Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Al Ain and Suwon

For one person, living is cheaper in Suwon: $1,372 a month against $1,804 in Al Ain, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

87

Cost of Living Index in Al Ain
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Al Ain Living Index
66

Cost of Living Index in Suwon
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Suwon Living Index

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Al Ain

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$1,804

/mo nomad

Suwon

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,372

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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 Suwon actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,804 per month in Al Ain vs $1,372 in Suwon, rent included.

Al Ain $1,804
Suwon $1,372

A couple spends around $2,558 per month in Al Ain vs $2,163 in Suwon, rent included.

Al Ain $2,558
Suwon $2,163

A family of three spends $3,312 per month in Al Ain vs $2,954 in Suwon, rent included.

Al Ain $3,312
Suwon $2,954

Al Ain costs about 32% more than Suwon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.33 AED 30.59

$6.06 ₩8,132

37.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$53.5 AED 197

$29.93 ₩40.2K

78.82%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.57 AED 31.47

$7.65 ₩10.3K

12.03%

Cappuccino

$4.74 AED 17.41

$3.41 ₩4,580

39.00%

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

$0.73 AED 2.70

$1.57 ₩2,104

-53.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.33 AED 1.20

$0.59 ₩792

-44.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.23 AED 30.24

$3.83 ₩5,145

114.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.61 AED 24.26

$4.77 ₩6,401

38.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 AED 6.75

$2.60 ₩3,498

-29.23%

White Bread (500g)

$1.58 AED 5.80

$2.60 ₩3,488

-39.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 AED 8.09

$3.36 ₩4,518

-34.52%

Eggs

$2.78 AED 10.22

$3.17 ₩4,256

-12.30%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.55 AED 35.09

$11.15 ₩15.0K

-14.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.13 AED 37.19

$11.64 ₩15.6K

-12.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.88 AED 32.60

$11.39 ₩15.3K

-22.04%

Apples (1kg)

$2.51 AED 9.21

$6.22 ₩8,353

-59.65%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 AED 7.26

$2.93 ₩3,932

-32.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.88 AED 6.90

$5.30 ₩7,113

-64.53%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.53 AED 5.62

$4.40 ₩5,915

-65.23%

Potato (1kg)

$1.17 AED 4.31

$3.47 ₩4,655

-66.28%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 AED 4.23

$2.74 ₩3,676

-58.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.84 AED 3.07

$4.94 ₩6,631

-83.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 AED 1.89

$1.36 ₩1,825

-62.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.21 AED 22.79

$3.73 ₩5,009

66.49%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.49 AED 45.86

$13.45 ₩18.1K

-7.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.57 AED 9.43

$2.53 ₩3,399

1.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.49 AED 9.15

$3.86 ₩5,179

-35.49%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.62 AED 2.27

$1.24 ₩1,661

-50.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.05 AED 95.7

$48.67 ₩65.4K

-46.48%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.36 AED 8.67

$2.88 ₩3,868

-18.06%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.56 AED 2.07

$0.63 ₩844

-11.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.11 AED 29.80

$8.98 ₩12.1K

-9.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.93 AED 3.42

$1.32 ₩1,774

-29.55%

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

$25.6K AED 94.0K

$28.7K ₩38.5M

-10.82%

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

$21.5K AED 79.0K

$25.2K ₩33.9M

-14.66%

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

$113 AED 416

$186 ₩249.3K

-38.95%

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

$48.02 AED 176

$18.20 ₩24.4K

163.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$91.8 AED 337

$17.99 ₩24.2K

410.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.5 AED 207

$43.73 ₩58.7K

29.09%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.38 AED 101

$11.82 ₩15.9K

131.64%

Cinema Ticket

$13.81 AED 50.7

$11.19 ₩15.0K

23.41%

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

$849 AED 3,120

$691 ₩928.2K

22.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,464 AED 27.4K

$18.3K ₩24.5M

-59.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.83 AED 161

$37.03 ₩49.7K

18.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.40 AED 181

$109 ₩146.7K

-54.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71.1 AED 261

$76.5 ₩102.7K

-6.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 AED 378

$60.0 ₩80.6K

71.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$876 AED 3,218

$438 ₩588.3K

99.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$847 AED 3,111

$352 ₩472.6K

140.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,665 AED 6,114

$1,185 ₩1.6M

40.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,220 AED 4,479

$819 ₩1.1M

48.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,645 AED 9,714

$12.6K ₩16.9M

-79.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,548 AED 5,687

$7,074 ₩9.5M

-78.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,670 AED 9,806

$2,638 ₩3.5M

1.22%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.55

6.5

-30.00%

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

Last update for Al Ain: October 25, 2026

Last update for Suwon: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Al Ain

$847 47%

Suwon

$352 25.7% 58.5% $495

Groceries & Markets

Al Ain

$258 14.3%

Suwon

$395 28.8% 53.3% $137

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Al Ain

$253 14%

Suwon

$222 16.2% 12.4% $31

Eating Out

Al Ain

$208 11.5%

Suwon

$150 10.9% 28% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Al Ain

$120 6.7%

Suwon

$127 9.3% 5.8% $7

Sport & Entertainment

Al Ain

$84 4.7%

Suwon

$66 4.8% 21.4% $18

Getting Around

Al Ain

$34 1.9%

Suwon

$60 4.4% 77% $26

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $876 in Al Ain versus $438 in Suwon. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $54 in Al Ain versus $30 in Suwon. Groceries tell a different story – $258 in Al Ain vs $395 in Suwon – so Al Ain wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇦🇪 Al Ain

🇰🇷 Suwon

🕒 Local time

02:46 2:46 AM

07:46 7:46 AM

5 h ahead of Al Ain

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

631,005

1,203,000

💱 Currency

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.245 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.45 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KRW, USD, EUR 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).

South Korean Won exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1,343 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.45 USD). 1 EUR = 1,495 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR).

USD to AED in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Al Ain Suwon 6,810 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Al Ain
Suwon

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 Suwon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Al Ain costs about 32% more than Suwon, 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 $2,057 in Suwon. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Suwon, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $438 there versus $876 in Al Ain.

Kindergarten costs $849 per month in Al Ain and $691 in Suwon. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 35% cheaper in Al Ain – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,804 in Al Ain and $1,372 in Suwon, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Suwon – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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