Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dubai and Al `arish

For one person, living is cheaper in Al `arish: $449 a month against $2,896 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $29,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

140

Cost of Living Index in Dubai
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Dubai Living Index
22

Cost of Living Index in Al `arish
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Al `arish Living Index

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Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,896

/mo nomad

Al `arish

🇪🇬 Egypt

$449

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dubai and in Al `arish

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 Al `arish actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,896 in Dubai versus $449 in Al `arish.

Dubai $2,896
Al `arish $449

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,384 in Dubai versus $735 in Al `arish.

Dubai $4,384
Al `arish $735

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,872 in Dubai versus $1,022 in Al `arish.

Dubai $5,872
Al `arish $1,022

Living in Dubai is roughly 546% more expensive than in Al `arish, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Dubai is 115% above, Al `arish is 67% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.67 AED 46.55

$4.07 E£218

211.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$81.7 AED 300

$14.03 E£750

482.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.34 AED 34.30

$4.79 E£256

94.99%

Cappuccino

$5.89 AED 21.62

$1.23 E£65.9

378.86%

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

$1.69 AED 6.20

$0.37 E£19.82

356.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 AED 2.86

$0.12 E£6.23

550.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$13.66 AED 50.2

$1.45 E£77.3

842.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$13.49 AED 49.54

$2.93 E£157

360.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 AED 6.78

$0.85 E£45.54

116.47%

White Bread (500g)

$1.50 AED 5.50

$0.37 E£19.97

305.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.57 AED 9.45

$0.63 E£33.44

307.94%

Eggs

$3.32 AED 12.18

$1.43 E£76.2

132.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.60 AED 46.28

$2.53 E£135

398.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.66 AED 35.46

$3.64 E£194

165.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.78 AED 46.93

$7.81 E£417

63.64%

Apples (1kg)

$2.60 AED 9.54

$1.46 E£77.9

78.08%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 AED 6.99

$0.62 E£33.01

206.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.91 AED 7.02

$0.39 E£20.85

389.74%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.37 AED 5.02

$0.32 E£16.95

328.13%

Potato (1kg)

$1.13 AED 4.14

$0.44 E£23.49

156.82%

Onion (1kg)

$1.01 AED 3.71

$0.46 E£24.45

119.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 AED 5.30

$0.29 E£15.55

396.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 AED 2.48

$0.18 E£9.52

272.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.88 AED 21.59

$1.96 E£105

200.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.15 AED 59.3

$4.72 E£252

242.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.72 AED 10.00

$1.01 E£54.0

169.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.08 AED 11.32

$1.64 E£87.8

87.80%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.60 AED 5.87

$0.20 E£10.54

700.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.0 AED 279

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.24 AED 11.91

$0.29 E£15.53

1017.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 AED 2.61

$0.39 E£21.00

82.05%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.96 AED 29.22

$1.21 E£64.4

557.85%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.98 AED 3.62

$0.46 E£24.55

113.04%

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

$27.4K AED 100.6K

$32.7K E£1.7M

-16.20%

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

$22.0K AED 80.9K

$24.6K E£1.3M

-10.42%

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

$249 AED 913

$14.84 E£793

1574.53%

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

$54.4 AED 200

$6.99 E£373

678.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$91.5 AED 336

$25.08 E£1,340

264.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$103 AED 380

$18.29 E£977

465.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$42.32 AED 155

Cinema Ticket

$16.29 AED 59.8

$3.90 E£208

317.69%

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

$844 AED 3,098

$85.2 E£4,555

889.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.3K AED 67.1K

$2,336 E£124.8K

681.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$67.0 AED 246

$10.30 E£550

550.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.9 AED 213

$47.64 E£2,546

21.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 AED 375

$157 E£8,375

-34.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.7 AED 363

$56.4 E£3,013

75.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,393 AED 8,788

$132 E£7,035

1717.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,533 AED 5,630

$66.7 E£3,563

2199.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,594 AED 16.9K

$234 E£12.5K

1865.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,939 AED 10.8K

$164 E£8,785

1688.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,046 AED 25.9K

$846 E£45.2K

733.17%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,222 AED 15.5K

$375 E£20.1K

1025.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,461 AED 12.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.54

22.5

-79.82%

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

Last update for Dubai: October 10, 2026

Last update for Al `arish: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dubai

$1.5K 52.9%

Al `arish

$67 14.9% 95.7% $1.5K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dubai

$394 13.6%

Al `arish

$47 10.5% 88.1% $348

Eating Out

Dubai

$305 10.5%

Al `arish

$77 17.1% 74.8% $228

Groceries & Markets

Dubai

$292 10.1%

Al `arish

$107 23.9% 63.3% $185

Clothing & Footwear

Dubai

$147 5.1%

Al `arish

$122 27.2% 16.8% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Dubai

$136 4.7%

Al `arish

$26 5.8% 80.8% $110

Getting Around

Dubai

$89 3.1%

Al `arish

$3 * 0.7% 96.6% $86

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,393 in Dubai and $132 in Al `arish. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $82.0 in Dubai vs $14.00 in Al `arish for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $292 vs $107 per month, with Al `arish cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇪 Dubai

🇪🇬 Al `arish

🕒 Local time

00:21 12:21 AM

23:21 11:21 PM

1 h behind Dubai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,790,000

199,243

💱 Currency

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.243 EUR

100 EGP = 1.87 USD

100 EGP = 1.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, USD, EUR to AED – UAE Dirham Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇪 UAE Dirham (د.إ)

UAE Dirham exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.11 AED (1 AED = 0.243 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 53.44 EGP (100 EGP = 1.87 USD). 1 EUR = 59.84 EGP (100 EGP = 1.67 EUR).

USD to AED in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Dubai Al `arish 2,200 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Dubai
Al `arish

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 Al `arish: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Al `arish wins on cost – living expenses run 546% lower than in Dubai. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Al `arish the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $4,344 in Dubai and $673 in Al `arish 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $2,393 in Dubai versus $132 in Al `arish. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 172% higher in Dubai. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,896 per month in Dubai versus $449 in Al `arish – a 546% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $449 in Al `arish versus $2,896 in Dubai, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Al `arish but tight or insufficient in Dubai. The gap between the two cities makes Al `arish the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Al `arish delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $449 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Al `arish hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Dubai and Al `arish 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 Al `arish gentler on the wallet – expenses run 546% less than in Dubai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.