Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dukhan and Dubai

For one person, living is cheaper in Dukhan: $1,683 a month against $2,896 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $14,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

81

Cost of Living Index in Dukhan
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Dukhan Living Index
140

Cost of Living Index in Dubai
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Dubai Living Index

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Dukhan

🇶🇦 Qatar

$1,683

/mo nomad

Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,896

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dukhan and in Dubai

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Dukhan and in Dubai actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,683 in Dukhan versus $2,896 in Dubai.

Dukhan $1,683
Dubai $2,896

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,331 in Dukhan versus $4,384 in Dubai.

Dukhan $2,331
Dubai $4,384

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,979 in Dukhan versus $5,872 in Dubai.

Dukhan $2,979
Dubai $5,872

Living in Dukhan costs roughly 42% less than in Dubai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Dukhan 25% above, Dubai 115% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.55 QAR 34.75

$12.67 AED 46.55

-24.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$69.7 QAR 254

$81.7 AED 300

-14.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.09 QAR 29.43

$9.34 AED 34.30

-13.38%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$12.07 QAR 43.94

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$13.42 QAR 48.86

Cappuccino

$5.93 QAR 21.57

$5.89 AED 21.62

0.68%

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

$0.92 QAR 3.34

$1.69 AED 6.20

-45.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.40 QAR 1.47

$0.78 AED 2.86

-48.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$13.66 AED 50.2

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$13.49 AED 49.54

Milk (1 liter)

$2.16 QAR 7.87

$1.84 AED 6.78

17.39%

White Bread (500g)

$1.42 QAR 5.17

$1.50 AED 5.50

-5.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 QAR 7.04

$2.57 AED 9.45

-24.51%

Eggs

$3.38 QAR 12.32

$3.32 AED 12.18

1.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.21 QAR 40.79

$12.60 AED 46.28

-11.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.96 QAR 28.96

$9.66 AED 35.46

-17.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.35 QAR 41.30

$12.78 AED 46.93

-11.19%

Apples (1kg)

$2.26 QAR 8.23

$2.60 AED 9.54

-13.08%

Banana (1kg)

$1.87 QAR 6.80

$1.90 AED 6.99

-1.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.56 QAR 5.68

$1.91 AED 7.02

-18.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.20 QAR 4.37

$1.37 AED 5.02

-12.41%

Potato (1kg)

$0.92 QAR 3.34

$1.13 AED 4.14

-18.58%

Onion (1kg)

$0.94 QAR 3.44

$1.01 AED 3.71

-6.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 QAR 5.28

$1.44 AED 5.30

0.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 QAR 1.89

$0.67 AED 2.48

-22.39%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$9.45 QAR 34.40

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.92 QAR 6.99

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.22 QAR 8.08

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.51 QAR 23.68

$5.88 AED 21.59

10.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.15 AED 59.3

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.72 AED 10.00

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.08 AED 11.32

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.60 AED 5.87

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.0 AED 279

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.88 QAR 6.83

$3.24 AED 11.91

-41.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.00 QAR 7.29

$0.71 AED 2.61

181.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.63 QAR 49.63

$7.96 AED 29.22

71.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.56 QAR 2.02

$0.98 AED 3.62

-42.86%

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

$28.3K QAR 103.0K

$27.4K AED 100.6K

3.30%

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

$22.8K QAR 83.2K

$22.0K AED 80.9K

3.70%

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

$87.0 QAR 317

$249 AED 913

-64.99%

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

$34.31 QAR 125

$54.4 AED 200

-36.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$85.3 QAR 310

$91.5 AED 336

-6.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$103 AED 380

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$42.32 AED 155

Cinema Ticket

$12.59 QAR 45.84

$16.29 AED 59.8

-22.71%

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

$658 QAR 2,395

$844 AED 3,098

-22.01%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,629 QAR 35.1K

$18.3K AED 67.1K

-47.27%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.1 QAR 222

$67.0 AED 246

-8.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 QAR 193

$57.9 AED 213

-8.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 QAR 368

$102 AED 375

-0.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.6 QAR 311

$98.7 AED 363

-13.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,346 QAR 4,900

$2,393 AED 8,788

-43.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$911 QAR 3,317

$1,533 AED 5,630

-40.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 QAR 6,095

$4,594 AED 16.9K

-63.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,124 QAR 4,092

$2,939 AED 10.8K

-61.76%

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)

$4,094 QAR 14.9K

$3,461 AED 12.7K

18.31%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.92

4.54

30.40%

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

Last update for Dukhan: October 11, 2026

Last update for Dubai: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dukhan

$911 54.1%

Dubai

$1.5K 52.9% 68.2% $622

Groceries & Markets

Dukhan

$216 12.8%

Dubai

$292 10.1% 35% $76

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dukhan

$207 12.3%

Dubai

$394 13.6% 90.9% $188

Eating Out

Dukhan

$177 10.5%

Dubai

$305 10.5% 72.4% $128

Clothing & Footwear

Dukhan

$135 8.1%

Dubai

$147 5.1% 8.2% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Dukhan

$25 * 1.5%

Dubai

$136 4.7% 440% $111

Getting Around

Dukhan

$12 * 0.7%

Dubai

$89 3.1% 650% $77

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 $1,346 in Dukhan and $2,393 in Dubai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dukhan pays 18% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $70.0 in Dukhan vs $82.0 in Dubai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $216 vs $292 per month, with Dukhan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇶🇦 Dukhan

🇦🇪 Dubai

🕒 Local time

02:39 2:39 AM

03:39 3:39 AM

1 h ahead of Dukhan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

12,000

3,790,000

💱 Currency

Qatari Riyal QAR ر.ق

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

📈 Exchange rate

1 QAR = 0.275 USD

1 QAR = 0.244 EUR

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.242 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AED, USD, EUR to QAR – Qatari Riyal Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇶🇦 Qatari Riyal (ر.ق)

Qatari Riyal exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 3.64 QAR (1 QAR = 0.275 USD). 1 EUR = 4.09 QAR (1 QAR = 0.244 EUR).

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).

USD to QAR in detail →

On the map

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Dukhan Dubai 440 km

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Dukhan
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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

Dukhan vs Dubai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dukhan is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 72% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 18% higher in Dukhan, 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: $1,346 in Dukhan versus $2,393 in Dubai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 35% higher in Dubai. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,683 per month in Dukhan versus $2,896 in Dubai – a 72% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,683 in Dukhan versus $2,896 in Dubai, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Dukhan but tight or insufficient in Dubai. The gap between the two cities makes Dukhan the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Dukhan 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, Dukhan and Dubai 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 Dukhan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 72% less than in Dubai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.