Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between El Gouna and Dubai

For one person, living is cheaper in El Gouna: $457 a month against $2,854 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $28,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

22

Cost of Living Index in El Gouna
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El Gouna Living Index
139

Cost of Living Index in Dubai
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Dubai Living Index

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El Gouna

🇪🇬 Egypt

$457

/mo nomad

Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,854

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $457 in El Gouna versus $2,854 in Dubai.

El Gouna $457
Dubai $2,854

Estimated couple costs with rent: $730 in El Gouna versus $4,321 in Dubai.

El Gouna $730
Dubai $4,321

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,002 in El Gouna versus $5,788 in Dubai.

El Gouna $1,002
Dubai $5,788

Living in El Gouna costs roughly 84% less than in Dubai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: El Gouna is 66% below, Dubai is 113% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.59 E£189

$13.04 AED 47.89

-72.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$15.95 E£839

$81.4 AED 299

-80.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.64 E£244

$9.32 AED 34.25

-50.21%

Cappuccino

$1.49 E£78.4

$5.97 AED 21.93

-75.04%

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

$0.29 E£15.07

$1.63 AED 5.98

-82.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.10 E£5.25

$0.81 AED 2.99

-87.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.21 E£63.6

$13.65 AED 50.1

-91.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.91 E£153

$13.38 AED 49.15

-78.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.87 E£45.61

$1.81 AED 6.64

-51.93%

White Bread (500g)

$0.59 E£30.86

$1.57 AED 5.78

-62.42%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.71 E£37.11

$2.49 AED 9.16

-71.49%

Eggs

$1.39 E£72.9

$3.28 AED 12.04

-57.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.37 E£177

$12.67 AED 46.52

-73.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.23 E£222

$9.75 AED 35.80

-56.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.53 E£448

$13.18 AED 48.39

-35.28%

Apples (1kg)

$1.47 E£77.2

$2.61 AED 9.57

-43.68%

Banana (1kg)

$0.57 E£30.14

$1.93 AED 7.09

-70.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.43 E£22.47

$1.92 AED 7.05

-77.60%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.40 E£20.93

$1.36 AED 5.00

-70.59%

Potato (1kg)

$0.37 E£19.56

$1.17 AED 4.29

-68.38%

Onion (1kg)

$0.41 E£21.43

$1.01 AED 3.71

-59.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.24 E£12.66

$1.51 AED 5.56

-84.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.21 E£11.23

$0.62 AED 2.29

-66.13%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.96 E£103

$5.85 AED 21.50

-66.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.48 E£341

$16.14 AED 59.3

-59.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 E£66.1

$2.65 AED 9.74

-52.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.88 E£98.6

$2.95 AED 10.82

-36.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.17 E£8.98

$1.64 AED 6.03

-89.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.6 AED 270

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.39 E£20.46

$3.17 AED 11.66

-87.70%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.29 E£15.24

$0.71 AED 2.63

-59.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.00 E£105

$7.96 AED 29.22

-74.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.33 E£17.57

$0.99 AED 3.64

-66.67%

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

$35.9K E£1.9M

$27.4K AED 100.5K

31.00%

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

$32.7K E£1.7M

$22.5K AED 82.8K

44.86%

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

$11.82 E£622

$250 AED 920

-95.28%

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

$6.88 E£362

$54.2 AED 199

-87.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.01 E£579

$91.8 AED 337

-88.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$20.42 E£1,074

$98.6 AED 362

-79.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$42.61 AED 156

Cinema Ticket

$2.98 E£157

$16.03 AED 58.9

-81.41%

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

$89.3 E£4,695

$843 AED 3,098

-89.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,820 E£95.7K

$18.3K AED 67.1K

-90.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$27.68 E£1,456

$68.0 AED 250

-59.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.99 E£2,367

$57.9 AED 212

-22.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 E£5,707

$101 AED 370

7.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$49.98 E£2,629

$101 AED 371

-50.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$190 E£9,998

$2,380 AED 8,741

-92.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$100 E£5,286

$1,506 AED 5,530

-93.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$271 E£14.3K

$4,437 AED 16.3K

-93.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$153 E£8,056

$3,010 AED 11.1K

-94.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$795 E£41.8K

$7,121 AED 26.2K

-88.83%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$488 E£25.6K

$4,135 AED 15.2K

-88.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,391 AED 12.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

16.67

4.54

267.18%

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

Last update for El Gouna: October 4, 2026

Last update for Dubai: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

El Gouna

$123 26.7%

Dubai

$293 10.2% 139% $170

Clothing & Footwear

El Gouna

$104 22.6%

Dubai

$147 5.1% 41.7% $43

Accommodation & Living

El Gouna

$100 21.9%

Dubai

$1.5K 52.5% 1399% $1.4K

Eating Out

El Gouna

$74 16.1%

Dubai

$309 10.8% 318% $235

Monthly Utilities & Internet

El Gouna

$30 6.5%

Dubai

$396 13.8% 1234% $367

Sport & Entertainment

El Gouna

$26 5.7%

Dubai

$131 4.6% 395% $104

Getting Around

El Gouna

$2.5 * 0.6%

Dubai

$87 3% 3350% $84

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 $190 in El Gouna and $2,380 in Dubai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $16.00 in El Gouna vs $81.0 in Dubai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $123 vs $293 per month, with El Gouna cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇬 El Gouna

🇦🇪 Dubai

🕒 Local time

09:43 9:43 AM

10:43 10:43 AM

1 h ahead of El Gouna

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,000

3,790,000

💱 Currency

Egyptian Pound EGP £

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

📈 Exchange rate

100 EGP = 1.9 USD

100 EGP = 1.7 EUR

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.243 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AED, USD, EUR to EGP – Egyptian Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇬 Egyptian Pound (£)

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 52.6 EGP (100 EGP = 1.9 USD). 1 EUR = 58.95 EGP (100 EGP = 1.7 EUR).

UAE Dirham exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.12 AED (1 AED = 0.243 EUR).

USD to EGP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

El Gouna Dubai 2,160 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

El Gouna
Dubai

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

El Gouna vs Dubai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

El Gouna is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 524% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $686 in El Gouna and $4,281 in Dubai 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: $190 in El Gouna versus $2,380 in Dubai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 139% higher in Dubai. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $457 per month in El Gouna versus $2,854 in Dubai – a 524% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $457 in El Gouna versus $2,854 in Dubai, a $1,500 budget is realistic in El Gouna but tight or insufficient in Dubai. The gap between the two cities makes El Gouna the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, El Gouna 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, El Gouna 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 El Gouna gentler on the wallet – expenses run 524% less than in Dubai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.