Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ha'il and Dubai

For one person, living is cheaper in Ha'il: $1,040 a month against $2,896 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $22,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

51

Cost of Living Index in Ha'il
Learn more

Ha'il Living Index
140

Cost of Living Index in Dubai
Learn more

Dubai Living Index

Jump to prices

Ha'il

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,040

/mo nomad

Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,896

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,040 in Ha'il versus $2,896 in Dubai.

Ha'il $1,040
Dubai $2,896

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,589 in Ha'il versus $4,384 in Dubai.

Ha'il $1,589
Dubai $4,384

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,139 in Ha'il versus $5,872 in Dubai.

Ha'il $2,139
Dubai $5,872

Living in Ha'il costs roughly 64% less than in Dubai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Ha'il is 23% below, Dubai is 115% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.47 SAR 20.52

$12.67 AED 46.55

-56.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.36 SAR 140

$81.7 AED 300

-54.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 SAR 22.05

$9.34 AED 34.30

-37.04%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.18 SAR 4.43

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 SAR 8.73

Cappuccino

$2.60 SAR 9.76

$5.89 AED 21.62

-55.86%

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

$0.61 SAR 2.29

$1.69 AED 6.20

-63.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.24 SAR 0.90

$0.78 AED 2.86

-69.23%

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)

$1.72 SAR 6.47

$1.84 AED 6.78

-6.52%

White Bread (500g)

$0.84 SAR 3.17

$1.50 AED 5.50

-44.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 SAR 6.87

$2.57 AED 9.45

-28.79%

Eggs

$1.88 SAR 7.05

$3.32 AED 12.18

-43.37%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.81 SAR 25.56

$12.60 AED 46.28

-45.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.52 SAR 31.96

$9.66 AED 35.46

-11.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.55 SAR 32.10

$12.78 AED 46.93

-33.10%

Apples (1kg)

$1.57 SAR 5.88

$2.60 AED 9.54

-39.62%

Banana (1kg)

$1.58 SAR 5.91

$1.90 AED 6.99

-16.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.31 SAR 4.90

$1.91 AED 7.02

-31.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 SAR 7.61

$1.37 AED 5.02

48.18%

Potato (1kg)

$1.32 SAR 4.95

$1.13 AED 4.14

16.81%

Onion (1kg)

$1.62 SAR 6.06

$1.01 AED 3.71

60.40%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.23 SAR 4.60

$1.44 AED 5.30

-14.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 SAR 1.83

$0.67 AED 2.48

-26.87%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$3.02 SAR 11.35

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.75 SAR 6.56

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 SAR 7.65

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.73 SAR 25.25

$5.88 AED 21.59

14.46%

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)

$1.05 SAR 3.93

$1.60 AED 5.87

-34.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$36.18 SAR 136

$76.0 AED 279

-52.36%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.68 SAR 10.07

$3.24 AED 11.91

-17.28%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.88 SAR 7.06

$0.71 AED 2.61

164.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.58 SAR 50.9

$7.96 AED 29.22

70.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.61 SAR 2.27

$0.98 AED 3.62

-37.76%

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

$44.7K SAR 167.8K

$27.4K AED 100.6K

63.33%

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

$21.6K SAR 81.0K

$22.0K AED 80.9K

-2.01%

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

$52.7 SAR 198

$249 AED 913

-78.81%

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

$21.32 SAR 80.0

$54.4 AED 200

-60.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.59 SAR 179

$91.5 AED 336

-47.97%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.4 SAR 253

$103 AED 380

-34.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.99 SAR 101

$42.32 AED 155

-36.22%

Cinema Ticket

$14.85 SAR 55.7

$16.29 AED 59.8

-8.84%

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

$414 SAR 1,554

$844 AED 3,098

-50.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,887 SAR 29.6K

$18.3K AED 67.1K

-56.81%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.06 SAR 162

$67.0 AED 246

-35.72%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.6 SAR 205

$57.9 AED 213

-5.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.6 SAR 363

$102 AED 375

-5.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$87.9 SAR 330

$98.7 AED 363

-10.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$245 SAR 918

$2,393 AED 8,788

-89.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$366 SAR 1,373

$1,533 AED 5,630

-76.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$362 SAR 1,359

$4,594 AED 16.9K

-92.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$566 SAR 2,123

$2,939 AED 10.8K

-80.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,369 SAR 8,890

$7,046 AED 25.9K

-66.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,359 SAR 5,099

$4,222 AED 15.5K

-67.81%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,087 SAR 4,080

$3,461 AED 12.7K

-68.58%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.54

4.54

22.03%

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

Last update for Ha'il: 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

Ha'il

$366 35.2%

Dubai

$1.5K 52.9% 319% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Ha'il

$180 17.3%

Dubai

$292 10.1% 62.2% $112

Clothing & Footwear

Ha'il

$127 12.2%

Dubai

$147 5.1% 15.4% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ha'il

$122 11.7%

Dubai

$394 13.6% 225% $273

Sport & Entertainment

Ha'il

$97 9.3%

Dubai

$136 4.7% 40.1% $39

Eating Out

Ha'il

$96 9.2%

Dubai

$305 10.5% 218% $209

Getting Around

Ha'il

$52 5.1%

Dubai

$89 3.1% 69.9% $37

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $245 in Ha'il and $2,393 in Dubai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dubai pays 218% 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 Ha'il vs $82.0 in Dubai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $180 vs $292 per month, with Ha'il cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Ha'il

🇦🇪 Dubai

🕒 Local time

21:08 9:08 PM

22:08 10:08 PM

1 h ahead of Ha'il

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

310,897

3,790,000

💱 Currency

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

📈 Exchange rate

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.242 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AED, USD, EUR to SAR – Saudi Riyal Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇦 Saudi Riyal (ر.س)

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.22 SAR (1 SAR = 0.237 EUR).

UAE Dirham exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.13 AED (1 AED = 0.242 EUR).

USD to SAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ha'il Dubai 1,370 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Ha'il
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

Ha'il vs Dubai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ha'il is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and leisure. The 179% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 218% 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: $245 in Ha'il 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 Ha'il runs roughly 110% less than in Dubai. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $414 in Ha'il versus $844 in Dubai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,040 in Ha'il versus $2,896 in Dubai, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Ha'il but tight or insufficient in Dubai. The gap between the two cities makes Ha'il the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Ha'il 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, Ha'il 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 Ha'il gentler on the wallet – expenses run 179% less than in Dubai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.