Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Durres and Dubai

For one person, living is cheaper in Durres: $1,138 a month against $2,896 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $21,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

55

Cost of Living Index in Durres
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Durres Living Index
140

Cost of Living Index in Dubai
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Dubai Living Index

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Durres

🇦🇱 Albania

$1,138

/mo nomad

Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,896

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Durres 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 Durres and in Dubai actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,138 in Durres versus $2,896 in Dubai.

Durres $1,138
Dubai $2,896

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,733 in Durres versus $4,384 in Dubai.

Durres $1,733
Dubai $4,384

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,329 in Durres versus $5,872 in Dubai.

Durres $2,329
Dubai $5,872

Living in Durres costs roughly 61% less than in Dubai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Durres is 16% below, Dubai is 115% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.51 ALL 846

$12.67 AED 46.55

-17.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.27 ALL 3,001

$81.7 AED 300

-54.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.18 ALL 820

$9.34 AED 34.30

8.99%

Cappuccino

$1.98 ALL 160

$5.89 AED 21.62

-66.38%

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

$2.04 ALL 164

$1.69 AED 6.20

20.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.05 ALL 84.2

$0.78 AED 2.86

34.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.98 ALL 240

$13.66 AED 50.2

-78.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.23 ALL 340

$13.49 AED 49.54

-68.64%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.11 ALL 170

$1.84 AED 6.78

14.67%

White Bread (500g)

$1.07 ALL 86.2

$1.50 AED 5.50

-28.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.37 ALL 190

$2.57 AED 9.45

-7.78%

Eggs

$3.69 ALL 297

$3.32 AED 12.18

11.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.79 ALL 1,030

$12.60 AED 46.28

1.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.64 ALL 615

$9.66 AED 35.46

-20.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.57 ALL 1,173

$12.78 AED 46.93

14.01%

Apples (1kg)

$1.15 ALL 93.0

$2.60 AED 9.54

-55.77%

Banana (1kg)

$2.38 ALL 192

$1.90 AED 6.99

25.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.54 ALL 124

$1.91 AED 7.02

-19.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.31 ALL 106

$1.37 AED 5.02

-4.38%

Potato (1kg)

$0.92 ALL 74.0

$1.13 AED 4.14

-18.58%

Onion (1kg)

$0.94 ALL 76.1

$1.01 AED 3.71

-6.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 ALL 101

$1.44 AED 5.30

-13.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.70 ALL 56.7

$0.67 AED 2.48

4.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.24 ALL 341

$5.88 AED 21.59

-27.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.01 ALL 887

$16.15 AED 59.3

-31.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 ALL 121

$2.72 AED 10.00

-44.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 ALL 166

$3.08 AED 11.32

-33.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.48 ALL 38.53

$1.60 AED 5.87

-70.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.19 ALL 1,545

$76.0 AED 279

-74.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.57 ALL 287

$3.24 AED 11.91

10.19%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.47 ALL 199

$0.71 AED 2.61

247.89%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.96 AED 29.22

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.18 ALL 176

$0.98 AED 3.62

122.45%

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

$16.1K ALL 1.3M

$27.4K AED 100.6K

-41.32%

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

$22.0K AED 80.9K

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

$93.6 ALL 7,534

$249 AED 913

-62.35%

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

$16.62 ALL 1,338

$54.4 AED 200

-69.47%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.68 ALL 1,343

$91.5 AED 336

-81.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.50 ALL 3,262

$103 AED 380

-60.83%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$61.3 ALL 4,932

$42.32 AED 155

44.73%

Cinema Ticket

$7.48 ALL 602

$16.29 AED 59.8

-54.08%

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

$183 ALL 14.7K

$844 AED 3,098

-78.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,590 ALL 369.6K

$18.3K AED 67.1K

-74.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$39.06 ALL 3,146

$67.0 AED 246

-41.69%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.02 ALL 3,303

$57.9 AED 213

-29.20%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.4 ALL 7,195

$102 AED 375

-12.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$159 ALL 12.8K

$98.7 AED 363

61.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$444 ALL 35.8K

$2,393 AED 8,788

-81.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$336 ALL 27.0K

$1,533 AED 5,630

-78.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$690 ALL 55.6K

$4,594 AED 16.9K

-84.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$469 ALL 37.8K

$2,939 AED 10.8K

-84.03%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,774 ALL 142.9K

$7,046 AED 25.9K

-74.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,154 ALL 92.9K

$4,222 AED 15.5K

-72.67%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$940 ALL 75.7K

$3,461 AED 12.7K

-72.83%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.25

4.54

15.64%

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

Last update for Durres: October 12, 2026

Last update for Dubai: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Durres

$336 29.5%

Dubai

$1.5K 52.9% 357% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Durres

$261 22.9%

Dubai

$292 10.1% 11.8% $31

Eating Out

Durres

$174 15.3%

Dubai

$305 10.5% 75.3% $131

Clothing & Footwear

Durres

$148 13%

Dubai

$147 5.1% 0.9% $1.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Durres

$127 11.2%

Dubai

$394 13.6% 211% $268

Sport & Entertainment

Durres

$55 4.9%

Dubai

$136 4.7% 145% $81

Getting Around

Durres

$37 3.3%

Dubai

$89 3.1% 141% $52

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $444 in Durres and $2,393 in Dubai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dubai pays 268% 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: $37.00 in Durres vs $82.0 in Dubai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $261 vs $292 per month, with Durres cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇱 Durres

🇦🇪 Dubai

🕒 Local time

13:26 1:26 PM

15:26 3:26 PM

2 h ahead of Durres

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

175,110

3,790,000

💱 Currency

Albanian Lek ALL L

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

📈 Exchange rate

100 ALL = 1.24 USD

100 ALL = 1.1 EUR

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.242 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AED, USD, EUR to ALL – Albanian Lek Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇱 Albanian Lek (L)

Albanian Lek exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 80.53 ALL (100 ALL = 1.24 USD). 1 EUR = 90.53 ALL (100 ALL = 1.1 EUR).

UAE Dirham exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.13 AED (1 AED = 0.242 EUR).

USD to ALL in detail →

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Durres Dubai 3,750 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

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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

Durres vs Dubai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Durres is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. The 154% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 268% lower in Dubai. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $444 in Durres versus $2,393 in Dubai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Durres runs roughly 296% less than in Dubai. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $183 in Durres versus $844 in Dubai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,138 in Durres versus $2,896 in Dubai, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Durres but tight or insufficient in Dubai. The gap between the two cities makes Durres the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Durres 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, Durres 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 Durres gentler on the wallet – expenses run 154% less than in Dubai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.