Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dubai and Wadi Musa

For one person, living is cheaper in Wadi Musa: $1,014 a month against $2,896 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $22,600 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
49

Cost of Living Index in Wadi Musa
Learn more

Wadi Musa Living Index

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Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,896

/mo nomad

Wadi Musa

🇯🇴 Jordan

$1,014

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dubai and in Wadi Musa

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,896 in Dubai versus $1,014 in Wadi Musa.

Dubai $2,896
Wadi Musa $1,014

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,384 in Dubai versus $1,317 in Wadi Musa.

Dubai $4,384
Wadi Musa $1,317

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,872 in Dubai versus $1,620 in Wadi Musa.

Dubai $5,872
Wadi Musa $1,620

Living in Dubai is roughly 186% more expensive than in Wadi Musa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

The two cities straddle the global median: Dubai is 115% above, Wadi Musa is 25% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.67 AED 46.55

$7.21 JOD 5.10

75.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$81.7 AED 300

$35.01 JOD 24.79

133.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.34 AED 34.30

$7.01 JOD 4.96

33.24%

Cappuccino

$5.89 AED 21.62

$2.85 JOD 2.02

106.67%

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

$1.69 AED 6.20

$0.47 JOD 0.34

259.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 AED 2.86

$0.44 JOD 0.31

77.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$13.66 AED 50.2

$8.52 JOD 6.03

60.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$13.49 AED 49.54

$10.98 JOD 7.77

22.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 AED 6.78

$1.43 JOD 1.01

28.67%

White Bread (500g)

$1.50 AED 5.50

$0.67 JOD 0.47

123.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.57 AED 9.45

$1.38 JOD 0.98

86.23%

Eggs

$3.32 AED 12.18

$2.39 JOD 1.69

38.91%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.60 AED 46.28

$9.47 JOD 6.71

33.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.66 AED 35.46

$5.62 JOD 3.98

71.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.78 AED 46.93

$11.34 JOD 8.03

12.70%

Apples (1kg)

$2.60 AED 9.54

$1.43 JOD 1.01

81.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 AED 6.99

$1.43 JOD 1.01

32.87%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.91 AED 7.02

$1.43 JOD 1.01

33.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.37 AED 5.02

$0.70 JOD 0.50

95.71%

Potato (1kg)

$1.13 AED 4.14

$0.70 JOD 0.49

61.43%

Onion (1kg)

$1.01 AED 3.71

$0.69 JOD 0.49

46.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 AED 5.30

$0.60 JOD 0.43

140.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 AED 2.48

$0.41 JOD 0.29

63.41%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.88 AED 21.59

$3.60 JOD 2.55

63.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.15 AED 59.3

$21.55 JOD 15.26

-25.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.72 AED 10.00

$5.02 JOD 3.55

-45.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.08 AED 11.32

$5.03 JOD 3.56

-38.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.60 AED 5.87

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.0 AED 279

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.24 AED 11.91

$0.64 JOD 0.45

406.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 AED 2.61

$1.40 JOD 0.99

-49.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.96 AED 29.22

$7.02 JOD 4.97

13.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.98 AED 3.62

$1.11 JOD 0.79

-11.71%

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

$27.4K AED 100.6K

$34.9K JOD 24.7K

-21.63%

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

$22.0K AED 80.9K

$35.1K JOD 24.9K

-37.28%

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

$249 AED 913

$70.1 JOD 49.66

254.29%

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

$54.4 AED 200

$4.26 JOD 3.02

1177.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$91.5 AED 336

$14.25 JOD 10.09

541.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$103 AED 380

$35.70 JOD 25.27

189.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$42.32 AED 155

Cinema Ticket

$16.29 AED 59.8

$11.18 JOD 7.91

45.71%

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

$844 AED 3,098

$486 JOD 344

73.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.3K AED 67.1K

$9,551 JOD 6,762

91.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$67.0 AED 246

$64.5 JOD 45.63

3.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.9 AED 213

$81.4 JOD 57.7

-28.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 AED 375

$124 JOD 87.5

-17.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.7 AED 363

$85.6 JOD 60.6

15.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,393 AED 8,788

$353 JOD 250

578.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,533 AED 5,630

$278 JOD 197

450.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,594 AED 16.9K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,939 AED 10.8K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,046 AED 25.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,222 AED 15.5K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,461 AED 12.7K

$501 JOD 354

591.32%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.54

6.81

-33.33%

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

Last update for Dubai: October 10, 2026

Last update for Wadi Musa: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dubai

$1.5K 52.9%

Wadi Musa

$278 27.5% 81.8% $1.3K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dubai

$394 13.6%

Wadi Musa

$89 8.7% 77.5% $306

Eating Out

Dubai

$305 10.5%

Wadi Musa

$181 17.9% 40.7% $124

Groceries & Markets

Dubai

$292 10.1%

Wadi Musa

$241 23.7% 17.5% $51

Clothing & Footwear

Dubai

$147 5.1%

Wadi Musa

$160 15.8% 9% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Dubai

$136 4.7%

Wadi Musa

$58 5.7% 57.3% $78

Getting Around

Dubai

$89 3.1%

Wadi Musa

$7.6 * 0.8% 91.4% $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 $2,393 in Dubai and $353 in Wadi Musa. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dubai pays 591% 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 $35.00 in Wadi Musa for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $292 vs $241 per month, with Wadi Musa cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇪 Dubai

🇯🇴 Wadi Musa

🕒 Local time

03:21 3:21 AM

02:21 2:21 AM

1 h behind Dubai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,790,000

14,000

💱 Currency

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

Jordanian Dinar JOD د.ا

📈 Exchange rate

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.242 EUR

1 JOD = 1.41 USD

1 JOD = 1.26 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JOD, 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).

Jordanian Dinar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.708 JOD (1 JOD = 1.41 USD). 1 EUR = 0.796 JOD (1 JOD = 1.26 EUR).

USD to AED in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Dubai Wadi Musa 2,020 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Dubai
Wadi Musa

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 Wadi Musa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Wadi Musa is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and utilities. The 186% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 591% 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 $353 in Wadi Musa. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 21% 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 $1,014 in Wadi Musa – a 186% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,014 in Wadi Musa versus $2,896 in Dubai, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Wadi Musa but tight or insufficient in Dubai. The gap between the two cities makes Wadi Musa the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Wadi Musa 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 Wadi Musa 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 Wadi Musa gentler on the wallet – expenses run 186% less than in Dubai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.