Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Romania and Dubai

For one person, living is cheaper in Romania: $1,095 a month against $2,854 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $21,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

54

Cost of Living Index in Romania
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Romania Living Index
139

Cost of Living Index in Dubai
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Dubai Living Index

Jump to prices

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,095

/mo nomad

Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,854

/mo nomad

🙂 Solo nomad: Romania is 45.6% cheaper than Dubai without rent, and 61.6% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Romania is 42.9% cheaper than Dubai without rent, and 61.2% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.35 RON 48.95

$13.04 AED 47.89

-20.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$41.76 RON 198

$81.4 AED 299

-48.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.47 RON 35.35

$9.32 AED 34.25

-19.85%

Cappuccino

$2.84 RON 13.45

$5.97 AED 21.93

-52.43%

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

$1.95 RON 9.21

$1.63 AED 5.98

19.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 RON 7.94

$0.81 AED 2.99

107.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.30 RON 10.86

$13.65 AED 50.1

-83.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.24 RON 15.31

$13.38 AED 49.15

-75.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 RON 6.95

$1.81 AED 6.64

-18.78%

White Bread (500g)

$1.16 RON 5.49

$1.57 AED 5.78

-26.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.59 RON 7.54

$2.49 AED 9.16

-36.14%

Eggs

$3.18 RON 15.04

$3.28 AED 12.04

-3.05%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.02 RON 37.95

$12.67 AED 46.53

-36.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.26 RON 29.61

$9.75 AED 35.80

-35.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.53 RON 49.79

$13.18 AED 48.40

-20.11%

Apples (1kg)

$1.21 RON 5.73

$2.61 AED 9.57

-53.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.56 RON 7.40

$1.93 AED 7.09

-19.17%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.55 RON 7.35

$1.92 AED 7.05

-19.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.20 RON 10.41

$1.36 AED 5.00

61.76%

Potato (1kg)

$0.85 RON 4.02

$1.17 AED 4.29

-27.35%

Onion (1kg)

$0.82 RON 3.86

$1.01 AED 3.71

-18.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.84 RON 3.99

$1.51 AED 5.56

-44.37%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.85 RON 4.01

$0.62 AED 2.29

37.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.10 RON 28.85

$5.85 AED 21.50

4.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.21 RON 29.35

$16.14 AED 59.3

-61.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 RON 5.38

$2.65 AED 9.74

-56.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 RON 7.69

$2.95 AED 10.82

-44.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.73 RON 3.45

$1.64 AED 6.03

-55.49%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$23.09 RON 109

$73.6 AED 270

-68.63%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.76 RON 3.60

$3.17 AED 11.66

-76.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.76 RON 3.58

$0.71 AED 2.63

7.04%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.20 RON 34.07

$7.96 AED 29.23

-9.55%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.76 RON 8.34

$0.99 AED 3.64

77.78%

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

$28.6K RON 135.4K

$27.4K AED 100.5K

4.62%

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

$24.9K RON 117.6K

$22.5K AED 82.8K

10.27%

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

$161 RON 764

$250 AED 920

-35.51%

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

$8.01 RON 37.89

$54.2 AED 199

-85.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.84 RON 41.80

$91.8 AED 337

-90.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.05 RON 189

$98.6 AED 362

-59.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.90 RON 89.4

$42.61 AED 156

-55.64%

Cinema Ticket

$7.29 RON 34.50

$16.03 AED 58.9

-54.52%

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

$469 RON 2,216

$843 AED 3,098

-44.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,762 RON 41.4K

$18.3K AED 67.1K

-52.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.8 RON 325

$68.0 AED 250

1.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.50 RON 177

$57.9 AED 213

-35.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.1 RON 379

$101 AED 370

-20.41%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.2 RON 398

$101 AED 371

-16.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$462 RON 2,186

$2,380 AED 8,741

-80.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$342 RON 1,615

$1,506 AED 5,531

-77.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$800 RON 3,784

$4,437 AED 16.3K

-81.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$589 RON 2,786

$3,010 AED 11.1K

-80.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,451 RON 11.6K

$7,121 AED 26.2K

-65.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,819 RON 8,605

$4,135 AED 15.2K

-56.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$975 RON 4,611

$3,391 AED 12.5K

-71.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.98

4.54

53.74%

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

Last update for Romania: October 4, 2026

Last update for Dubai: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Romania

$342 31%

Dubai

$1.5K 52.5% 341% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Romania

$204 18.5%

Dubai

$293 10.2% 43.4% $89

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Romania

$178 16.2%

Dubai

$396 13.8% 122% $218

Eating Out

Romania

$172 15.6%

Dubai

$309 10.8% 79.7% $137

Clothing & Footwear

Romania

$122 11%

Dubai

$147 5.1% 21% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Romania

$55 5%

Dubai

$131 4.6% 139% $76

Getting Around

Romania

$31 2.8%

Dubai

$87 3% 185% $56

Good to know

🇷🇴 Romania

🇦🇪 Dubai

🕒 Local time

07:48 7:48 AM

08:48 8:48 AM

1 h ahead of Romania

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

19,053,815

3,790,000

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.189 EUR

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.243 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AED, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.3 RON (1 RON = 0.189 EUR).

UAE Dirham exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.12 AED (1 AED = 0.243 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Romania Dubai 3,390 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Romania
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

Romania vs other spots: cost of living compared

Cost of Living Comparison Between Romania and Dubai

AED, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

Romania

Dubai

Romania

Dubai

Romania vs other spots: cost of living compared

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