Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dubai and Adma

For one person, living is cheaper in Adma: $1,018 a month against $2,854 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $22,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

139

Cost of Living Index in Dubai
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Dubai Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Adma
Learn more

Adma Living Index

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Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,854

/mo nomad

Adma

🇱🇧 Lebanon

$1,018

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dubai and in Adma

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,854 in Dubai versus $1,018 in Adma.

Dubai $2,854
Adma $1,018

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,321 in Dubai versus $1,588 in Adma.

Dubai $4,321
Adma $1,588

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,788 in Dubai versus $2,158 in Adma.

Dubai $5,788
Adma $2,158

Living in Dubai is roughly 180% more expensive than in Adma, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

The two cities straddle the global median: Dubai is 113% above, Adma is 24% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.04 AED 47.89

$12.06 LBP 1.1M

8.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$81.4 AED 299

$68.6 LBP 6.1M

18.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.32 AED 34.25

$9.95 LBP 890.1K

-6.33%

Cappuccino

$5.97 AED 21.93

$4.57 LBP 409.2K

30.63%

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

$1.63 AED 5.98

$2.28 LBP 203.8K

-28.51%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.81 AED 2.99

$0.88 LBP 78.8K

-7.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$13.65 AED 50.1

$4.87 LBP 436.2K

180.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$13.38 AED 49.15

$4.64 LBP 415.3K

188.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.81 AED 6.64

$1.91 LBP 170.5K

-5.24%

White Bread (500g)

$1.57 AED 5.78

$0.86 LBP 76.8K

82.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 AED 9.16

$2.23 LBP 199.7K

11.66%

Eggs

$3.28 AED 12.04

$3.53 LBP 315.7K

-7.08%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.67 AED 46.53

$11.15 LBP 997.5K

13.63%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.75 AED 35.80

$10.77 LBP 963.5K

-9.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.18 AED 48.40

$14.64 LBP 1.3M

-9.97%

Apples (1kg)

$2.61 AED 9.57

$3.11 LBP 278.8K

-16.08%

Banana (1kg)

$1.93 AED 7.09

$1.72 LBP 153.6K

12.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.92 AED 7.05

$1.61 LBP 144.1K

19.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.36 AED 5.00

$1.48 LBP 132.7K

-8.11%

Potato (1kg)

$1.17 AED 4.29

$1.27 LBP 113.2K

-7.87%

Onion (1kg)

$1.01 AED 3.71

$1.52 LBP 136.5K

-33.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.51 AED 5.56

$1.18 LBP 105.4K

27.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.62 AED 2.29

$0.71 LBP 63.7K

-12.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.85 AED 21.50

$3.08 LBP 276.0K

89.94%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.14 AED 59.3

$11.21 LBP 1.0M

43.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.65 AED 9.74

$1.28 LBP 114.9K

107.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.95 AED 10.82

$2.47 LBP 221.3K

19.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.64 AED 6.03

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.6 AED 270

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.17 AED 11.66

$5.09 LBP 455.3K

-37.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 AED 2.63

$2.20 LBP 196.6K

-67.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.96 AED 29.23

$22.36 LBP 2.0M

-64.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.99 AED 3.64

$1.07 LBP 95.7K

-7.48%

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

$27.4K AED 100.5K

$53.7K LBP 4.8B

-49.07%

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

$22.5K AED 82.8K

$32.3K LBP 2.9B

-30.11%

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

$250 AED 920

$236 LBP 21.1M

6.02%

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

$54.2 AED 199

$22.12 LBP 2.0M

145.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$91.8 AED 337

$38.19 LBP 3.4M

140.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$98.6 AED 362

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$42.61 AED 156

Cinema Ticket

$16.03 AED 58.9

$9.82 LBP 879.3K

63.24%

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

$843 AED 3,098

$692 LBP 61.9M

21.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.3K AED 67.1K

$10.6K LBP 944.9M

72.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.0 AED 250

$66.3 LBP 5.9M

2.44%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.9 AED 213

$48.86 LBP 4.4M

18.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 AED 370

$139 LBP 12.4M

-27.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 AED 371

$119 LBP 10.7M

-15.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,380 AED 8,741

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,506 AED 5,531

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,437 AED 16.3K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,010 AED 11.1K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,121 AED 26.2K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,135 AED 15.2K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,391 AED 12.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.54

-58.73%

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

Last update for Dubai: October 5, 2026

Last update for Adma: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dubai

$1.5K 52.5%

Adma

- * 0% 100%

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dubai

$396 13.8%

Adma

$297 29.6% 25.2% $100

Eating Out

Dubai

$309 10.8%

Adma

$227 22.7% 26.3% $81

Groceries & Markets

Dubai

$293 10.2%

Adma

$275 27.5% 5.9% $17

Clothing & Footwear

Dubai

$147 5.1%

Adma

$168 16.8% 14% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Dubai

$131 4.6%

Adma

$20 * 2% 85% $111

Getting Around

Dubai

$87 3%

Adma

$16 * 1.6% 81.5% $71

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $81.0 in Dubai vs $69.0 in Adma for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $293 vs $275 per month, with Adma cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇪 Dubai

🇱🇧 Adma

🕒 Local time

15:13 3:13 PM

14:13 2:13 PM

1 h behind Dubai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,790,000

💱 Currency

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

Lebanese Pound LBP ل.ل

📈 Exchange rate

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.243 EUR

1,000,000 LBP = 11.17 USD

1,000,000 LBP = 9.97 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LBP, USD, EUR to AED – UAE Dirham Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇪 UAE Dirham (د.إ)

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).

Lebanese Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 89,500 LBP (100,000 LBP = 1.12 USD). 1 EUR = 100,291 LBP (1,000,000 LBP = 9.97 EUR).

USD to AED in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Dubai Adma 2,130 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Dubai
Adma

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

Dubai vs Adma: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Adma is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and utilities. The 180% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $4,281 in Dubai and $1,527 in Adma to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Childcare runs $843 in Dubai versus $692 in Adma. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Adma – a meal for two runs $69.0 versus $81.0 in Dubai. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,018 in Adma versus $2,854 in Dubai, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Adma but tight or insufficient in Dubai. The gap between the two cities makes Adma the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Adma 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, Dubai and Adma are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Adma gentler on the wallet – expenses run 180% less than in Dubai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.