Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dubai and Surabaya

For one person, living is cheaper in Surabaya: $688 a month against $2,854 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $26,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

139

Cost of Living Index in Dubai
Learn more

Dubai Living Index
33

Cost of Living Index in Surabaya
Learn more

Surabaya Living Index

Jump to prices

Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,854

/mo nomad

Surabaya

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$688

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dubai and in Surabaya

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,854 in Dubai versus $688 in Surabaya.

Dubai $2,854
Surabaya $688

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,321 in Dubai versus $1,191 in Surabaya.

Dubai $4,321
Surabaya $1,191

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,788 in Dubai versus $1,695 in Surabaya.

Dubai $5,788
Surabaya $1,695

Living in Dubai is roughly 315% more expensive than in Surabaya, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Dubai is 113% above, Surabaya is 49% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.04 AED 47.89

$1.69 Rp 30.2K

671.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$81.4 AED 299

$11.40 Rp 203.9K

613.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.32 AED 34.25

$3.05 Rp 54.6K

205.57%

Cappuccino

$5.97 AED 21.93

$1.57 Rp 28.0K

280.25%

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

$1.63 AED 5.98

$0.61 Rp 10.8K

167.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.81 AED 2.99

$0.28 Rp 5,026

189.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$13.65 AED 50.1

$2.26 Rp 40.5K

503.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$13.38 AED 49.15

$4.09 Rp 73.1K

227.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.81 AED 6.64

$1.22 Rp 21.8K

48.36%

White Bread (500g)

$1.57 AED 5.78

$1.27 Rp 22.8K

23.62%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 AED 9.16

$0.84 Rp 15.0K

196.43%

Eggs

$3.28 AED 12.04

$1.20 Rp 21.5K

173.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.67 AED 46.53

$7.66 Rp 136.9K

65.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.75 AED 35.80

$3.08 Rp 55.0K

216.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.18 AED 48.40

$7.85 Rp 140.3K

67.90%

Apples (1kg)

$2.61 AED 9.57

$2.09 Rp 37.4K

24.88%

Banana (1kg)

$1.93 AED 7.09

$1.30 Rp 23.2K

48.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.92 AED 7.05

$1.82 Rp 32.6K

5.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.36 AED 5.00

$1.56 Rp 27.8K

-12.82%

Potato (1kg)

$1.17 AED 4.29

$1.30 Rp 23.3K

-10.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.01 AED 3.71

$1.91 Rp 34.2K

-47.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.51 AED 5.56

$0.96 Rp 17.2K

57.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.62 AED 2.29

$0.43 Rp 7,679

44.19%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.85 AED 21.50

$1.94 Rp 34.6K

201.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.14 AED 59.3

$24.67 Rp 441.1K

-34.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.65 AED 9.74

$1.73 Rp 30.9K

53.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.95 AED 10.82

$3.00 Rp 53.5K

-1.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.64 AED 6.03

$0.32 Rp 5,669

412.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.6 AED 270

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.17 AED 11.66

$0.48 Rp 8,519

560.42%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 AED 2.63

$0.43 Rp 7,679

65.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.96 AED 29.23

$2.61 Rp 46.7K

204.98%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.99 AED 3.64

$0.83 Rp 14.8K

19.28%

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

$27.4K AED 100.5K

$25.0K Rp 446.0M

9.70%

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

$22.5K AED 82.8K

$32.8K Rp 585.5M

-31.19%

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

$250 AED 920

$86.2 Rp 1.5M

190.62%

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

$54.2 AED 199

$4.58 Rp 81.9K

1084.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$91.8 AED 337

$19.24 Rp 343.9K

377.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$98.6 AED 362

$17.96 Rp 321.0K

449.16%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$42.61 AED 156

$6.82 Rp 121.9K

524.78%

Cinema Ticket

$16.03 AED 58.9

$2.72 Rp 48.7K

489.34%

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

$843 AED 3,098

$280 Rp 5.0M

201.25%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.3K AED 67.1K

$9,557 Rp 170.8M

91.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.0 AED 250

$70.0 Rp 1.3M

-2.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.9 AED 213

$39.31 Rp 702.6K

47.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 AED 370

$81.4 Rp 1.5M

23.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 AED 371

$73.4 Rp 1.3M

37.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,380 AED 8,741

$279 Rp 5.0M

753.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,506 AED 5,531

$147 Rp 2.6M

925.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,437 AED 16.3K

$1,247 Rp 22.3M

255.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,010 AED 11.1K

$620 Rp 11.1M

385.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,121 AED 26.2K

$2,155 Rp 38.5M

230.37%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,135 AED 15.2K

$1,047 Rp 18.7M

294.96%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,391 AED 12.5K

$273 Rp 4.9M

1141.36%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.54

7.5

-39.47%

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

Last update for Dubai: October 5, 2026

Last update for Surabaya: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dubai

$1.5K 52.5%

Surabaya

$147 21.7% 90.3% $1.4K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dubai

$396 13.8%

Surabaya

$110 16.3% 72.3% $286

Eating Out

Dubai

$309 10.8%

Surabaya

$65 9.5% 79.1% $244

Groceries & Markets

Dubai

$293 10.2%

Surabaya

$209 30.9% 28.6% $84

Clothing & Footwear

Dubai

$147 5.1%

Surabaya

$119 17.6% 19.3% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Dubai

$131 4.6%

Surabaya

$23 3.5% 82.1% $107

Getting Around

Dubai

$87 3%

Surabaya

$3.9 * 0.6% 95.5% $83

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 $279 in Surabaya. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dubai pays 1141% 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 $11.00 in Surabaya for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $293 vs $209 per month, with Surabaya cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇪 Dubai

🇮🇩 Surabaya

🕒 Local time

11:19 11:19 AM

14:19 2:19 PM

3 h ahead of Dubai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,790,000

2,765,487

💱 Currency

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.243 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.99 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, 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).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 17,875 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD). 1 EUR = 20,048 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.99 EUR).

USD to AED in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Dubai Surabaya 7,190 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Dubai
Surabaya

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 Surabaya: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Surabaya is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and clothing. The 315% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 1141% 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 $279 in Surabaya. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 40% 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 $688 in Surabaya – a 315% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $688 in Surabaya versus $2,854 in Dubai, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Surabaya but tight or insufficient in Dubai. The gap between the two cities makes Surabaya the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Surabaya 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 Surabaya 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 Surabaya gentler on the wallet – expenses run 315% less than in Dubai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.