Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bergen and Dubai

For one person, living costs are similar in Bergen and in Dubai: $2,844 and $2,854 a month, rent and utilities included.

138

Cost of Living Index in Bergen
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Bergen Living Index
139

Cost of Living Index in Dubai
Learn more

Dubai Living Index

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Bergen

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,844

/mo nomad

Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,854

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bergen 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 Bergen and in Dubai actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,844 in Bergen versus $2,854 in Dubai.

Bergen $2,844
Dubai $2,854

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,282 in Bergen versus $4,321 in Dubai.

Bergen $4,282
Dubai $4,321

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,719 in Bergen versus $5,788 in Dubai.

Bergen $5,719
Dubai $5,788

Monthly costs are close between Bergen and Dubai; which city is cheaper depends on the spending category.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Bergen 112% above, Dubai 113% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.98 NOK 219

$13.04 AED 47.89

76.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$135 NOK 1,292

$81.4 AED 299

66.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.52 NOK 148

$9.32 AED 34.25

66.52%

Cappuccino

$5.42 NOK 51.8

$5.97 AED 21.93

-9.21%

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

$5.10 NOK 48.71

$1.63 AED 5.98

212.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 NOK 42.65

$0.81 AED 2.99

451.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$12.57 NOK 120

$13.65 AED 50.1

-7.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$10.41 NOK 99.4

$13.38 AED 49.15

-22.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.15 NOK 20.57

$1.81 AED 6.64

18.78%

White Bread (500g)

$3.78 NOK 36.13

$1.57 AED 5.78

140.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.51 NOK 33.54

$2.49 AED 9.16

40.96%

Eggs

$6.41 NOK 61.3

$3.28 AED 12.04

95.43%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.32 NOK 137

$12.67 AED 46.53

13.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$17.21 NOK 164

$9.75 AED 35.80

76.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$36.16 NOK 345

$13.18 AED 48.40

174.36%

Apples (1kg)

$4.12 NOK 39.38

$2.61 AED 9.57

57.85%

Banana (1kg)

$2.72 NOK 25.95

$1.93 AED 7.09

40.93%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.61 NOK 34.44

$1.92 AED 7.05

88.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.39 NOK 51.4

$1.36 AED 5.00

296.32%

Potato (1kg)

$2.52 NOK 24.02

$1.17 AED 4.29

115.38%

Onion (1kg)

$3.35 NOK 31.97

$1.01 AED 3.71

231.68%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.86 NOK 27.34

$1.51 AED 5.56

89.40%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 NOK 17.03

$0.62 AED 2.29

187.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$17.10 NOK 163

$5.85 AED 21.50

192.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.97 NOK 172

$16.14 AED 59.3

11.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.59 NOK 34.31

$2.65 AED 9.74

35.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.21 NOK 40.20

$2.95 AED 10.82

42.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$5.15 NOK 49.21

$1.64 AED 6.03

214.02%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$86.4 NOK 825

$73.6 AED 270

17.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$12.39 NOK 118

$3.17 AED 11.66

290.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.84 NOK 17.61

$0.71 AED 2.63

159.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$70.5 NOK 674

$7.96 AED 29.23

785.93%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.35 NOK 22.42

$0.99 AED 3.64

137.37%

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

$48.6K NOK 463.7K

$27.4K AED 100.5K

77.38%

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

$43.3K NOK 413.9K

$22.5K AED 82.8K

92.27%

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

$275 NOK 2,623

$250 AED 920

9.68%

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

$32.93 NOK 314

$54.2 AED 199

-39.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$82.9 NOK 791

$91.8 AED 337

-9.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.61 NOK 436

$98.6 AED 362

-53.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$41.77 NOK 399

$42.61 AED 156

-1.97%

Cinema Ticket

$18.87 NOK 180

$16.03 AED 58.9

17.72%

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

$238 NOK 2,272

$843 AED 3,098

-71.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.0K NOK 114.9K

$18.3K AED 67.1K

-34.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$107 NOK 1,022

$68.0 AED 250

57.50%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.6 NOK 522

$57.9 AED 213

-5.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 NOK 1,128

$101 AED 370

17.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$162 NOK 1,545

$101 AED 371

60.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,414 NOK 13.5K

$2,380 AED 8,741

-40.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,083 NOK 10.3K

$1,506 AED 5,531

-28.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,348 NOK 22.4K

$4,437 AED 16.3K

-47.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,696 NOK 16.2K

$3,010 AED 11.1K

-43.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,822 NOK 74.7K

$7,121 AED 26.2K

9.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,769 NOK 45.5K

$4,135 AED 15.2K

15.31%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,527 NOK 43.2K

$3,391 AED 12.5K

33.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.27

4.54

16.08%

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

Last update for Bergen: October 3, 2026

Last update for Dubai: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bergen

$1.1K 38.3%

Dubai

$1.5K 52.5% 39% $422

Groceries & Markets

Bergen

$524 18.6%

Dubai

$293 10.2% 44.2% $232

Eating Out

Bergen

$417 14.8%

Dubai

$309 10.8% 26.1% $109

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bergen

$390 13.8%

Dubai

$396 13.8% 1.5% $6

Clothing & Footwear

Bergen

$199 7%

Dubai

$147 5.1% 25.8% $51

Getting Around

Bergen

$129 4.6%

Dubai

$87 3% 32.4% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Bergen

$83 3%

Dubai

$131 4.6% 56.8% $47

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,414 in Bergen and $2,380 in Dubai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bergen pays 34% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $135 in Bergen vs $81.0 in Dubai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $524 vs $293 per month, with Dubai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Bergen

🇦🇪 Dubai

🕒 Local time

07:45 7:45 AM

09:45 9:45 AM

2 h ahead of Bergen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

292,482

3,790,000

💱 Currency

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

📈 Exchange rate

100 NOK = 10.47 USD

100 NOK = 9.34 EUR

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.243 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AED, USD, EUR to NOK – Norwegian Krone Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇴 Norwegian Krone (kr)

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 9.55 NOK (1 NOK = 0.105 USD). 1 EUR = 10.71 NOK (100 NOK = 9.34 EUR).

UAE Dirham exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.12 AED (1 AED = 0.243 EUR).

USD to NOK in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Bergen Dubai 5,440 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Bergen
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

Bergen vs Dubai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Average pay runs 34% higher in Bergen, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,414 in Bergen versus $2,380 in Dubai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $238 in Bergen versus $843 in Dubai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Bergen – a meal for two runs $135 versus $81.0 in Dubai. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,500. Bergen is the more realistic option, but even there you'll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

For families, Bergen is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Dubai, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Bergen and Dubai are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

It comes down to priorities – Bergen wins on affordability, Dubai on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.