Egypt
Alexandria makes sense if
- You want the easier housing and budget equation in this comparison.
- A calmer day-to-day safety profile matters most to you.
- You value stronger public spaces and everyday city life.
Alexandria vs Cairo
Alexandria stretches along the Mediterranean, where sea breezes soften the heat and the city feels distinct from the inland capital. Cairo is a much larger, more intense centre, rich in culture but shaped by traffic, uneven services, and a thin local job market.
The grey shape is all 283 cities; each row says whether lower or higher is better. Ratings out of 10 are our reviewed estimates; the rest is published data. How we measure
The choice in one minute
Cairo makes sense if
- Access to stronger healthcare matters most to you.
- You want the broader career options in this comparison.
- You want the deeper culture and food scene.
What matters to you
Set how much each area counts. The ranking updates as you go. Climate and values are left out because there is no better or worse there, only your taste.
Money
Nature & outdoors
City life
Safety & health
Work & family
Moving & settling in
- 1Cairo46
Leads on work & family and moving & settling in; stands out for professional network and public transport.
- 2Alexandria45
Leads on city life; stands out for public spaces and beach & sea.
Scores out of 100, averaged from the areas you weighted. For a ranking built around your own situation, take the quiz.
Side by side
Money
Rent on a new lease, everyday prices and tax.
Section score out of 100
Alexandria75Cairo74
One-bedroom rent
Per month, new lease, citywide
$135/mo$2,444/mo
- $191/mo
- $244/mo
Rent as share of local pay
One-bedroom rent vs. typical net local pay
21%120%
- >100%
- >100%
Everyday prices
Excluding rent · United States = 100
25131
- 18
- 18
Income tax + social contributions
Range: average-wage rate to top marginal rate; the dot marks its midpoint
0%46%
- 11–28%
- 11–28%
Climate
The year month by month. Whether it suits you is yours to judge.
Solid line: average daytime high. Dashed: night-time low. Point at the chart for any month; point at a city name to shade its range.
Bright days
Under 80% cloud and under 1 mm rain
30 days347 days
- 317 days
- 353 days, leads
Muggy days
Days that feel sticky (dew point)
0 days365 days
- 180 days
- 103 days, leads
Air pollution
Annual mean fine particles (PM2.5)
4.6 µg/m³84 µg/m³
- 33 µg/m³, leads
- 44.5 µg/m³
Nature & outdoors
How easily you get to water, mountains and green space.
Section score out of 100
Alexandria28Cairo28
Beach & sea
110
- 7/10, leads
- 4/10
Mountains
110
- 1/10
- 3/10, leads
City parks
110
- 4/10
- 4/10
Weekend escapes
110
- 5/10
- 5/10
City life
Getting around on foot, food, culture and the feel of the streets.
Section score out of 100
Alexandria48Cairo43
Walkability
110
- 6/10, leads
- 4/10
Public transport
110
- 3/10
- 7/10, leads
Restaurants
110
- 7/10
- 9/10, leads
Public spaces
110
- 7/10, leads
- 3/10
Safety & health
Crime, how safe people feel, and the care you would get.
Section score out of 100
Alexandria43Cairo42
Homicide rate
Per 100,000 residents per year
0.247
- 1.3
- 1.3
Feels safe day to day
110
- 5/10, leads
- 4/10
Healthcare quality
110
- 6/10
- 7/10, leads
English-speaking care
110
- 4/10
- 5/10, leads
Work & family
Jobs, working culture, schools and raising kids.
Section score out of 100
Cairo45Alexandria38
Job market
110
- 4/10
- 5/10, leads
Jobs in English
110
- 3/10
- 4/10, leads
Work–life balance
110
- 4/10, leads
- 3/10
Schools
110
- 4/10
- 5/10, leads
Moving & settling in
Visas, language, paperwork and staying connected.
Section score out of 100
Cairo43Alexandria37
Visa & residence difficulty
Typical case; your passport changes this
110
- 7/10
- 7/10
Language barrier
For an English speaker
110
- 7/10
- 7/10
Openness to newcomers
110
- 7/10
- 7/10
Flight connections
110
- 5/10
- 8/10, leads
Society & values
Where each city sits. There is no right end of these scales.
Social attitudes
ConservativeLiberal
- 2/10
- 2/10
LGBTQ+ acceptance
LowHigh
- 2/10
- 2/10
Diversity
HomogeneousDiverse
- 4/10
- 5/10
Religion in public life
ReligiousSecular
- 2/10
- 2/10
Life in each city
Daily life
Alexandria
A long, dense city strung out along the seafront, packed and busy without quite matching Cairo's relentless intensity, and carrying a brisk everyday pace. Getting around leans heavily on cars and crowded transport, and walkability is patchy.
Cairo
Walkability is patchy and most neighbourhoods are built around driving or grabbing a taxi, and the sheer scale can overwhelm newcomers. The energy and pace draw some people in, but anyone wanting a calm, human-scaled urban fabric will find Cairo a stretch.
Safety
Alexandria
Violent crime is low and street-level danger limited, broadly in line with Cairo and far safer than its raw size might suggest. Petty theft and a sense of caution after dark are the everyday concerns.
Cairo
On serious violent crime Cairo scores well, with homicide rates low and the streets generally safe to move through, and road safety holds up better than much of the region. Petty crime and the everyday sense of order are more mixed.
Work and healthcare
Alexandria
Local prospects are narrow, with limited industry breadth and few roles suited to people working in English. The weak spot.
Cairo
Cairo's local market is shallow for many newcomers. Healthcare is a genuine weak spot.
Culture and public life
Alexandria
Where Alexandria comes alive. Alexandria trades on faded grandeur, its long Mediterranean corniche and the modern library giving it genuine public sweep even as litter and neglect creep along the edges.
Cairo
Few cities in the region match its depth of history, museums, and living local culture, and its arts and music scene outpaces most North African neighbours including Marrakech. Cairo is dusty, congested and grubby, litter constant and cared-for public space scarce beyond a few historic squares and the Nile corniche.
Summary
Cairo suits residents seeking a high-energy capital and its deeper cultural and service landscape, particularly with work secured. Alexandria is a calmer coastal choice for someone who values the sea and lower living costs over a broad local employment base.
Read on
Which of these fits you?
These numbers treat everyone the same. The quiz weighs them by your budget, climate taste, family and work, and ranks all 283 cities for you.