Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bhutan and Dubai

For one person, living is cheaper in Bhutan: $545 a month against $2,889 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $28,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

26

Cost of Living Index in Bhutan
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Bhutan Living Index
139

Cost of Living Index in Dubai
Learn more

Dubai Living Index

Jump to prices

🇧🇹 Bhutan

$545

/mo nomad

Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,889

/mo nomad

🙂 Solo nomad: Bhutan is 64% cheaper than Dubai without rent, and 81.1% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Bhutan is 66% cheaper than Dubai without rent, and 80.2% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.60 BTN 246

$12.94 AED 47.54

-79.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$14.50 BTN 1,372

$83.2 AED 306

-82.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.11 BTN 484

$9.35 AED 34.32

-45.35%

Cappuccino

$1.26 BTN 119

$5.88 AED 21.59

-78.57%

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

$0.53 BTN 50.2

$1.57 AED 5.77

-66.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.18 BTN 17.23

$0.94 AED 3.47

-80.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.62 BTN 248

$13.44 AED 49.37

-80.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.61 BTN 153

$13.57 AED 49.84

-88.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.88 BTN 83.1

$1.86 AED 6.83

-52.69%

White Bread (500g)

$1.11 BTN 105

$1.56 AED 5.73

-28.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.95 BTN 90.0

$2.64 AED 9.68

-64.02%

Eggs

$1.94 BTN 183

$3.53 AED 12.96

-45.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.87 BTN 366

$12.97 AED 47.62

-70.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.15 BTN 392

$9.94 AED 36.51

-58.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$3.93 BTN 372

$12.92 AED 47.45

-69.58%

Apples (1kg)

$2.59 BTN 245

$2.55 AED 9.36

1.57%

Banana (1kg)

$1.76 BTN 167

$2.05 AED 7.54

-14.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.76 BTN 167

$1.84 AED 6.77

-4.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.03 BTN 97.2

$1.54 AED 5.64

-33.12%

Potato (1kg)

$0.72 BTN 68.5

$1.17 AED 4.31

-38.46%

Onion (1kg)

$0.89 BTN 83.9

$1.02 AED 3.76

-12.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.67 BTN 63.0

$1.57 AED 5.75

-57.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.31 BTN 29.22

$0.67 AED 2.46

-53.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.23 BTN 400

$6.31 AED 23.17

-32.96%

Wine (Bottle)

$2.66 BTN 252

$16.16 AED 59.4

-83.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.91 BTN 85.7

$2.58 AED 9.48

-64.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.08 BTN 102

$2.89 AED 10.60

-62.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.81 BTN 76.6

$1.40 AED 5.15

-42.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$5.18 BTN 490

$82.4 AED 303

-93.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.51 BTN 48.06

$3.29 AED 12.07

-84.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 BTN 148

$0.65 AED 2.40

141.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$0.14 BTN 13.02

$8.13 AED 29.84

-98.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.72 BTN 68.0

$1.00 AED 3.68

-28.00%

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

$16.3K BTN 1.5M

$26.3K AED 96.6K

-37.90%

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

$15.1K BTN 1.4M

$22.0K AED 81.0K

-31.34%

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

$33.20 BTN 3,142

$239 AED 877

-86.10%

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

$36.50 BTN 3,454

$56.9 AED 209

-35.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.23 BTN 2,293

$93.9 AED 345

-74.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$47.50 BTN 4,494

$90.8 AED 334

-47.71%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.19 BTN 586

$46.38 AED 170

-86.65%

Cinema Ticket

$3.21 BTN 304

$16.24 AED 59.6

-80.23%

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

$44.21 BTN 4,183

$934 AED 3,429

-95.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$573 BTN 54.2K

$20.9K AED 76.8K

-97.26%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.74 BTN 4,706

$70.7 AED 260

-29.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.46 BTN 2,409

$61.3 AED 225

-58.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$69.7 BTN 6,595

$103 AED 377

-32.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$14.10 BTN 1,334

$116 AED 426

-87.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$148 BTN 14.0K

$2,487 AED 9,134

-94.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$105 BTN 9,888

$1,520 AED 5,581

-93.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$266 BTN 25.2K

$5,234 AED 19.2K

-94.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$227 BTN 21.5K

$3,028 AED 11.1K

-92.49%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,757 BTN 639.3K

$6,982 AED 25.6K

-3.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$402 BTN 38.1K

$4,433 AED 16.3K

-90.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$342 BTN 32.4K

$3,553 AED 13.0K

-90.37%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.57

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

Last update for Bhutan: November 2, 2026

Last update for Dubai: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Bhutan

$134 24.5%

Dubai

$297 10.3% 123% $164

Accommodation & Living

Bhutan

$105 19.2%

Dubai

$1.5K 52.6% 1354% $1.4K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bhutan

$94 17.3%

Dubai

$390 13.5% 315% $296

Clothing & Footwear

Bhutan

$72 13.1%

Dubai

$158 5.5% 121% $86

Eating Out

Bhutan

$70 12.9%

Dubai

$307 10.6% 335% $236

Sport & Entertainment

Bhutan

$54 9.9%

Dubai

$123 4.3% 129% $69

Getting Around

Bhutan

$17 3.1%

Dubai

$95 3.3% 464% $78

Good to know

🇧🇹 Bhutan

🇦🇪 Dubai

🕒 Local time

21:59 9:59 PM

19:59 7:59 PM

2 h behind Bhutan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

787,424

3,790,000

💱 Currency

Bhutanese Ngultrum BTN Nu.

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 BTN = 10.57 USD

1,000 BTN = 9.41 EUR

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.242 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AED, USD, EUR to BTN – Bhutanese Ngultrum Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇹 Bhutanese Ngultrum (Nu.)

Bhutanese Ngultrum exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 94.62 BTN (100 BTN = 1.06 USD). 1 EUR = 106 BTN (1,000 BTN = 9.41 EUR).

UAE Dirham exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.12 AED (1 AED = 0.242 EUR).

USD to BTN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Bhutan Dubai 3,430 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

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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

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Cost of Living Comparison Between Bhutan and Dubai

AED, USD, EUR to BTN – Bhutanese Ngultrum Converter

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

Bhutan

Dubai

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