Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dubai and Aswan

For one person, living is cheaper in Aswan: $434 a month against $2,883 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $29,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

139

Cost of Living Index in Dubai
Learn more

Dubai Living Index
21

Cost of Living Index in Aswan
Learn more

Aswan Living Index

Jump to prices

Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,883

/mo nomad

Aswan

🇪🇬 Egypt

$434

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dubai and in Aswan

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

A single person spends $2,883 per month in Dubai vs $434 in Aswan, rent included.

Dubai $2,883
Aswan $434

A couple spends around $4,403 per month in Dubai vs $701 in Aswan, rent included.

Dubai $4,403
Aswan $701

A family of three spends $5,923 per month in Dubai vs $969 in Aswan, rent included.

Dubai $5,923
Aswan $969

Dubai costs about 564% more than Aswan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Dubai sits 113% above the global median, while Aswan is 68% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.99 AED 47.72

$3.88 E£207

234.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$81.9 AED 301

$14.90 E£796

449.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.64 AED 35.40

$4.69 E£250

105.54%

Cappuccino

$6.09 AED 22.38

$1.31 E£70.0

364.89%

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

$1.61 AED 5.93

$0.30 E£15.98

436.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.75 AED 2.76

$0.14 E£7.36

435.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$13.79 AED 50.6

$1.30 E£69.2

960.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$13.41 AED 49.25

$2.88 E£154

365.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.86 AED 6.83

$0.87 E£46.25

113.79%

White Bread (500g)

$1.53 AED 5.62

$0.65 E£34.78

135.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.55 AED 9.38

$0.58 E£31.05

339.66%

Eggs

$3.28 AED 12.06

$1.20 E£64.2

173.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.14 AED 44.57

$3.24 E£173

274.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.15 AED 33.62

$4.08 E£218

124.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.80 AED 47.00

$7.85 E£419

63.06%

Apples (1kg)

$2.56 AED 9.39

$1.47 E£78.3

74.15%

Banana (1kg)

$1.91 AED 7.03

$0.67 E£35.88

185.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.82 AED 6.69

$0.49 E£26.11

271.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.43 AED 5.26

$0.35 E£18.89

308.57%

Potato (1kg)

$1.10 AED 4.04

$0.34 E£18.31

223.53%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 AED 3.40

$0.33 E£17.85

178.79%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.52 AED 5.58

$0.25 E£13.21

508.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.69 AED 2.54

$0.17 E£8.83

305.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.41 AED 23.55

$1.87 E£99.8

242.78%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.52 AED 60.7

$6.32 E£338

161.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.56 AED 9.41

$1.20 E£64.0

113.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.08 AED 11.32

$2.00 E£107

54.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.58 AED 5.82

$0.18 E£9.69

777.78%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$75.9 AED 279

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.19 AED 11.72

$0.40 E£21.12

697.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 AED 2.62

$0.22 E£11.60

222.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.21 AED 30.13

$1.19 E£63.8

589.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.01 AED 3.73

$0.45 E£24.21

124.44%

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

$26.1K AED 96.0K

$31.9K E£1.7M

-18.01%

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

$21.8K AED 80.2K

$25.1K E£1.3M

-12.80%

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

$245 AED 900

$15.10 E£806

1522.85%

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

$57.5 AED 211

$6.64 E£354

766.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$91.3 AED 335

$13.16 E£703

593.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$105 AED 385

$16.36 E£874

540.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$46.58 AED 171

$4.78 E£255

874.48%

Cinema Ticket

$16.04 AED 58.9

$2.93 E£157

447.44%

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

$873 AED 3,206

$86.6 E£4,622

908.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.0K AED 66.2K

$1,865 E£99.6K

866.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.8 AED 260

$16.97 E£906

317.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$62.3 AED 229

$45.04 E£2,405

38.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 AED 390

$115 E£6,132

-7.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 AED 376

$55.8 E£2,982

83.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,454 AED 9,014

$133 E£7,091

1748.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,510 AED 5,545

$76.9 E£4,108

1862.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,640 AED 17.0K

$253 E£13.5K

1733.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,961 AED 10.9K

$144 E£7,713

1950.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,219 AED 26.5K

$767 E£40.9K

841.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,232 AED 15.5K

$347 E£18.5K

1119.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,584 AED 13.2K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.54

16.21

-71.99%

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

Last update for Dubai: October 18, 2026

Last update for Aswan: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dubai

$1.5K 52.4%

Aswan

$77 17.7% 94.9% $1.4K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dubai

$394 13.7%

Aswan

$35 8% 91.1% $359

Eating Out

Dubai

$311 10.8%

Aswan

$75 17.2% 76% $236

Groceries & Markets

Dubai

$288 10%

Aswan

$118 27.3% 58.9% $170

Clothing & Footwear

Dubai

$154 5.3%

Aswan

$105 24.1% 31.9% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Dubai

$137 4.8%

Aswan

$22 5.1% 83.8% $115

Getting Around

Dubai

$89 3.1%

Aswan

$2.2 * 0.5% 97.5% $87

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,454 in Dubai versus $133 in Aswan. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $82.0 in Dubai versus $15.00 in Aswan. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $288 vs $118 – making Aswan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇪 Dubai

🇪🇬 Aswan

🕒 Local time

04:06 4:06 AM

03:06 3:06 AM

1 h behind Dubai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,790,000

241,261

💱 Currency

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.242 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 21, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.13 AED (1 AED = 0.242 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 53.4 EGP (100 EGP = 1.87 USD). 1 EUR = 60.03 EGP (100 EGP = 1.67 EUR).

USD to AED in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Dubai Aswan 2,250 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Dubai
Aswan

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 Aswan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Dubai is pricier by about 564%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,324 per month in Dubai and $651 in Aswan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Aswan, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $82.0 in Dubai and $15.00 in Aswan. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 143% 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 $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Aswan, where all-in costs run around $434, than in Dubai at $2,883. In Aswan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Dubai it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Aswan – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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 Aswan. 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.