Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dubai and Nis

For one person, living is cheaper in Nis: $1,033 a month against $2,854 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $21,900 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
50

Cost of Living Index in Nis
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Nis Living Index

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Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,854

/mo nomad

Nis

🇷🇸 Serbia

$1,033

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dubai and in Nis

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,854 in Dubai versus $1,033 in Nis.

Dubai $2,854
Nis $1,033

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,321 in Dubai versus $1,512 in Nis.

Dubai $4,321
Nis $1,512

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,788 in Dubai versus $1,991 in Nis.

Dubai $5,788
Nis $1,991

Living in Dubai is roughly 176% more expensive than in Nis, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Dubai is 113% above, Nis is 23% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.04 AED 47.89

$8.78 RSD 917

48.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$81.4 AED 299

$33.92 RSD 3,541

139.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.32 AED 34.25

$9.57 RSD 999

-2.61%

Cappuccino

$5.97 AED 21.93

$1.97 RSD 206

203.05%

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

$1.63 AED 5.98

$2.31 RSD 242

-29.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.81 AED 2.99

$1.74 RSD 182

-53.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$13.65 AED 50.1

$3.61 RSD 377

278.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$13.38 AED 49.15

$4.49 RSD 469

198.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.81 AED 6.64

$1.14 RSD 120

58.77%

White Bread (500g)

$1.57 AED 5.78

$0.70 RSD 73.2

124.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 AED 9.16

$1.76 RSD 184

41.48%

Eggs

$3.28 AED 12.04

$2.35 RSD 246

39.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.67 AED 46.52

$7.65 RSD 799

65.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.75 AED 35.80

$5.72 RSD 597

70.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.18 AED 48.39

$10.59 RSD 1,105

24.46%

Apples (1kg)

$2.61 AED 9.57

$1.11 RSD 116

135.14%

Banana (1kg)

$1.93 AED 7.09

$1.68 RSD 175

14.88%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.92 AED 7.05

$1.50 RSD 157

28.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.36 AED 5.00

$2.17 RSD 226

-37.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.17 AED 4.29

$0.78 RSD 81.8

50.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.01 AED 3.71

$0.72 RSD 74.7

40.28%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.51 AED 5.56

$0.64 RSD 66.6

135.94%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.62 AED 2.29

$0.58 RSD 60.6

6.90%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.85 AED 21.50

$4.42 RSD 461

32.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.14 AED 59.3

$5.78 RSD 604

179.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.65 AED 9.74

$0.72 RSD 75.3

268.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.95 AED 10.82

$1.29 RSD 135

128.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.64 AED 6.03

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.6 AED 270

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.17 AED 11.66

$1.84 RSD 192

72.28%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 AED 2.63

$0.66 RSD 68.8

7.58%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.96 AED 29.23

$8.29 RSD 866

-3.98%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.99 AED 3.64

$1.89 RSD 198

-47.62%

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

$27.4K AED 100.5K

$30.7K RSD 3.2M

-10.98%

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

$22.5K AED 82.8K

$24.0K RSD 2.5M

-6.00%

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

$250 AED 920

$160 RSD 16.8K

56.04%

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

$54.2 AED 199

$19.03 RSD 1,987

185.02%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$91.8 AED 337

$22.20 RSD 2,318

313.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$98.6 AED 362

$30.54 RSD 3,188

222.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$42.61 AED 156

$15.65 RSD 1,634

172.27%

Cinema Ticket

$16.03 AED 58.9

$4.68 RSD 489

242.52%

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

$843 AED 3,098

$252 RSD 26.4K

234.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.3K AED 67.1K

$4,989 RSD 520.9K

265.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.0 AED 250

$88.4 RSD 9,234

-23.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.9 AED 212

$37.42 RSD 3,906

54.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 AED 370

$99.3 RSD 10.4K

1.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 AED 371

$112 RSD 11.7K

-9.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,380 AED 8,741

$398 RSD 41.5K

498.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,506 AED 5,531

$277 RSD 28.9K

443.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,437 AED 16.3K

$591 RSD 61.7K

650.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,010 AED 11.1K

$397 RSD 41.5K

657.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,121 AED 26.2K

$2,531 RSD 264.2K

181.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,135 AED 15.2K

$1,884 RSD 196.7K

119.48%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,391 AED 12.5K

$901 RSD 94.0K

276.40%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.54

5.12

-11.33%

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

Last update for Dubai: October 5, 2026

Last update for Nis: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dubai

$1.5K 52.5%

Nis

$277 27.1% 81.6% $1.2K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dubai

$396 13.8%

Nis

$202 19.7% 49.1% $195

Eating Out

Dubai

$309 10.8%

Nis

$166 16.2% 46.2% $143

Groceries & Markets

Dubai

$293 10.2%

Nis

$182 17.8% 37.9% $111

Clothing & Footwear

Dubai

$147 5.1%

Nis

$152 14.8% 2.9% $4.2

Sport & Entertainment

Dubai

$131 4.6%

Nis

$40 3.9% 69.5% $91

Getting Around

Dubai

$87 3%

Nis

$5.1 * 0.5% 94.1% $82

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 $398 in Nis. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dubai pays 276% 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: $81.0 in Dubai vs $34.00 in Nis for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $293 vs $182 per month, with Nis cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇪 Dubai

🇷🇸 Nis

🕒 Local time

09:45 9:45 AM

07:45 7:45 AM

2 h behind Dubai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,790,000

78,470

💱 Currency

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

Serbian Dinar RSD din

📈 Exchange rate

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.243 EUR

1,000 RSD = 9.58 USD

1,000 RSD = 8.54 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RSD, 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).

Serbian Dinar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 104 RSD (1,000 RSD = 9.58 USD). 1 EUR = 117 RSD (1,000 RSD = 8.54 EUR).

USD to AED in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Dubai Nis 3,630 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

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Dubai
Nis

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 Nis: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nis is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and utilities. The 176% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 276% 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: $2,380 in Dubai versus $398 in Nis. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 61% 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 $1,033 in Nis – a 176% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,033 in Nis versus $2,854 in Dubai, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Nis but tight or insufficient in Dubai. The gap between the two cities makes Nis the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Nis 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 Nis 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 Nis gentler on the wallet – expenses run 176% less than in Dubai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.