Cost of Living in Malé, 🇲🇻 Maldives - For Locals, Nomads, and Tourists

AI estimate Updated Jun 8, 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 $1,944 $1,166 $1,944 $648 $80

Utilities — $162 $259 $130 —

Internet & Mobile $50 $71 $130 $65 —

Groceries $32 $259 $648 $227 —

Transportation $32 $97 $259 $32 $5

Dining Out $454 $156 $259 $39 $25

Leisure Activities $130 $130 $194 $13 $15

Health Insurance $60 $162 $324 $32 $3

Visa & Legal Fees — $65 $130 — —

Total $2,702 $2,268 $4,147 $1,186 $128

Itemized prices

Local prices converted to the selected currency.

Housing

Apartment (1 bedroom) $583.13 per month

Coworking Space $259.17 per month

Airbnb (1 month) $777.51 per month

Coliving Space $583.13 per month

Food & Dining

Beer $3.24 per pint

Meal (Inexpensive) $9.72 per meal

Fast Food Combo $9.07 per meal

Apples $3.89 per kg

Bread $1.62 per loaf

Milk $1.43 per liter

Rice $1.17 per kg

Chicken Fillets $5.83 per kg

Beef $9.72 per kg

Wine (Mid-range) $38.88 per bottle

Meal (Mid-range, 2 people) $38.88 per meal

Water (1.5L bottle) $0.78 per bottle

Coffee $1.94 per cup

Transportation

Taxi Start $2.27 per trip

Taxi per km $1.17 per km

Gasoline $1.23 per liter

Ride-hailing (5km) $5.18 per trip

Scooter Rental $25.92 per month

Monthly Transport Pass $19.44 per month

Services

Mobile Plan $19.44 per month

Internet (60 Mbps+) $58.31 per month

Gym Membership $45.35 per month

Tennis Court (Weekend) $19.44 per hour

SIM Card (Tourist, prepaid) $19.44 one-time

Entertainment

Cinema Ticket $7.78 per ticket

Clothing

Jeans $97.19 per pair

Summer Dress $38.88 per dress

Running Shoes $129.58 per pair

Personal Care

Haircut $7.78 per visit

Laundry $4.86 per kg

Healthcare

Doctor Visit (GP) $25.92 per visit

Pharmacy (basic meds) $5.18 per purchase

About these costs

Method: AI estimate
Last updated: Jun 8, 2026
Generated by: deepseek-v4-flash · cost run 44
Last changed: None yet
Exchange rate: 1 USD = 15.4339 MVR

Generated by an AI model without cited sources and not yet checked by research. A research pass replaces these values with sourced ones, compared with similar cities.

Malé cost of living