Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medan and Dubai

For one person, living is cheaper in Medan: $613 a month against $2,896 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $27,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

30

Cost of Living Index in Medan
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Medan Living Index
140

Cost of Living Index in Dubai
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Dubai Living Index

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Medan

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$613

/mo nomad

Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,896

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $613 in Medan versus $2,896 in Dubai.

Medan $613
Dubai $2,896

Estimated couple costs with rent: $940 in Medan versus $4,384 in Dubai.

Medan $940
Dubai $4,384

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,266 in Medan versus $5,872 in Dubai.

Medan $1,266
Dubai $5,872

Living in Medan costs roughly 79% less than in Dubai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medan is 55% below, Dubai is 115% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.71 Rp 30.8K

$12.67 AED 46.55

-86.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$8.30 Rp 149.4K

$81.7 AED 300

-89.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.95 Rp 53.0K

$9.34 AED 34.30

-68.42%

Cappuccino

$1.53 Rp 27.5K

$5.89 AED 21.62

-74.02%

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

$0.35 Rp 6,215

$1.69 AED 6.20

-79.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.25 Rp 4,534

$0.78 AED 2.86

-67.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.66 Rp 29.9K

$13.66 AED 50.2

-87.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.59 Rp 64.6K

$13.49 AED 49.54

-73.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.11 Rp 20.0K

$1.84 AED 6.78

-39.67%

White Bread (500g)

$1.18 Rp 21.2K

$1.50 AED 5.50

-21.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.81 Rp 14.7K

$2.57 AED 9.45

-68.48%

Eggs

$1.32 Rp 23.8K

$3.32 AED 12.18

-60.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.12 Rp 146.2K

$12.60 AED 46.28

-35.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.59 Rp 64.6K

$9.66 AED 35.46

-62.84%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.36 Rp 114.5K

$12.78 AED 46.93

-50.23%

Apples (1kg)

$2.40 Rp 43.1K

$2.60 AED 9.54

-7.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.05 Rp 18.9K

$1.90 AED 6.99

-44.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.42 Rp 25.5K

$1.91 AED 7.02

-25.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.93 Rp 16.7K

$1.37 AED 5.02

-32.12%

Potato (1kg)

$0.84 Rp 15.1K

$1.13 AED 4.14

-25.66%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 Rp 32.3K

$1.01 AED 3.71

78.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.38 Rp 6,905

$1.44 AED 5.30

-73.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.44 Rp 7,872

$0.67 AED 2.48

-34.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.87 Rp 51.7K

$5.88 AED 21.59

-51.19%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.72 Rp 282.9K

$16.15 AED 59.3

-2.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.83 Rp 32.9K

$2.72 AED 10.00

-32.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.01 Rp 54.1K

$3.08 AED 11.32

-2.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.27 Rp 4,816

$1.60 AED 5.87

-83.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$5.93 Rp 106.7K

$76.0 AED 279

-92.19%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.51 Rp 9,186

$3.24 AED 11.91

-84.26%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.19 Rp 3,465

$0.71 AED 2.61

-73.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.96 AED 29.22

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.80 Rp 14.4K

$0.98 AED 3.62

-18.37%

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

$24.7K Rp 444.1M

$27.4K AED 100.6K

-9.91%

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

$32.2K Rp 579.9M

$22.0K AED 80.9K

46.22%

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

$84.8 Rp 1.5M

$249 AED 913

-65.86%

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

$3.17 Rp 57.0K

$54.4 AED 200

-94.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.57 Rp 424.3K

$91.5 AED 336

-74.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$16.95 Rp 305.0K

$103 AED 380

-83.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.41 Rp 151.5K

$42.32 AED 155

-80.13%

Cinema Ticket

$3.29 Rp 59.3K

$16.29 AED 59.8

-79.80%

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

$112 Rp 2.0M

$844 AED 3,098

-86.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,692 Rp 30.5M

$18.3K AED 67.1K

-90.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.2 Rp 975.9K

$67.0 AED 246

-19.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.53 Rp 693.6K

$57.9 AED 213

-33.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 Rp 1.9M

$102 AED 375

5.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$111 Rp 2.0M

$98.7 AED 363

12.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$233 Rp 4.2M

$2,393 AED 8,788

-90.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$89.8 Rp 1.6M

$1,533 AED 5,630

-94.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$494 Rp 8.9M

$4,594 AED 16.9K

-89.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$212 Rp 3.8M

$2,939 AED 10.8K

-92.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,158 Rp 20.8M

$7,046 AED 25.9K

-83.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$560 Rp 10.1M

$4,222 AED 15.5K

-86.74%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$215 Rp 3.9M

$3,461 AED 12.7K

-93.78%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.25

4.54

103.74%

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

Last update for Medan: October 12, 2026

Last update for Dubai: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Medan

$181 29.5%

Dubai

$292 10.1% 61.2% $111

Clothing & Footwear

Medan

$140 22.9%

Dubai

$147 5.1% 4.5% $6.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medan

$112 18.2%

Dubai

$394 13.6% 254% $283

Accommodation & Living

Medan

$90 14.6%

Dubai

$1.5K 52.9% 1608% $1.4K

Eating Out

Medan

$59 9.6%

Dubai

$305 10.5% 420% $247

Sport & Entertainment

Medan

$24 3.8%

Dubai

$136 4.7% 478% $112

Getting Around

Medan

$8.5 1.4%

Dubai

$89 3.1% 952% $81

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $233 in Medan and $2,393 in Dubai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dubai pays 1508% 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: $8.00 in Medan vs $82.0 in Dubai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $181 vs $292 per month, with Medan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Medan

🇦🇪 Dubai

🕒 Local time

04:27 4:27 AM

01:27 1:27 AM

3 h behind Medan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,097,610

3,790,000

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.242 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AED, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 18,000 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD). 1 EUR = 20,236 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 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 IDR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Medan Dubai 5,220 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Medan
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

Medan vs Dubai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medan is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 372% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 1508% 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: $233 in Medan 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 Medan runs roughly 1181% less than in Dubai. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $112 in Medan versus $844 in Dubai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $613 in Medan versus $2,896 in Dubai, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Medan but tight or insufficient in Dubai. The gap between the two cities makes Medan the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Medan 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, Medan 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 Medan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 372% less than in Dubai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.