Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Al Ain and Benidorm

For one person, living is cheaper in Benidorm: $1,707 a month against $1,804 in Al Ain, rent and utilities included – about $1,200 less a year. The total is higher in Al Ain despite lower rent and utilities.

87

Cost of Living Index in Al Ain
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Al Ain Living Index
82

Cost of Living Index in Benidorm
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Benidorm Living Index

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Al Ain

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$1,804

/mo nomad

Benidorm

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,707

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Al Ain and in Benidorm

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Al Ain and in Benidorm actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,804 per month in Al Ain vs $1,707 in Benidorm, rent included.

Al Ain $1,804
Benidorm $1,707

A couple spends around $2,558 per month in Al Ain vs $2,498 in Benidorm, rent included.

Al Ain $2,558
Benidorm $2,498

A family of three spends $3,312 per month in Al Ain vs $3,290 in Benidorm, rent included.

Al Ain $3,312
Benidorm $3,290

Al Ain costs about 6% more than Benidorm, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both Al Ain and Benidorm sit above the global median – Al Ain by 33%, Benidorm by 25%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.33 AED 30.59

$17.28 €15.52

-51.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$53.5 AED 197

$52.9 €47.56

1.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.57 AED 31.47

$12.28 €11.03

-30.21%

Cappuccino

$4.74 AED 17.41

$2.32 €2.08

104.31%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.73 AED 2.70

$2.29 €2.06

-68.12%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.33 AED 1.20

$1.18 €1.06

-72.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.23 AED 30.24

$3.41 €3.06

141.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.61 AED 24.26

$3.67 €3.30

80.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 AED 6.75

$1.14 €1.02

61.40%

White Bread (500g)

$1.58 AED 5.80

$1.30 €1.17

21.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 AED 8.09

$1.41 €1.26

56.03%

Eggs

$2.78 AED 10.22

$3.50 €3.14

-20.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.55 AED 35.09

$10.98 €9.86

-13.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.13 AED 37.19

$8.10 €7.27

25.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.88 AED 32.60

$15.68 €14.08

-43.37%

Apples (1kg)

$2.51 AED 9.21

$2.10 €1.89

19.52%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 AED 7.26

$1.83 €1.64

8.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.88 AED 6.90

$1.92 €1.72

-2.08%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.53 AED 5.62

$2.66 €2.39

-42.48%

Potato (1kg)

$1.17 AED 4.31

$1.72 €1.54

-31.98%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 AED 4.23

$1.77 €1.59

-35.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.84 AED 3.07

$1.10 €0.99

-23.64%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 AED 1.89

$0.44 €0.39

15.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.21 AED 22.79

$5.96 €5.35

4.19%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.49 AED 45.86

$5.73 €5.14

117.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.57 AED 9.43

$0.87 €0.78

195.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.49 AED 9.15

$0.94 €0.85

164.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.62 AED 2.27

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.05 AED 95.7

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.36 AED 8.67

$4.50 €4.04

-47.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.56 AED 2.07

$1.35 €1.21

-58.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.11 AED 29.80

$24.26 €21.80

-66.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.93 AED 3.42

$1.72 €1.54

-45.93%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$25.6K AED 94.0K

$34.2K €30.7K

-25.10%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$21.5K AED 79.0K

$29.3K €26.3K

-26.55%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$113 AED 416

$157 €141

-27.86%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$48.02 AED 176

$16.38 €14.71

193.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$91.8 AED 337

$22.55 €20.26

307.27%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.5 AED 207

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.38 AED 101

Cinema Ticket

$13.81 AED 50.7

$10.78 €9.69

28.11%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$849 AED 3,120

$575 €517

47.68%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,464 AED 27.4K

$9,688 €8,703

-22.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.83 AED 161

$91.2 €81.9

-51.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.40 AED 181

$42.40 €38.09

16.51%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71.1 AED 261

$96.1 €86.4

-26.00%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 AED 378

$119 €106

-13.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$876 AED 3,218

$1,002 €900

-12.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$847 AED 3,111

$838 €752

1.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,665 AED 6,114

$1,766 €1,586

-5.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,220 AED 4,479

$1,324 €1,189

-7.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,645 AED 9,714

$5,197 €4,669

-49.11%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,548 AED 5,687

$2,542 €2,284

-39.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,670 AED 9,806

$1,785 €1,603

49.59%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.55

3.3

37.88%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Al Ain: October 25, 2026

Last update for Benidorm: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Al Ain

$847 47%

Benidorm

$838 49.1% 1.1% $9.6

Groceries & Markets

Al Ain

$258 14.3%

Benidorm

$243 14.2% 5.7% $15

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Al Ain

$253 14%

Benidorm

$196 11.5% 22.6% $57

Eating Out

Al Ain

$208 11.5%

Benidorm

$241 14.1% 16% $33

Clothing & Footwear

Al Ain

$120 6.7%

Benidorm

$157 9.2% 30.3% $36

Sport & Entertainment

Al Ain

$84 4.7%

Benidorm

$22 * 1.3% 74.4% $63

Getting Around

Al Ain

$34 1.9%

Benidorm

$11 * 0.7% 66.7% $22

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $876 in Al Ain versus $1,002 in Benidorm. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 50% higher in Al Ain. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $54 in Al Ain versus $53 in Benidorm. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $243 – making Benidorm the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇪 Al Ain

🇪🇸 Benidorm

🕒 Local time

02:47 2:47 AM

23:47 11:47 PM

3 h behind Al Ain

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

631,005

72,342

💱 Currency

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.245 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to AED – UAE Dirham Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇪 UAE Dirham (د.إ)

UAE Dirham exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.09 AED (1 AED = 0.245 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

USD to AED in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Al Ain Benidorm 5,450 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Al Ain
Benidorm

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Al Ain vs Benidorm: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Al Ain costs about 6% more than Benidorm, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from utilities. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,706 per month in Al Ain and $2,561 in Benidorm. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Al Ain, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $876 there versus $1,002 in Benidorm.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,804 in Al Ain and $1,707 in Benidorm. That makes Benidorm about 5% cheaper.

Groceries cost about 6% more in Al Ain, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$2,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,804 in Al Ain and $1,707 in Benidorm, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

If budget matters most, go with Benidorm. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Al Ain makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.