Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kandana and Dubai

For one person, living is cheaper in Kandana: $509 a month against $2,889 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $28,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

24

Cost of Living Index in Kandana
Learn more

Kandana Living Index
139

Cost of Living Index in Dubai
Learn more

Dubai Living Index

Jump to prices

Kandana

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$509

/mo nomad

Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,889

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $509 in Kandana versus $2,889 in Dubai.

Kandana $509
Dubai $2,889

Estimated couple costs with rent: $827 in Kandana versus $4,444 in Dubai.

Kandana $827
Dubai $4,444

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,145 in Kandana versus $5,999 in Dubai.

Kandana $1,145
Dubai $5,999

Living in Kandana costs roughly 82% less than in Dubai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Kandana is 62% below, Dubai is 114% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.76 LKR 1,251

$12.94 AED 47.54

-70.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$25.18 LKR 8,374

$83.2 AED 306

-69.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.45 LKR 2,476

$9.35 AED 34.32

-20.32%

Cappuccino

$2.43 LKR 808

$5.88 AED 21.59

-58.67%

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

$0.72 LKR 238

$1.57 AED 5.77

-54.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 LKR 90.6

$0.94 AED 3.47

-71.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.18 LKR 725

$13.44 AED 49.37

-83.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.08 LKR 1,024

$13.57 AED 49.84

-77.30%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 LKR 526

$1.86 AED 6.83

-15.05%

White Bread (500g)

$0.54 LKR 178

$1.56 AED 5.73

-65.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.75 LKR 248

$2.64 AED 9.68

-71.59%

Eggs

$1.65 LKR 548

$3.53 AED 12.96

-53.26%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.19 LKR 5,049

$12.97 AED 47.62

17.12%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.88 LKR 1,621

$9.94 AED 36.51

-50.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.76 LKR 2,580

$12.92 AED 47.45

-39.94%

Apples (1kg)

$6.73 LKR 2,238

$2.55 AED 9.36

163.92%

Banana (1kg)

$0.82 LKR 273

$2.05 AED 7.54

-60.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.11 LKR 1,367

$1.84 AED 6.77

123.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.28 LKR 426

$1.54 AED 5.64

-16.88%

Potato (1kg)

$1.03 LKR 343

$1.17 AED 4.31

-11.97%

Onion (1kg)

$0.82 LKR 271

$1.02 AED 3.76

-19.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.24 LKR 413

$1.57 AED 5.75

-21.02%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.46 LKR 152

$0.67 AED 2.46

-31.34%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.16 LKR 3,377

$6.31 AED 23.17

61.01%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.42 LKR 4,463

$16.16 AED 59.4

-16.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.87 LKR 623

$2.58 AED 9.48

-27.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.97 LKR 988

$2.89 AED 10.60

2.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 AED 5.15

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$82.4 AED 303

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.38 LKR 126

$3.29 AED 12.07

-88.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.33 LKR 111

$0.65 AED 2.40

-49.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$0.86 LKR 287

$8.13 AED 29.84

-89.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.37 LKR 457

$1.00 AED 3.68

37.00%

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

$44.2K LKR 14.7M

$26.3K AED 96.6K

68.00%

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

$45.5K LKR 15.1M

$22.0K AED 81.0K

106.47%

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

$57.5 LKR 19.1K

$239 AED 877

-75.95%

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

$4.30 LKR 1,429

$56.9 AED 209

-92.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.55 LKR 6,833

$93.9 AED 345

-78.11%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$90.8 AED 334

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$46.38 AED 170

Cinema Ticket

$4.45 LKR 1,480

$16.24 AED 59.6

-72.60%

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

$40.32 LKR 13.4K

$934 AED 3,429

-95.68%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.2K LKR 5.7M

$20.9K AED 76.8K

-17.93%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$18.24 LKR 6,063

$70.7 AED 260

-74.20%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$17.49 LKR 5,815

$61.3 AED 225

-71.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.9 LKR 26.6K

$103 AED 377

-22.21%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$40.94 LKR 13.6K

$116 AED 426

-64.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,487 AED 9,134

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,520 AED 5,581

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,234 AED 19.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,028 AED 11.1K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,982 AED 25.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,433 AED 16.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,553 AED 13.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.5

4.57

173.52%

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

Last update for Kandana: November 3, 2026

Last update for Dubai: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Kandana

$243 47.7%

Dubai

$297 10.3% 22.4% $54

Eating Out

Kandana

$103 20.2%

Dubai

$307 10.6% 199% $204

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kandana

$82 16.2%

Dubai

$390 13.5% 373% $307

Clothing & Footwear

Kandana

$70 13.8%

Dubai

$158 5.5% 124% $87

Sport & Entertainment

Kandana

$8.9 * 1.8%

Dubai

$123 4.3% 1286% $114

Getting Around

Kandana

$2.1 * 0.4%

Dubai

$95 3.3% 4514% $93

Accommodation & Living

Kandana

- * 0%

Dubai

$1.5K 52.6%

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $25 in Kandana vs $83 in Dubai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $243 vs $297 per month, with Kandana cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇱🇰 Kandana

🇦🇪 Dubai

🕒 Local time

12:31 12:31 PM

11:01 11:01 AM

1 h 30 min behind Kandana

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,000

3,790,000

💱 Currency

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.68 EUR

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.243 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AED, USD, EUR to LKR – Sri Lankan Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇱🇰 Sri Lankan Rupee (Rs)

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 333 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD). 1 EUR = 373 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.68 EUR).

UAE Dirham exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.12 AED (1 AED = 0.243 EUR).

USD to LKR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Kandana Dubai 3,300 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Kandana
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

Kandana vs Dubai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kandana is about 82% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, utilities, and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $764 in Kandana and $4,333 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.

Supermarket bills run roughly 22% higher in Dubai. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $509 per month in Kandana versus $2,889 in Dubai – Kandana is about 82% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $509 in Kandana versus $2,889 in Dubai, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Kandana but tight or insufficient in Dubai. The gap between the two cities makes Kandana the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Kandana and Dubai are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.