Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dubai and El Gouna

For one person, living is cheaper in El Gouna: $457 a month against $2,854 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $28,800 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
22

Cost of Living Index in El Gouna
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El Gouna Living Index

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Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,854

/mo nomad

El Gouna

🇪🇬 Egypt

$457

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dubai and in El Gouna

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,854 in Dubai versus $457 in El Gouna.

Dubai $2,854
El Gouna $457

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,321 in Dubai versus $730 in El Gouna.

Dubai $4,321
El Gouna $730

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,788 in Dubai versus $1,002 in El Gouna.

Dubai $5,788
El Gouna $1,002

Living in Dubai is roughly 524% more expensive than in El Gouna, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Dubai is 113% above, El Gouna is 66% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.04 AED 47.89

$3.59 E£189

263.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$81.4 AED 299

$15.95 E£839

410.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.32 AED 34.25

$4.64 E£244

100.86%

Cappuccino

$5.97 AED 21.93

$1.49 E£78.4

300.67%

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

$1.63 AED 5.98

$0.29 E£15.07

462.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.81 AED 2.99

$0.10 E£5.25

710.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$13.65 AED 50.1

$1.21 E£63.6

1028.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$13.38 AED 49.15

$2.91 E£153

359.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.81 AED 6.64

$0.87 E£45.61

108.05%

White Bread (500g)

$1.57 AED 5.78

$0.59 E£30.86

166.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 AED 9.16

$0.71 E£37.11

250.70%

Eggs

$3.28 AED 12.04

$1.39 E£72.9

135.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.67 AED 46.52

$3.37 E£177

275.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.75 AED 35.80

$4.23 E£222

130.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.18 AED 48.39

$8.53 E£448

54.51%

Apples (1kg)

$2.61 AED 9.57

$1.47 E£77.2

77.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.93 AED 7.09

$0.57 E£30.14

238.60%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.92 AED 7.05

$0.43 E£22.47

346.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.36 AED 5.00

$0.40 E£20.93

240.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.17 AED 4.29

$0.37 E£19.56

216.22%

Onion (1kg)

$1.01 AED 3.71

$0.41 E£21.43

146.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.51 AED 5.56

$0.24 E£12.66

529.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.62 AED 2.29

$0.21 E£11.23

195.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.85 AED 21.50

$1.96 E£103

198.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.14 AED 59.3

$6.48 E£341

149.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.65 AED 9.74

$1.26 E£66.1

110.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.95 AED 10.82

$1.88 E£98.6

56.91%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.64 AED 6.03

$0.17 E£8.98

864.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.6 AED 270

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.17 AED 11.66

$0.39 E£20.46

712.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 AED 2.63

$0.29 E£15.24

144.83%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.96 AED 29.22

$2.00 E£105

298.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.99 AED 3.64

$0.33 E£17.57

200.00%

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

$27.4K AED 100.5K

$35.9K E£1.9M

-23.66%

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

$22.5K AED 82.8K

$32.7K E£1.7M

-30.97%

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

$250 AED 920

$11.82 E£622

2018.44%

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

$54.2 AED 199

$6.88 E£362

688.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$91.8 AED 337

$11.01 E£579

733.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$98.6 AED 362

$20.42 E£1,074

383.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$42.61 AED 156

Cinema Ticket

$16.03 AED 58.9

$2.98 E£157

437.92%

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

$843 AED 3,098

$89.3 E£4,695

844.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.3K AED 67.1K

$1,820 E£95.7K

903.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.0 AED 250

$27.68 E£1,456

145.48%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.9 AED 212

$44.99 E£2,367

28.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 AED 370

$109 E£5,707

-7.21%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 AED 371

$49.98 E£2,629

102.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,380 AED 8,741

$190 E£9,998

1152.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,506 AED 5,530

$100 E£5,286

1398.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,437 AED 16.3K

$271 E£14.3K

1534.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,010 AED 11.1K

$153 E£8,056

1865.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,121 AED 26.2K

$795 E£41.8K

795.52%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,135 AED 15.2K

$488 E£25.6K

748.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,391 AED 12.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.54

16.67

-72.77%

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

Last update for Dubai: October 5, 2026

Last update for El Gouna: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dubai

$1.5K 52.5%

El Gouna

$100 21.9% 93.3% $1.4K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dubai

$396 13.8%

El Gouna

$30 6.5% 92.5% $367

Eating Out

Dubai

$309 10.8%

El Gouna

$74 16.1% 76% $235

Groceries & Markets

Dubai

$293 10.2%

El Gouna

$123 26.7% 58.1% $170

Clothing & Footwear

Dubai

$147 5.1%

El Gouna

$104 22.6% 29.4% $43

Sport & Entertainment

Dubai

$131 4.6%

El Gouna

$26 5.7% 79.8% $104

Getting Around

Dubai

$87 3%

El Gouna

$2.5 * 0.6% 97.1% $84

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 $2,380 in Dubai and $190 in El Gouna. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $81.0 in Dubai vs $16.00 in El Gouna for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $293 vs $123 per month, with El Gouna cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇪 Dubai

🇪🇬 El Gouna

🕒 Local time

11:48 11:48 AM

10:48 10:48 AM

1 h behind Dubai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,790,000

15,000

💱 Currency

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.243 EUR

100 EGP = 1.9 USD

100 EGP = 1.7 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 13, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.12 AED (1 AED = 0.243 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 52.6 EGP (100 EGP = 1.9 USD). 1 EUR = 58.95 EGP (100 EGP = 1.7 EUR).

USD to AED in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Dubai El Gouna 2,160 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Dubai
El Gouna

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 El Gouna: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

El Gouna is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and clothing. The 524% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $4,281 in Dubai and $686 in El Gouna 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: $2,380 in Dubai versus $190 in El Gouna. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 139% higher in Dubai. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,854 per month in Dubai versus $457 in El Gouna – a 524% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $457 in El Gouna versus $2,854 in Dubai, a $1,500 budget is realistic in El Gouna but tight or insufficient in Dubai. The gap between the two cities makes El Gouna the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, El Gouna 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 El Gouna 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 El Gouna gentler on the wallet – expenses run 524% less than in Dubai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.