because a defensible city-level aggregate index is not available yet.
About Sfax
Sfax is the second-largest city in Tunisia, located on the eastern Mediterranean coast about 270 kilometers south of Tunis. It is the country's principal industrial port and commercial hub, with an economy built on olive oil, in which the surrounding region is a global leader by volume, plus phosphate processing, fishing, and a long-established business class that gives the city a distinct mercantile character. Arabic and French are the working languages. The climate is hot-summer Mediterranean with very dry summers and mild winters. For relocation, Sfax offers a substantial business and engineering job market, costs notably below Tunis, direct rail and motorway connections, and an international airport with European links.
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