Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dubai and Qena

For one person, living is cheaper in Qena: $468 a month against $2,896 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $29,100 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
22

Cost of Living Index in Qena
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Qena Living Index

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Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,896

/mo nomad

Qena

🇪🇬 Egypt

$468

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dubai and in Qena

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,896 in Dubai versus $468 in Qena.

Dubai $2,896
Qena $468

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,384 in Dubai versus $746 in Qena.

Dubai $4,384
Qena $746

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,872 in Dubai versus $1,023 in Qena.

Dubai $5,872
Qena $1,023

Living in Dubai is roughly 519% more expensive than in Qena, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.67 AED 46.55

$3.84 E£205

229.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$81.7 AED 300

$14.99 E£801

445.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.34 AED 34.30

$5.78 E£309

61.59%

Cappuccino

$5.89 AED 21.62

$2.00 E£107

194.50%

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

$1.69 AED 6.20

$0.50 E£26.78

238.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 AED 2.86

$0.18 E£9.56

333.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$13.66 AED 50.2

$1.92 E£103

611.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$13.49 AED 49.54

$3.04 E£162

343.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 AED 6.78

$0.97 E£51.7

89.69%

White Bread (500g)

$1.50 AED 5.50

$0.76 E£40.69

97.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.57 AED 9.45

$0.66 E£35.14

289.39%

Eggs

$3.32 AED 12.18

$1.93 E£103

72.02%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.60 AED 46.28

$3.15 E£169

300.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.66 AED 35.46

$5.61 E£300

72.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.78 AED 46.93

$9.89 E£528

29.22%

Apples (1kg)

$2.60 AED 9.54

$1.48 E£79.2

75.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 AED 6.99

$0.52 E£27.67

265.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.91 AED 7.02

$0.41 E£21.67

365.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.37 AED 5.02

$0.41 E£21.99

234.15%

Potato (1kg)

$1.13 AED 4.14

$0.34 E£18.28

232.35%

Onion (1kg)

$1.01 AED 3.71

$0.39 E£20.87

158.97%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 AED 5.30

$0.27 E£14.25

433.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 AED 2.48

$0.18 E£9.69

272.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.88 AED 21.59

$2.14 E£114

174.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.15 AED 59.3

$7.22 E£386

123.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.72 AED 10.00

$1.26 E£67.1

115.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.08 AED 11.32

$1.71 E£91.6

80.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.60 AED 5.87

$0.17 E£9.02

841.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.0 AED 279

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.24 AED 11.91

$0.37 E£20.03

775.68%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 AED 2.61

$0.21 E£11.18

238.10%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.96 AED 29.22

$1.26 E£67.1

531.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.98 AED 3.62

$0.43 E£22.75

127.91%

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

$27.4K AED 100.6K

$31.9K E£1.7M

-14.11%

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

$22.0K AED 80.9K

$21.8K E£1.2M

1.28%

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

$249 AED 913

$25.42 E£1,359

877.58%

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

$54.4 AED 200

$7.95 E£425

584.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$91.5 AED 336

$9.28 E£496

885.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$103 AED 380

$15.61 E£834

562.40%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$42.32 AED 155

Cinema Ticket

$16.29 AED 59.8

$3.39 E£181

380.53%

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

$844 AED 3,098

$101 E£5,375

738.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.3K AED 67.1K

$598 E£32.0K

2954.06%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$67.0 AED 246

$19.95 E£1,066

235.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.9 AED 213

$33.52 E£1,791

72.85%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 AED 375

$123 E£6,579

-17.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.7 AED 363

$28.92 E£1,545

241.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,393 AED 8,788

$133 E£7,086

1704.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,533 AED 5,630

$79.8 E£4,265

1820.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,594 AED 16.9K

$280 E£14.9K

1542.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,939 AED 10.8K

$145 E£7,723

1934.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,046 AED 25.9K

$709 E£37.9K

894.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,222 AED 15.5K

$300 E£16.0K

1306.54%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,461 AED 12.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.54

16.21

-71.99%

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

Last update for Dubai: October 10, 2026

Last update for Qena: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dubai

$1.5K 52.9%

Qena

$80 17.1% 94.8% $1.5K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dubai

$394 13.6%

Qena

$43 9.1% 89.2% $352

Eating Out

Dubai

$305 10.5%

Qena

$90 19.3% 70.4% $215

Groceries & Markets

Dubai

$292 10.1%

Qena

$138 29.5% 52.6% $153

Clothing & Footwear

Dubai

$147 5.1%

Qena

$92 19.8% 36.9% $54

Sport & Entertainment

Dubai

$136 4.7%

Qena

$22 4.8% 83.5% $114

Getting Around

Dubai

$89 3.1%

Qena

$2.1 * 0.5% 97.6% $87

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 $133 in Qena. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $82.0 in Dubai vs $15.00 in Qena for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $292 vs $138 per month, with Qena cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇪 Dubai

🇪🇬 Qena

🕒 Local time

23:57 11:57 PM

22:57 10:57 PM

1 h behind Dubai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,790,000

235,362

💱 Currency

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.243 EUR

100 EGP = 1.87 USD

100 EGP = 1.67 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 15, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.11 AED (1 AED = 0.243 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 53.44 EGP (100 EGP = 1.87 USD). 1 EUR = 59.84 EGP (100 EGP = 1.67 EUR).

USD to AED in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Dubai Qena 2,250 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Dubai
Qena

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 Qena: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Qena is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and clothing. The 519% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $4,344 in Dubai and $702 in Qena 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: $2,393 in Dubai versus $133 in Qena. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 111% 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 $468 in Qena – a 519% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $468 in Qena versus $2,896 in Dubai, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Qena but tight or insufficient in Dubai. The gap between the two cities makes Qena the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Qena 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 Qena 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 Qena gentler on the wallet – expenses run 519% less than in Dubai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.