Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dubai and Latakia

For one person, living is cheaper in Latakia: $477 a month against $2,896 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $29,000 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
23

Cost of Living Index in Latakia
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Latakia Living Index

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Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,896

/mo nomad

Latakia

🇸🇾 Syria

$477

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dubai and in Latakia

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,896 in Dubai versus $477 in Latakia.

Dubai $2,896
Latakia $477

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,384 in Dubai versus $789 in Latakia.

Dubai $4,384
Latakia $789

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,872 in Dubai versus $1,100 in Latakia.

Dubai $5,872
Latakia $1,100

Living in Dubai is roughly 507% more expensive than in Latakia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Dubai is 115% above, Latakia is 65% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.67 AED 46.55

$5.14 SYP 625

146.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$81.7 AED 300

$29.86 SYP 3,628

173.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.34 AED 34.30

$5.58 SYP 678

67.38%

Cappuccino

$5.89 AED 21.62

$1.03 SYP 125

471.84%

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

$1.69 AED 6.20

$0.95 SYP 115

77.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 AED 2.86

$0.85 SYP 103

-8.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$13.66 AED 50.2

$0.99 SYP 120

1279.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$13.49 AED 49.54

$2.93 SYP 356

360.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 AED 6.78

$0.86 SYP 105

113.95%

White Bread (500g)

$1.50 AED 5.50

$0.38 SYP 46.56

294.74%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.57 AED 9.45

$1.16 SYP 141

121.55%

Eggs

$3.32 AED 12.18

$1.45 SYP 177

128.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.60 AED 46.28

$3.88 SYP 472

224.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.66 AED 35.46

$5.08 SYP 617

90.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.78 AED 46.93

$14.03 SYP 1,705

-8.91%

Apples (1kg)

$2.60 AED 9.54

$0.86 SYP 105

202.33%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 AED 6.99

$1.13 SYP 137

68.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.91 AED 7.02

$0.69 SYP 83.5

176.81%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.37 AED 5.02

$0.65 SYP 78.8

110.77%

Potato (1kg)

$1.13 AED 4.14

$0.68 SYP 82.6

66.18%

Onion (1kg)

$1.01 AED 3.71

$0.73 SYP 88.9

38.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 AED 5.30

$0.43 SYP 52.5

234.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 AED 2.48

$0.65 SYP 79.0

3.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.88 AED 21.59

$2.71 SYP 329

116.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.15 AED 59.3

$3.94 SYP 479

309.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.72 AED 10.00

$1.28 SYP 156

112.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.08 AED 11.32

$2.40 SYP 291

28.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.60 AED 5.87

$0.07 SYP 7.97

2185.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.0 AED 279

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.24 AED 11.91

$1.02 SYP 125

217.65%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 AED 2.61

$0.59 SYP 71.3

20.34%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.96 AED 29.22

$5.14 SYP 625

54.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.98 AED 3.62

$1.10 SYP 133

-10.91%

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

$27.4K AED 100.6K

$14.8K SYP 1.8M

85.27%

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

$22.0K AED 80.9K

$19.3K SYP 2.3M

14.14%

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

$249 AED 913

$68.0 SYP 8,262

265.49%

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

$54.4 AED 200

$7.32 SYP 889

643.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$91.5 AED 336

$34.60 SYP 4,205

164.36%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$103 AED 380

$14.03 SYP 1,705

636.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$42.32 AED 155

$9.75 SYP 1,184

334.05%

Cinema Ticket

$16.29 AED 59.8

$1.17 SYP 142

1292.31%

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

$844 AED 3,098

$40.70 SYP 4,946

1972.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.3K AED 67.1K

$1,481 SYP 180.0K

1132.93%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$67.0 AED 246

$26.24 SYP 3,189

155.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.9 AED 213

$19.73 SYP 2,397

193.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 AED 375

$40.64 SYP 4,939

151.21%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.7 AED 363

$40.09 SYP 4,872

146.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,393 AED 8,788

$90.3 SYP 11.0K

2551.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,533 AED 5,630

$50.5 SYP 6,134

2937.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,594 AED 16.9K

$251 SYP 30.5K

1731.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,939 AED 10.8K

$124 SYP 15.1K

2266.48%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,046 AED 25.9K

$700 SYP 85.0K

907.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,222 AED 15.5K

$246 SYP 29.9K

1614.28%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,461 AED 12.7K

$57.9 SYP 7,037

5875.95%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.54

14.25

-68.14%

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

Last update for Dubai: October 10, 2026

Last update for Latakia: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dubai

$1.5K 52.9%

Latakia

$50 10.6% 96.7% $1.5K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dubai

$394 13.6%

Latakia

$110 23% 72.1% $285

Eating Out

Dubai

$305 10.5%

Latakia

$88 18.5% 71.1% $217

Groceries & Markets

Dubai

$292 10.1%

Latakia

$151 31.7% 48.1% $140

Clothing & Footwear

Dubai

$147 5.1%

Latakia

$57 11.9% 61.1% $90

Sport & Entertainment

Dubai

$136 4.7%

Latakia

$16 3.4% 88% $120

Getting Around

Dubai

$89 3.1%

Latakia

$4.2 * 0.9% 95.3% $85

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 $90.3 in Latakia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dubai pays 5876% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $82.0 in Dubai vs $30.00 in Latakia for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $292 vs $151 per month, with Latakia cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇪 Dubai

🇸🇾 Latakia

🕒 Local time

03:18 3:18 AM

02:18 2:18 AM

1 h behind Dubai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,790,000

383,786

💱 Currency

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

Syrian Pound SYP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.242 EUR

1,000 SYP = 8.23 USD

1,000 SYP = 7.32 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SYP, USD, EUR to AED – UAE Dirham Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇪 UAE Dirham (د.إ)

UAE Dirham exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.13 AED (1 AED = 0.242 EUR).

Syrian Pound exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 122 SYP (1,000 SYP = 8.23 USD). 1 EUR = 137 SYP (1,000 SYP = 7.32 EUR).

USD to AED in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Dubai Latakia 2,190 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Dubai
Latakia

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 Latakia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Latakia is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and clothing. The 507% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 5876% higher in Dubai, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $2,393 in Dubai versus $90.3 in Latakia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 93% 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 $477 in Latakia – a 507% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $477 in Latakia versus $2,896 in Dubai, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Latakia but tight or insufficient in Dubai. The gap between the two cities makes Latakia the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Latakia 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 Latakia 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 Latakia gentler on the wallet – expenses run 507% less than in Dubai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.