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Mohamed Oun
Cairo
#116 of 124
Middle East

Cairo

Egypt

Salary & Cost of Living

View purchasing power ranking

How do salaries and expenses in Cairo compare to Minneapolis?

Purchasing Power Comparison

An engineer in Cairo is 64% worse off vs in Minneapolis

This shows how far a software engineer's salary goes in Cairo compared to Minneapolis, taking into account both salary differences and cost of living.

Median Salary
$10,149
-$120K (-92%) vs Minneapolis
Based on 326 data points from levels.fyi
Net Salary
$7,865
-$75K (-91%) vs Minneapolis
Tax Rate: 23%

Community Insights

New

Cairo presents a tale of two cities for software engineers. For those earning a local salary, it is a challenging market with pay rates significantly lower than global averages and high inflation. However, for remote workers earning USD or EUR, Cairo offers an unparalleled geographic arbitrage opportunity. The #1 ranking for cost of living means a mid-level western salary translates to a life of luxury, including living in upscale gated communities (compounds) like Maadi or New Cairo, dining out daily, and still saving a massive portion of income.

The trade-off is the environmental and infrastructural chaos. Residents must contend with high pollution levels, noise, and erratic traffic. Internet reliability is decent but requires backup plans (like 4G hotspots) for professional stability. The tech scene is lively but financially struggling compared to the West. Ultimately, living here requires a high tolerance for disorder in exchange for financial freedom and cultural richness.

Resident Sentiment

Current residents, particularly expats and digital nomads, describe Cairo as a "golden cage." They love the lifestyle their money buys—eating out, frequent travel, and beautiful apartments—but often feel trapped by the infrastructure frustrations and the difficulty of adjusting back to a "normal" cost of living elsewhere.

Local engineers often express a strong desire to migrate or secure remote work, citing the devaluation of the local currency. Transplants often advise newcomers to live in New Cairo or Maadi to insulate themselves from the city's intensity, noting that your experience of Cairo is entirely defined by where you live and how you earn.

Living Environment

Weather•Safety•Pollution•Events

A quick look at climate, safety, pollution, and tech community compared to Minneapolis.

Rankings

Cost of Living

Top 1%

#1

of 124 cities

15/100

Current value (lower is better)

Tax Rate

Top 17%

#21

of 124 cities

23%

Current value (lower is better)

Home Affordability

Middle of the pack

#46

of 124 cities

≈6.7 yrs to buy 80m²

Current value

Housing Affordability

View affordability ranking

How affordable is housing for a software engineer in Cairo compared to Minneapolis?

Avg. Property Price
$658 / m²
76% cheaper than Minneapolis
View detailed property prices on Numbeo

Salary Converter

Enter your annual gross salary (before taxes) to see what you would need to earn in Cairo to maintain the same standard of living.

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Do you have kids?

Cost of Living
73% cheaper than Minneapolis
View detailed cost breakdown on Numbeo

Top Paying Companies in Cairo

Microsoft logo
Microsoft
Siemens logo
Siemens
Valeo logo
Valeo

The Good

  • Extremely low cost of living (Ranked #1 globally), allowing those with foreign income to save aggressively.
  • Rich history and culture with easy access to world-class monuments, museums, and historical sites.
  • Luxury lifestyle accessibility for foreign earners, including affordable housekeeping, delivery services, and private gated communities.
  • Vibrant social scene with late-night cafes, diverse food options, and a generally warm, hospitable population.
  • Sunshine is abundant (Ranked #4 globally for sunshine hours), making it great for those who dislike gloomy weather.
  • Growing startup ecosystem with active tech hubs and networking events, particularly in fintech and transport.

The Bad

  • Significantly low local salaries compared to global standards, making it hard to save if paid in EGP.
  • Severe pollution and dust (Ranked #123 for pollution), which can be difficult for those with respiratory issues.
  • Unreliable infrastructure, including varying internet quality and risk of "load shedding" (power cuts) requiring backup solutions.
  • , making commuting stressful and time-consuming without a driver or Uber.

The Verdict

You'll love it if...

Remote workers earning foreign currency who want to maximize savings while upgrading their lifestyle to include private villas and domestic help.

Adventurous spirits who value history, culture, and social warmth over silence and order. Engineers looking to launch a startup with lower runway costs will also find the affordable talent pool and operating costs attractive.

Skip it if...

Junior developers relying solely on the local job market, as the purchasing power is low (#115 rank) and saving for a future abroad is difficult.

People with respiratory conditions like asthma, due to the poor air quality (#123 pollution rank). Women who expect to walk everywhere alone comfortably may find the street culture and harassment exhausting outside of specific expat bubbles.

Updated 11/29/2025

Weather3.6/10-22% vs Minneapolis
Safety50+13%
Pollution91+218%
Events0
3.6/10TechCities weather score vs 4.6/10 in Minneapolis

0–10 composite (higher is better) combining temperature comfort, sunshine hours, rainy-day count, and humid days. See methodology for weighting and data sources.

Weather snapshot

Average High
28°C(vs 13°C in Minneapolis)
Average Low
17°C(vs 4°C in Minneapolis)
Sunshine Hours
3,542h/yr+831h/yr(+31%)
Hottest Month High
35°C(vs 28°C in Minneapolis)
Coldest Month Low
10°C(vs -12°C in Minneapolis)
Rainy Days
5/yr-70/yr(-94%)

Community & Quality

Cairo community pulse

Cairo has 0 Luma events listed.

Minneapolis has no listed Luma events for comparison.

Safety Index

Middle of the pack

#78

of 124 cities

50/100

Current value

Community Events

Middle of the pack

#81

of 124 cities

0 events on luma

Current value

Comfortable Weather

Bottom 34%

#83

of 124 cities

36/100 weather score

Current value

Purchasing Power

Bottom 7%

#116

of 124 cities

Net Income

Bottom 2%

#123

of 124 cities

$7,865/yr

Current value

Pollution Score

Bottom 2%

#123

of 124 cities

90.6/100

Current value (lower is better)

SWE Affordability
6.7 years
4.1 years longer than Minneapolis
Chaotic traffic and congestion
  • Safety and harassment concerns, particularly for women walking alone in non-gated areas.
  • Bureaucratic hurdles for visas, banking, and official paperwork can be slow and frustrating.
    • Muggy Days
    58/yr+35/yr(+150%)
    Cloud Cover
    15%(vs 47% in Minneapolis)