Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dubai and AL Kharj

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.

140

Cost of Living Index in Dubai
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Dubai Living Index
47

Cost of Living Index in AL Kharj
Learn more

AL Kharj Living Index

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Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,896

/mo nomad

AL Kharj

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$957

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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 Kharj actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

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

Dubai $2,896
AL Kharj $957

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

Dubai $4,384
AL Kharj $1,464

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

Dubai $5,872
AL Kharj $1,971

Dubai costs about 202% more than AL Kharj, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.67 AED 46.55

$4.74 SAR 17.77

167.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$81.7 AED 300

$26.64 SAR 100.0

206.76%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.34 AED 34.30

$8.05 SAR 30.22

16.02%

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

$5.89 AED 21.62

$3.08 SAR 11.54

91.23%

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

$1.69 AED 6.20

$0.88 SAR 3.31

92.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 AED 2.86

$0.13 SAR 0.48

500.00%

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)

$1.84 AED 6.78

$1.44 SAR 5.39

27.78%

White Bread (500g)

$1.50 AED 5.50

$0.28 SAR 1.06

435.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.57 AED 9.45

$2.35 SAR 8.82

9.36%

Eggs

$3.32 AED 12.18

$2.17 SAR 8.16

53.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.60 AED 46.28

$10.49 SAR 39.36

20.11%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.66 AED 35.46

$5.15 SAR 19.33

87.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.78 AED 46.93

$13.51 SAR 50.7

-5.40%

Apples (1kg)

$2.60 AED 9.54

$1.77 SAR 6.66

46.89%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 AED 6.99

$1.30 SAR 4.88

46.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.91 AED 7.02

$1.21 SAR 4.54

57.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.37 AED 5.02

$1.36 SAR 5.11

0.74%

Potato (1kg)

$1.13 AED 4.14

$1.03 SAR 3.88

9.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.01 AED 3.71

$1.04 SAR 3.89

-2.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 AED 5.30

$0.52 SAR 1.94

176.92%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 AED 2.48

$0.53 SAR 2.01

26.42%

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)

$5.88 AED 21.59

$6.55 SAR 24.56

-10.23%

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)

$76.0 AED 279

$23.40 SAR 87.8

224.57%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.24 AED 11.91

$2.69 SAR 10.10

20.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 AED 2.61

$0.51 SAR 1.92

39.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.96 AED 29.22

$13.11 SAR 49.21

-39.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.98 AED 3.62

$0.64 SAR 2.40

53.12%

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

$27.4K AED 100.6K

$34.6K SAR 129.8K

-20.83%

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

$22.0K AED 80.9K

$22.8K SAR 85.7K

-3.58%

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

$249 AED 913

$107 SAR 402

132.09%

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

$54.4 AED 200

$26.65 SAR 100

104.24%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$91.5 AED 336

$51.6 SAR 194

77.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$103 AED 380

$71.9 SAR 270

43.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$42.32 AED 155

$40.47 SAR 152

4.57%

Cinema Ticket

$16.29 AED 59.8

$13.11 SAR 49.21

24.26%

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

$844 AED 3,098

$286 SAR 1,074

194.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.3K AED 67.1K

$3,763 SAR 14.1K

385.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$67.0 AED 246

$58.7 SAR 220

14.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.9 AED 213

$54.3 SAR 204

6.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 AED 375

$47.41 SAR 178

115.33%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.7 AED 363

$80.2 SAR 301

23.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,393 AED 8,788

$700 SAR 2,626

241.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,533 AED 5,630

$259 SAR 972

491.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,594 AED 16.9K

$596 SAR 2,236

670.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,939 AED 10.8K

$456 SAR 1,711

544.72%

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)

$3,461 AED 12.7K

$2,790 SAR 10.5K

24.04%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.54

5.54

-18.05%

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

Last update for Dubai: October 10, 2026

Last update for AL Kharj: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dubai

$1.5K 52.9%

AL Kharj

$259 27.1% 83.1% $1.3K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dubai

$394 13.6%

AL Kharj

$185 19.4% 53% $209

Eating Out

Dubai

$305 10.5%

AL Kharj

$103 10.8% 66.3% $202

Groceries & Markets

Dubai

$292 10.1%

AL Kharj

$175 18.3% 40% $117

Clothing & Footwear

Dubai

$147 5.1%

AL Kharj

$108 11.3% 26.1% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Dubai

$136 4.7%

AL Kharj

$98 10.3% 27.9% $38

Getting Around

Dubai

$89 3.1%

AL Kharj

$29 * 3% 67.8% $60

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,393 in Dubai versus $700 in AL Kharj. 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 $82.0 in Dubai versus $27.00 in AL Kharj. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $292 vs $175 – making AL Kharj the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇪 Dubai

🇸🇦 AL Kharj

🕒 Local time

15:52 3:52 PM

14:52 2:52 PM

1 h behind Dubai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,790,000

425,300

💱 Currency

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.242 EUR

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SAR, USD, EUR to AED – UAE Dirham Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇪 UAE Dirham (د.إ)

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).

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).

USD to AED in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

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

From you

Dubai
AL Kharj

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 Kharj: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

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

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,344 per month in Dubai and $1,436 in AL Kharj. 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 $844 per month in Dubai and $286 in AL Kharj. 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.