Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dubai and Koh Chang

For one person, living is cheaper in Koh Chang: $965 a month against $2,854 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $22,700 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
46

Cost of Living Index in Koh Chang
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Koh Chang Living Index

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Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,854

/mo nomad

Koh Chang

🇹🇭 Thailand

$965

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dubai and in Koh Chang

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,854 in Dubai versus $965 in Koh Chang.

Dubai $2,854
Koh Chang $965

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,321 in Dubai versus $1,583 in Koh Chang.

Dubai $4,321
Koh Chang $1,583

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,788 in Dubai versus $2,200 in Koh Chang.

Dubai $5,788
Koh Chang $2,200

Living in Dubai is roughly 196% more expensive than in Koh Chang, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Dubai is 113% above, Koh Chang is 28% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.04 AED 47.89

$3.63 ฿121

259.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$81.4 AED 299

$26.36 ฿883

208.76%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.32 AED 34.25

$6.99 ฿234

33.33%

Cappuccino

$5.97 AED 21.93

$2.26 ฿75.6

164.16%

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

$1.63 AED 5.98

$0.77 ฿25.91

111.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.81 AED 2.99

$0.40 ฿13.29

102.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$13.65 AED 50.1

$2.04 ฿68.4

569.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$13.38 AED 49.15

$3.02 ฿101

343.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.81 AED 6.64

$1.49 ฿50.0

21.48%

White Bread (500g)

$1.57 AED 5.78

$1.31 ฿44.00

19.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 AED 9.16

$1.41 ฿47.17

76.60%

Eggs

$3.28 AED 12.04

$1.96 ฿65.8

67.35%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.67 AED 46.53

$17.61 ฿590

-28.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.75 AED 35.80

$3.00 ฿101

225.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.18 AED 48.40

$9.66 ฿323

36.44%

Apples (1kg)

$2.61 AED 9.57

$2.68 ฿89.8

-2.61%

Banana (1kg)

$1.93 AED 7.09

$1.51 ฿50.7

27.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.92 AED 7.05

$2.07 ฿69.2

-7.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.36 AED 5.00

$1.92 ฿64.4

-29.17%

Potato (1kg)

$1.17 AED 4.29

$1.36 ฿45.44

-13.97%

Onion (1kg)

$1.01 AED 3.71

$1.19 ฿39.81

-15.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.51 AED 5.56

$1.01 ฿33.88

49.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.62 AED 2.29

$0.50 ฿16.64

24.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.85 AED 21.50

$3.97 ฿133

47.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.14 AED 59.3

$16.61 ฿556

-2.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.65 AED 9.74

$1.64 ฿55.1

61.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.95 AED 10.82

$2.60 ฿86.9

13.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.64 AED 6.03

$1.83 ฿61.2

-10.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.6 AED 270

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.17 AED 11.66

$2.43 ฿81.4

30.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 AED 2.63

$0.82 ฿27.40

-13.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.96 AED 29.23

$2.98 ฿99.7

167.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.99 AED 3.64

$1.19 ฿39.79

-16.81%

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

$27.4K AED 100.5K

$21.1K ฿707.5K

29.52%

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

$22.5K AED 82.8K

$21.5K ฿720.9K

4.68%

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

$250 AED 920

$94.2 ฿3,152

165.96%

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

$54.2 AED 199

$10.67 ฿357

408.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$91.8 AED 337

$16.43 ฿550

458.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$98.6 AED 362

$44.74 ฿1,498

120.45%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$42.61 AED 156

$9.17 ฿307

364.67%

Cinema Ticket

$16.03 AED 58.9

$6.47 ฿217

147.76%

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

$843 AED 3,098

$491 ฿16.4K

71.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.3K AED 67.1K

$10.5K ฿351.2K

74.06%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.0 AED 250

$60.2 ฿2,016

12.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.9 AED 213

$27.51 ฿921

110.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 AED 370

$90.4 ฿3,026

11.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 AED 371

$82.4 ฿2,758

22.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,380 AED 8,741

$473 ฿15.8K

403.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,506 AED 5,531

$303 ฿10.1K

396.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,437 AED 16.3K

$1,334 ฿44.7K

232.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,010 AED 11.1K

$794 ฿26.6K

279.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,121 AED 26.2K

$2,276 ฿76.2K

212.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,135 AED 15.2K

$1,651 ฿55.3K

150.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,391 AED 12.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.54

5.57

-18.49%

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

Last update for Dubai: October 5, 2026

Last update for Koh Chang: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dubai

$1.5K 52.5%

Koh Chang

$303 31.8% 79.9% $1.2K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dubai

$396 13.8%

Koh Chang

$121 12.7% 69.4% $275

Eating Out

Dubai

$309 10.8%

Koh Chang

$98 10.3% 68.2% $211

Groceries & Markets

Dubai

$293 10.2%

Koh Chang

$242 25.4% 17.4% $51

Clothing & Footwear

Dubai

$147 5.1%

Koh Chang

$117 12.3% 20.5% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Dubai

$131 4.6%

Koh Chang

$58 6.1% 55.9% $73

Getting Around

Dubai

$87 3%

Koh Chang

$14 * 1.5% 84.1% $73

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 $473 in Koh Chang. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $81.0 in Dubai vs $26.00 in Koh Chang for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $293 vs $242 per month, with Koh Chang cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇪 Dubai

🇹🇭 Koh Chang

🕒 Local time

09:29 9:29 AM

12:29 12:29 PM

3 h ahead of Dubai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,790,000

8,500

💱 Currency

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.243 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, 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).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 33.48 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.55 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to AED in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Dubai Koh Chang 5,150 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Dubai
Koh Chang

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 Koh Chang: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Koh Chang is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and clothing. The 196% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $4,281 in Dubai and $1,448 in Koh Chang 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 $473 in Koh Chang. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 21% 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 $965 in Koh Chang – a 196% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $965 in Koh Chang versus $2,854 in Dubai, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Koh Chang but tight or insufficient in Dubai. The gap between the two cities makes Koh Chang the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Koh Chang 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 Koh Chang 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 Koh Chang gentler on the wallet – expenses run 196% less than in Dubai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.