Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dubai and Longyearbyen

For one person, living is cheaper in Longyearbyen: $2,733 a month against $2,896 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $2,000 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Dubai outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

140

Cost of Living Index in Dubai
Learn more

Dubai Living Index
134

Cost of Living Index in Longyearbyen
Learn more

Longyearbyen Living Index

Jump to prices

Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,896

/mo nomad

Longyearbyen

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,733

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dubai and in Longyearbyen

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,896 in Dubai versus $2,733 in Longyearbyen.

Dubai $2,896
Longyearbyen $2,733

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,384 in Dubai versus $4,180 in Longyearbyen.

Dubai $4,384
Longyearbyen $4,180

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,872 in Dubai versus $5,627 in Longyearbyen.

Dubai $5,872
Longyearbyen $5,627

Living in Dubai is roughly 6% more expensive than in Longyearbyen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Dubai 115% above, Longyearbyen 102% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.67 AED 46.55

$20.05 NOK 189

-36.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$81.7 AED 300

$106 NOK 996

-22.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.34 AED 34.30

$18.00 NOK 169

-48.11%

Cappuccino

$5.89 AED 21.62

$6.85 NOK 64.5

-14.01%

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

$1.69 AED 6.20

$6.11 NOK 57.5

-72.34%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 AED 2.86

$5.58 NOK 52.5

-86.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$13.66 AED 50.2

$7.43 NOK 70.0

83.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$13.49 AED 49.54

$8.96 NOK 84.3

50.56%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 AED 6.78

$2.40 NOK 22.57

-23.33%

White Bread (500g)

$1.50 AED 5.50

$3.71 NOK 34.95

-59.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.57 AED 9.45

$4.33 NOK 40.78

-40.65%

Eggs

$3.32 AED 12.18

$4.97 NOK 46.82

-33.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.60 AED 46.28

$14.26 NOK 134

-11.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.66 AED 35.46

$20.30 NOK 191

-52.41%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.78 AED 46.93

$31.52 NOK 297

-59.45%

Apples (1kg)

$2.60 AED 9.54

$6.42 NOK 60.5

-59.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 AED 6.99

$2.55 NOK 24.03

-25.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.91 AED 7.02

$6.85 NOK 64.5

-72.12%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.37 AED 5.02

$6.66 NOK 62.7

-79.43%

Potato (1kg)

$1.13 AED 4.14

$5.49 NOK 51.7

-79.42%

Onion (1kg)

$1.01 AED 3.71

$4.53 NOK 42.66

-77.70%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 AED 5.30

$4.51 NOK 42.50

-68.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 AED 2.48

$3.53 NOK 33.23

-81.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.88 AED 21.59

$17.34 NOK 163

-66.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.15 AED 59.3

$14.45 NOK 136

11.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.72 AED 10.00

$3.54 NOK 33.31

-23.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.08 AED 11.32

$4.24 NOK 39.93

-27.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.60 AED 5.87

$5.27 NOK 49.65

-69.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.0 AED 279

$86.2 NOK 811

-11.88%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.24 AED 11.91

$9.06 NOK 85.3

-64.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 AED 2.61

$1.80 NOK 16.93

-60.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.96 AED 29.22

$73.7 NOK 694

-89.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.98 AED 3.62

$2.13 NOK 20.05

-53.99%

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

$27.4K AED 100.6K

$50.3K NOK 473.1K

-45.51%

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

$22.0K AED 80.9K

$41.3K NOK 388.9K

-46.68%

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

$249 AED 913

$242 NOK 2,274

2.88%

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

$54.4 AED 200

$32.99 NOK 311

64.99%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$91.5 AED 336

$54.1 NOK 509

69.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$103 AED 380

$50.5 NOK 475

104.83%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$42.32 AED 155

$36.19 NOK 341

16.94%

Cinema Ticket

$16.29 AED 59.8

$14.85 NOK 140

9.70%

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

$844 AED 3,098

$200 NOK 1,887

320.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.3K AED 67.1K

$14.2K NOK 133.8K

28.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$67.0 AED 246

$104 NOK 981

-35.69%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.9 AED 213

$56.3 NOK 530

3.00%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 AED 375

$125 NOK 1,179

-18.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.7 AED 363

$154 NOK 1,447

-35.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,393 AED 8,788

$1,104 NOK 10.4K

116.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,533 AED 5,630

$1,017 NOK 9,569

50.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,594 AED 16.9K

$1,983 NOK 18.7K

131.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,939 AED 10.8K

$1,698 NOK 16.0K

73.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,046 AED 25.9K

$6,197 NOK 58.3K

13.69%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,222 AED 15.5K

$4,017 NOK 37.8K

5.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,461 AED 12.7K

$2,931 NOK 27.6K

18.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.54

4.94

-8.10%

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

Last update for Dubai: October 10, 2026

Last update for Longyearbyen: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dubai

$1.5K 52.9%

Longyearbyen

$1K 37.2% 33.7% $516

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dubai

$394 13.6%

Longyearbyen

$329 12% 16.7% $66

Eating Out

Dubai

$305 10.5%

Longyearbyen

$398 14.6% 30.6% $93

Groceries & Markets

Dubai

$292 10.1%

Longyearbyen

$586 21.5% 101% $295

Clothing & Footwear

Dubai

$147 5.1%

Longyearbyen

$198 7.2% 34.9% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Dubai

$136 4.7%

Longyearbyen

$80 2.9% 41% $56

Getting Around

Dubai

$89 3.1%

Longyearbyen

$125 4.6% 40.6% $36

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,393 in Dubai and $1,104 in Longyearbyen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dubai pays 18% 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 $106 in Longyearbyen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $292 vs $586 per month, with Dubai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇪 Dubai

🇳🇴 Longyearbyen

🕒 Local time

22:56 10:56 PM

20:56 8:56 PM

2 h behind Dubai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,790,000

2,400

💱 Currency

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.242 EUR

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NOK, 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).

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

USD to AED in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Dubai Longyearbyen 6,240 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Dubai
Longyearbyen

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 Longyearbyen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Longyearbyen is cheaper overall, especially in utilities and leisure. The 6% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 18% 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 $1,104 in Longyearbyen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Longyearbyen runs roughly 13% less than in Dubai. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $844 in Dubai versus $200 in Longyearbyen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,500. Longyearbyen is the more realistic option, but even there you'll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

For families, Longyearbyen 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 Longyearbyen 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 Longyearbyen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 6% less than in Dubai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.