Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sharjah and London

For one person, living is cheaper in Sharjah: $1,840 a month against $4,048 in London, rent and utilities included – about $26,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

89

Cost of Living Index in Sharjah
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Sharjah Living Index
196

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index

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Sharjah

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$1,840

/mo nomad

London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,048

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sharjah and in London

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Sharjah and in London actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,840 per month in Sharjah vs $4,048 in London, rent included.

Sharjah $1,840
London $4,048

A couple spends around $2,638 per month in Sharjah vs $5,903 in London, rent included.

Sharjah $2,638
London $5,903

A family of three spends $3,436 per month in Sharjah vs $7,758 in London, rent included.

Sharjah $3,436
London $7,758

Sharjah is about 55% cheaper than London, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Sharjah and London sit above the global median – Sharjah by 36%, London by 199%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.06 AED 22.25

$26.36 £19.59

-77.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.27 AED 119

$109 £80.7

-70.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.08 AED 29.66

$10.71 £7.96

-24.56%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.29 AED 34.11

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.61 AED 35.29

Cappuccino

$3.05 AED 11.21

$5.59 £4.15

-45.44%

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

$0.79 AED 2.91

$3.00 £2.23

-73.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.29 AED 1.05

$2.22 £1.65

-86.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.65 £7.17

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.26 £6.14

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 AED 5.82

$1.97 £1.46

-19.80%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 AED 4.37

$2.09 £1.55

-43.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.75 AED 6.44

$2.59 £1.93

-32.43%

Eggs

$3.21 AED 11.80

$5.37 £3.99

-40.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.64 AED 31.72

$13.12 £9.75

-34.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.64 AED 24.38

$11.03 £8.20

-39.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.13 AED 40.89

$17.73 £13.17

-37.23%

Apples (1kg)

$2.24 AED 8.24

$3.17 £2.36

-29.34%

Banana (1kg)

$1.72 AED 6.32

$1.38 £1.03

24.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 AED 5.05

$2.82 £2.10

-51.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.30 AED 4.76

$3.36 £2.50

-61.31%

Potato (1kg)

$1.03 AED 3.78

$1.70 £1.26

-39.41%

Onion (1kg)

$1.11 AED 4.06

$1.78 £1.32

-37.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.43 AED 5.26

$1.49 £1.11

-4.03%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.60 AED 2.22

$1.82 £1.35

-67.03%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$15.63 AED 57.4

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.51 AED 9.20

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.62 AED 9.61

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.51 AED 23.89

$23.85 £17.72

-72.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.44 £9.98

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.11 £2.31

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.49 £3.34

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.15 AED 7.90

$4.13 £3.07

-47.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.93 AED 98.9

$266 £198

-89.88%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.58 AED 13.14

$5.98 £4.44

-40.13%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.52 AED 1.89

$3.39 £2.52

-84.66%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.02 AED 44.14

$56.6 £42.03

-78.74%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.99 AED 3.63

$2.21 £1.64

-55.20%

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

$44.3K AED 162.8K

$38.3K £28.4K

15.82%

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

$21.4K AED 78.5K

$41.0K £30.5K

-47.90%

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

$210 AED 773

$372 £277

-43.50%

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

$49.49 AED 182

$18.66 £13.87

165.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$96.2 AED 353

$40.53 £30.12

137.28%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.6 AED 197

$56.0 £41.63

-4.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.74 AED 79.8

$17.10 £12.71

27.13%

Cinema Ticket

$13.59 AED 49.91

$17.95 £13.34

-24.29%

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

$334 AED 1,225

$2,946 £2,189

-88.68%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,389 AED 30.8K

$47.6K £35.4K

-82.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.0 AED 213

$116 £86.4

-50.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$77.8 AED 286

$56.9 £42.28

36.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 AED 404

$128 £95.1

-14.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$94.3 AED 346

$154 £114

-38.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$820 AED 3,013

$2,935 £2,182

-72.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$902 AED 3,314

$2,258 £1,678

-60.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,847 AED 6,781

$5,250 £3,901

-64.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,558 AED 5,723

$3,859 £2,868

-59.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,317 AED 26.9K

$17.2K £12.8K

-57.42%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,550 AED 9,364

$8,278 £6,152

-69.20%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,220 AED 8,153

$5,621 £4,177

-60.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.5

4.78

-5.86%

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

Last update for Sharjah: November 3, 2026

Last update for London: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sharjah

$902 49.1%

London

$2.3K 55.8% 150% $1.4K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sharjah

$356 19.4%

London

$432 10.7% 21.2% $76

Groceries & Markets

Sharjah

$192 10.4%

London

$360 8.9% 87.7% $168

Clothing & Footwear

Sharjah

$153 8.3%

London

$205 5.1% 33.8% $52

Eating Out

Sharjah

$114 6.2%

London

$396 9.8% 248% $282

Sport & Entertainment

Sharjah

$81 4.4%

London

$92 2.3% 13.7% $11

Getting Around

Sharjah

$42 2.3%

London

$305 7.6% 633% $264

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $820 in Sharjah versus $2,935 in London. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in London are about 2.5 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32 in Sharjah versus $109 in London. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $192 vs $360 – making Sharjah the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇪 Sharjah

🇬🇧 London

🕒 Local time

10:41 10:41 AM

06:41 6:41 AM

4 h behind Sharjah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,400,000

8,908,083 Capital

💱 Currency

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.243 EUR

1 GBP = 1.35 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to AED – UAE Dirham Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇪 UAE Dirham (د.إ)

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).

British Pound exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.743 GBP (1 GBP = 1.35 USD). 1 EUR = 0.834 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 EUR).

USD to AED in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Sharjah London 5,470 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Sharjah
London

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

Sharjah vs London: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,840 in Sharjah, $4,048 in London – Sharjah comes out roughly 55% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,759 per month in Sharjah and $6,072 in London. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Sharjah, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $820 there versus $2,935 in London.

Groceries cost about 88% more in London, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32 in Sharjah and $109 in London. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Sharjah, where all-in costs run around $1,840, than in London at $4,048. In Sharjah it covers expenses comfortably, while in London it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Sharjah costs $1,840 versus $4,048 in London. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Sharjah. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, London makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.