Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between AL Kharj and Dubai

For one person, living is cheaper in AL Kharj: $957 a month against $2,896 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $23,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

47

Cost of Living Index in AL Kharj
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AL Kharj Living Index
140

Cost of Living Index in Dubai
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Dubai Living Index

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AL Kharj

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$957

/mo nomad

Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,896

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in AL Kharj and in Dubai

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

A single person spends $957 per month in AL Kharj vs $2,896 in Dubai, rent included.

AL Kharj $957
Dubai $2,896

A couple spends around $1,464 per month in AL Kharj vs $4,384 in Dubai, rent included.

AL Kharj $1,464
Dubai $4,384

A family of three spends $1,971 per month in AL Kharj vs $5,872 in Dubai, rent included.

AL Kharj $1,971
Dubai $5,872

AL Kharj is about 67% cheaper than Dubai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

AL Kharj sits 29% below the global median, while Dubai is 115% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.74 SAR 17.77

$12.67 AED 46.55

-62.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$26.64 SAR 100.0

$81.7 AED 300

-67.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.05 SAR 30.22

$9.34 AED 34.30

-13.81%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.10 SAR 7.87

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.32 SAR 4.95

Cappuccino

$3.08 SAR 11.54

$5.89 AED 21.62

-47.71%

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

$0.88 SAR 3.31

$1.69 AED 6.20

-47.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.13 SAR 0.48

$0.78 AED 2.86

-83.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$13.66 AED 50.2

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$13.49 AED 49.54

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 SAR 5.39

$1.84 AED 6.78

-21.74%

White Bread (500g)

$0.28 SAR 1.06

$1.50 AED 5.50

-81.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.35 SAR 8.82

$2.57 AED 9.45

-8.56%

Eggs

$2.17 SAR 8.16

$3.32 AED 12.18

-34.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.49 SAR 39.36

$12.60 AED 46.28

-16.75%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.15 SAR 19.33

$9.66 AED 35.46

-46.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.51 SAR 50.7

$12.78 AED 46.93

5.71%

Apples (1kg)

$1.77 SAR 6.66

$2.60 AED 9.54

-31.92%

Banana (1kg)

$1.30 SAR 4.88

$1.90 AED 6.99

-31.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.21 SAR 4.54

$1.91 AED 7.02

-36.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.36 SAR 5.11

$1.37 AED 5.02

-0.73%

Potato (1kg)

$1.03 SAR 3.88

$1.13 AED 4.14

-8.85%

Onion (1kg)

$1.04 SAR 3.89

$1.01 AED 3.71

2.97%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.52 SAR 1.94

$1.44 AED 5.30

-63.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 SAR 2.01

$0.67 AED 2.48

-20.90%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$2.12 SAR 7.94

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.10 SAR 4.12

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.38 SAR 8.94

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.55 SAR 24.56

$5.88 AED 21.59

11.39%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.15 AED 59.3

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.72 AED 10.00

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.08 AED 11.32

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.60 AED 5.87

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$23.40 SAR 87.8

$76.0 AED 279

-69.19%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.69 SAR 10.10

$3.24 AED 11.91

-16.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.51 SAR 1.92

$0.71 AED 2.61

-28.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.11 SAR 49.21

$7.96 AED 29.22

64.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.64 SAR 2.40

$0.98 AED 3.62

-34.69%

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

$34.6K SAR 129.8K

$27.4K AED 100.6K

26.30%

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

$22.8K SAR 85.7K

$22.0K AED 80.9K

3.71%

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

$107 SAR 402

$249 AED 913

-56.91%

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

$26.65 SAR 100

$54.4 AED 200

-51.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.6 SAR 194

$91.5 AED 336

-43.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.9 SAR 270

$103 AED 380

-30.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$40.47 SAR 152

$42.32 AED 155

-4.37%

Cinema Ticket

$13.11 SAR 49.21

$16.29 AED 59.8

-19.52%

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

$286 SAR 1,074

$844 AED 3,098

-66.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,763 SAR 14.1K

$18.3K AED 67.1K

-79.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.7 SAR 220

$67.0 AED 246

-12.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.3 SAR 204

$57.9 AED 213

-6.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$47.41 SAR 178

$102 AED 375

-53.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$80.2 SAR 301

$98.7 AED 363

-18.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$700 SAR 2,626

$2,393 AED 8,788

-70.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$259 SAR 972

$1,533 AED 5,630

-83.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$596 SAR 2,236

$4,594 AED 16.9K

-87.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$456 SAR 1,711

$2,939 AED 10.8K

-84.49%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,046 AED 25.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,222 AED 15.5K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,790 SAR 10.5K

$3,461 AED 12.7K

-19.38%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.54

4.54

22.03%

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

Last update for AL Kharj: October 11, 2026

Last update for Dubai: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

AL Kharj

$259 27.1%

Dubai

$1.5K 52.9% 492% $1.3K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

AL Kharj

$185 19.4%

Dubai

$394 13.6% 113% $209

Groceries & Markets

AL Kharj

$175 18.3%

Dubai

$292 10.1% 66.6% $117

Clothing & Footwear

AL Kharj

$108 11.3%

Dubai

$147 5.1% 35.4% $38

Eating Out

AL Kharj

$103 10.8%

Dubai

$305 10.5% 196% $202

Sport & Entertainment

AL Kharj

$98 10.3%

Dubai

$136 4.7% 38.6% $38

Getting Around

AL Kharj

$29 * 3%

Dubai

$89 3.1% 211% $60

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $700 in AL Kharj versus $2,393 in Dubai. 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 24% higher in Dubai, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $27.00 in AL Kharj versus $82.0 in Dubai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $175 vs $292 – making AL Kharj the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇸🇦 AL Kharj

🇦🇪 Dubai

🕒 Local time

15:31 3:31 PM

16:31 4:31 PM

1 h ahead of AL Kharj

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

425,300

3,790,000

💱 Currency

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

📈 Exchange rate

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.242 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AED, USD, EUR to SAR – Saudi Riyal Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇦 Saudi Riyal (ر.س)

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.22 SAR (1 SAR = 0.237 EUR).

UAE Dirham exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.13 AED (1 AED = 0.242 EUR).

USD to SAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

AL Kharj Dubai 800 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

AL Kharj
Dubai

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 Kharj vs Dubai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $957 in AL Kharj, $2,896 in Dubai – roughly 202% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,436 per month in AL Kharj and $4,344 in Dubai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in AL Kharj, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $286 per month in AL Kharj and $844 in Dubai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 67% more in Dubai, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in AL Kharj, where all-in costs run around $957, than in Dubai at $2,896. In AL Kharj it covers expenses comfortably, while in Dubai it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Dubai has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $957 in AL Kharj to $2,896 in Dubai. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with AL Kharj. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Dubai makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.