Cost of Living in Dubai, 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates - For Locals, Nomads, and Tourists

Researched Updated Oct 23, 2026 Last changed Oct 31, 2026 About costs

Cost breakdown

Digital nomad: short-term stay (1-3 months). Furnished Airbnb or coliving near center, coworking, eating out ~3x/day, travel health insurance.

Expat: long-term resident (1+ years). Renting apartment in center, mix of cooking and dining out, local health insurance, settled lifestyle.

Family: middle-class 4-person family. 2-3 bedroom in suburbs, groceries for 4, international school, car/transport, family health plan.

Local: budget-conscious local resident. Renting outside center, cooking at home, public transport, local phone plan.

Tourist: short-stay visitor (1-14 days). Hotel/Airbnb nightly, all meals at restaurants, taxis, sightseeing.

CategoryCost

Housing 5 6 12 $2,587 $2,041 $3,812 $1,588 $123

Utilities 14 1 — $172 $222 $143 —

Internet & Mobile 10 13 1 $176 $153 $212 $153 $7

Groceries 15 16 17 18 20 21 1 $280 $544 $1,225 $473 $11

Transportation 2 3 23 $313 $519 $980 $95 $41

Dining Out 29 30 31 42 1 $918 $681 $1,149 $218 $109

Leisure Activities 1 9 19 24 40 $486 $410 $2,999 $110 $68

Health Insurance 8 $63 $163 $545 $41 $4

Visa & Legal Fees 7 $109 $68 $218 — —

Total $4,932 $4,751 $11,362 $2,821 $363

Itemized prices

Local prices converted to the selected currency.

Housing

Apartment (1 bedroom) 5 6 $1,588.38 $1,181 – $2,156 per month

Coworking Space 11 $161.57 per month

Airbnb (1 month) 12 5 6 $2,450.65 $1,367 – $2,999 per month

Coliving Space 12 $1,253.23 per month

Food & Dining

Coffee 39 $5.45 per cup

Beer 25 $12.26 per pint

Meal (Inexpensive) 30 $9.54 per meal

Fast Food Combo 29 $5.86 per meal

Apples 41 $2.53 per kg

Bread 17 1 $1.35 per loaf

Milk 15 1 $1.82 per liter

Rice 18 1 $3.07 per kg

Chicken Fillets 16 1 $8.30 per kg

Beef 20 $14.84 per kg

Wine (Mid-range) 27 $13.35 per bottle

Meal (Mid-range, 2 people) 31 $70.86 per meal

Water (1.5L bottle) 21 $0.44 per bottle

Transportation

Taxi Start 2 $3.27 per trip

Taxi per km 2 $0.60 per km

Monthly Transport Pass 3 $95.30 per month

Gasoline 23 4 $1.17 per liter

Ride-hailing (5km) 2 $4.36 per trip

Scooter Rental 33 $35.94 per month

Services

Mobile Plan 10 $59.90 per month

Internet (60 Mbps+) 13 1 $92.60 per month

Gym Membership 19 1 $84.14 per month

Tennis Court (Weekend) 40 1 $21.78 per hour

SIM Card (Tourist, prepaid) 10 $27.23 one-time

Entertainment

Cinema Ticket 24 $12.53 per ticket

Clothing

Jeans 36 $63.72 per pair

Summer Dress 37 $25.33 per dress

Running Shoes 38 $89.55 per pair

Personal Care

Haircut 34 $9.54 per visit

Laundry 32 $1.70 per kg

Healthcare

Doctor Visit (GP) 22 $96.66 per visit

Pharmacy (basic meds) 35 $8.71 per purchase

About these costs

Method: Researched
Last updated: Oct 23, 2026
Last changed: Oct 31, 2026
Exchange rate: 1 USD = 3.6725 AED on Oct 19, 2026

Checked against the sources below and compared with similar cities. Numbers in the list point to these sources.

Compared with Hanoi, Doha, London, New York, Abu Dhabi

Livingcost Dubai basket (category totals cross-check)Index
RTA taxi fares — AED 12 minimum, AED 2.19/kmOfficial
nol 30-day all-zones Silver pass AED 350Official
UAE Octane-95 AED 4.28/litre cross-checkIndex
JVC 1BR average rent AED 68,080/year (DLD contracts 2025)Secondary
JVC 1BR asking rents AED 52k–78k/yearSecondary
Virtual work residence fees (AED 740 total)Official
SafetyWing Essential USD 62.72 / 4 weeksOfficial
Dubai international school fee bands 2025/26–2026/27Secondary
du tourist bundles AED 199–499Official
Regus coworking from AED 27/person/dayOfficial
JVC furnished rentals AED 50k–90k/year (1BR examples)Listings
du Home plans from AED 159–272/monthOfficial
DEWA residential slab tariffs (Oct 2026 fuel surcharge)Official
Carrefour UAE Al Ain full cream milk 1L AED 6.69Official
Carrefour Al Islami chicken breast 1kg AED 30.49Official
Carrefour Farmhouse white bread 400g AED 4.95Official
Carrefour India Gate basmati rice 1kg AED 11.29Official
Fitness First Home tier AED 309/month (Mirdif, 2026)Secondary
Union Coop Brazilian topside steak AED 54.50/kgOfficial
Union Coop Masafi water 1.5 L AED 1.60Official
Mediclinic Dubai Mall GP consultation from AED 355Listings
ADNOC Special 95 AED 4.28/litre incl. VATOfficial
VOX BurJuman standard seat AED 46 (booking scrape)Listings
McGettigans Al Barsha drinks menu — Amstel draught AED 45/pintOfficial
A+E retail Heineken 24×330ml packs (bar pint cross-check)Official
A+E 19 Crimes 750ml AED 49 incl. VATOfficial
Dunkin UAE latte/cappuccino + donut from AED 17Official
McDonald's Double Duo medium meal AED 21.50Official
Ravi Restaurant Satwa ~AED 85 for twoListings
Chili's Al Garhoud AED 260 for twoListings
Washmen Wash & Fold AED 75 per 12 kg bagOfficial
TIER Dubai unlock AED 3 + AED 1/minuteOfficial
Barber shop Dubai signature haircut AED 35Listings
Boots UAE Panadol Migraine 24 tablets AED 32Official
Namshi Levi's 501 jeans AED 234Listings
Namshi ELLA summer dress AED 93Listings
Namshi Nike Revolution 8 AED 329Listings
Starbucks UAE Caffè Latte AED 20 (menu scrape)Secondary
Dubai Sports World tennis weekend AED 80/hourSecondary
Union Coop mini Royal Gala 700 g AED 6.50Official
Chili's Dubai menu item prices (burgers AED 75–105)Secondary

Change history

Oct 31, 2026
- Method Generated Researched
- Airbnb (1 month) 3948.26 2450.65
- Apartment (1 bedroom) 2042.21 1588.38
- Apples 2.59 2.53
- Beef 14.98 14.84
- Beer 13.61 12.26
34 more changes
- Bread 1.5 1.35
- Chicken Fillets 8.71 8.3
- Cinema Ticket 14.98 12.53
- Coffee 6.54 5.45
- Coliving Space 1497.62 1253.23
- Coworking Space 326.75 161.57
- Dining Out local 217.84, nomad 1225.32, expat 762.42, family 1089.18, tourist 108.92 local 217.84, nomad 918, expat 681.42, family 1149.08, tourist 109.08
- Doctor Visit (GP) 122.53 96.66
- Fast Food Combo 9.53 5.86
- Gasoline 0.84 1.17
- Groceries local 326.75, nomad 163.38, expat 599.05, family 1307.01, tourist 10.89 local 473, nomad 280, expat 543.95, family 1225, tourist 10.89
- Gym Membership 108.92 84.14
- Haircut 29.95 9.54
- Health Insurance local 40.84, nomad 81.69, expat 163.38, family 599.05, tourist 4.08 local 40.84, nomad 62.72, expat 163.38, family 545.27, tourist 4.08
- Housing local 1225.32, nomad 2314.5, expat 1769.91, family 3403.68, tourist 122.53 local 1588.38, nomad 2586.79, expat 2040.85, family 3812.12, tourist 122.53
- Internet & Mobile local 114.36, nomad 204.22, expat 176.99, family 258.68, tourist 6.81 local 152.5, nomad 175.63, family 212.4, tourist 6.81
- Internet (60 Mbps+) 103.47 92.6
- Jeans 76.24 63.72
- Laundry 3.27 1.7
- Leisure Activities local 108.92, nomad 490.13, expat 408.44, family 816.88, tourist 68.07 local 110.26, nomad 485.6, expat 410.08, family 2999.32, tourist 68.07
- Meal (Inexpensive) 12.25 9.54
- Meal (Mid-range, 2 people) 95.3 70.86
- Milk 1.97 1.82
- Pharmacy (basic meds) 9.53 8.71
- Rice 2.18 3.07
- Ride-hailing (5km) 9.53 4.36
- Running Shoes 122.53 89.55
- Scooter Rental 8.17 35.94
- Summer Dress 59.9 25.33
- Tennis Court (Weekend) 40.84 21.78
- Transportation local 95.3, nomad 381.21, expat 599.05, family 953.03, tourist 40.84 local 95.3, nomad 313.14, expat 518.72, family 980.26, tourist 40.84
- Utilities local 204.22, nomad 272.29, expat 326.75, family 599.05, tourist 0 local 143, nomad 0, expat 171.6, family 222, tourist 0
- Water (1.5L bottle) 0.68 0.44
- Wine (Mid-range) 23.14 13.35
Beef, Doctor Visit (GP), Dining Out, Coffee, Beer, Meal (Inexpensive), Fast Food Combo, Apples, Wine (Mid-range), Gasoline, Tennis Court (Weekend), Cinema Ticket, Jeans, Summer Dress, Running Shoes, Meal (Mid-range, 2 people), Water (1.5L bottle), Scooter Rental, Haircut, Laundry, and Pharmacy (basic meds) tied to Union Coop, Fidoc/Mediclinic, McDonald's, Zomato, McGettigans, ADNOC, Elyoxe/VOX, Namshi, Washmen, TIER, Boots, and Starbucks menu scrape (unioncoop.ae, fidoc.com, mcdonalds.com, zomato.com, adnocdistribution.ae)

Dubai cost of living