Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Umm Al Quwain and Sharjah

For one person, living is cheaper in Umm Al Quwain: $1,447 a month against $1,726 in Sharjah, rent and utilities included – about $3,300 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Sharjah outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

70

Cost of Living Index in Umm Al Quwain
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Umm Al Quwain Living Index
83

Cost of Living Index in Sharjah
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Sharjah Living Index

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Umm Al Quwain

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$1,447

/mo nomad

Sharjah

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$1,726

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Umm Al Quwain and in Sharjah

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,447 in Umm Al Quwain versus $1,726 in Sharjah.

Umm Al Quwain $1,447
Sharjah $1,726

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,034 in Umm Al Quwain versus $2,594 in Sharjah.

Umm Al Quwain $2,034
Sharjah $2,594

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,620 in Umm Al Quwain versus $3,462 in Sharjah.

Umm Al Quwain $2,620
Sharjah $3,462

Living in Umm Al Quwain costs roughly 16% less than in Sharjah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Umm Al Quwain 6% above, Sharjah 27% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.76 AED 21.15

$5.88 AED 21.58

-2.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$26.98 AED 99.1

$32.16 AED 118

-16.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.39 AED 30.80

$8.13 AED 29.87

3.20%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.57 AED 35.13

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.29 AED 34.12

Cappuccino

$3.86 AED 14.19

$3.12 AED 11.46

23.72%

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

$0.86 AED 3.16

$0.75 AED 2.75

14.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.36 AED 1.33

$0.31 AED 1.15

16.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$11.04 AED 40.54

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$12.29 AED 45.14

Milk (1 liter)

$1.86 AED 6.84

$1.59 AED 5.84

16.98%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 AED 4.99

$1.20 AED 4.40

13.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.46 AED 5.37

$1.82 AED 6.70

-19.78%

Eggs

$2.11 AED 7.76

$3.32 AED 12.20

-36.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.61 AED 27.94

$8.65 AED 31.77

-12.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.52 AED 23.94

$6.54 AED 24.01

-0.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.42 AED 34.59

$11.46 AED 42.09

-17.80%

Apples (1kg)

$1.90 AED 6.99

$2.26 AED 8.28

-15.93%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 AED 5.12

$1.75 AED 6.44

-20.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.56 AED 5.73

$1.32 AED 4.83

18.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.98 AED 3.60

$1.23 AED 4.50

-20.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.01 AED 3.71

$1.08 AED 3.96

-6.48%

Onion (1kg)

$1.00 AED 3.66

$1.10 AED 4.06

-9.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 AED 4.38

$1.42 AED 5.20

-16.20%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 AED 1.87

$0.59 AED 2.18

-13.56%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$15.45 AED 56.8

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.50 AED 9.16

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.69 AED 9.88

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.16 AED 22.63

$6.57 AED 24.14

-6.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.95 AED 40.20

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.68 AED 6.17

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.31 AED 8.49

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.12 AED 7.79

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.55 AED 101

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.28 AED 12.06

$3.61 AED 13.26

-9.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.66 AED 2.42

$0.56 AED 2.07

17.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.01 AED 29.40

$12.03 AED 44.19

-33.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.83 AED 3.06

$0.97 AED 3.58

-14.43%

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

$25.8K AED 94.6K

$44.1K AED 162.1K

-41.62%

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

$22.0K AED 80.7K

$21.0K AED 77.1K

4.68%

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

$150 AED 550

$212 AED 779

-29.41%

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

$50.0 AED 184

$48.90 AED 180

2.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$86.6 AED 318

$98.0 AED 360

-11.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.50 AED 163

$54.3 AED 199

-17.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.44 AED 82.4

Cinema Ticket

$13.53 AED 49.69

$13.82 AED 50.8

-2.10%

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

$491 AED 1,803

$340 AED 1,250

44.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,705 AED 21.0K

$8,356 AED 30.7K

-31.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.3 AED 214

$58.8 AED 216

-0.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$61.5 AED 226

$78.4 AED 288

-21.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$86.5 AED 318

$108 AED 396

-19.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$95.2 AED 349

$93.8 AED 344

1.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$683 AED 2,509

$816 AED 2,996

-16.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$534 AED 1,962

$784 AED 2,879

-31.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,037 AED 3,807

$1,831 AED 6,723

-43.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$829 AED 3,045

$1,578 AED 5,795

-47.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,442 AED 27.3K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,551 AED 9,368

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,327 AED 12.2K

$2,219 AED 8,149

49.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.75

4.5

5.56%

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

Last update for Umm Al Quwain: October 27, 2026

Last update for Sharjah: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Umm Al Quwain

$534 36.9%

Sharjah

$784 45.4% 46.7% $250

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Umm Al Quwain

$286 19.8%

Sharjah

$359 20.8% 25.4% $73

Groceries & Markets

Umm Al Quwain

$210 14.5%

Sharjah

$193 11.2% 8.1% $17

Eating Out

Umm Al Quwain

$202 14%

Sharjah

$113 6.6% 44.1% $89

Clothing & Footwear

Umm Al Quwain

$136 9.4%

Sharjah

$152 8.8% 12.4% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Umm Al Quwain

$72 5%

Sharjah

$82 4.8% 14.5% $10

Getting Around

Umm Al Quwain

$6.6 * 0.5%

Sharjah

$42 2.5% 546% $36

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $683 in Umm Al Quwain and $816 in Sharjah. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Umm Al Quwain pays 50% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $27 in Umm Al Quwain vs $32 in Sharjah. Groceries flip the comparison at $210 vs $193, with Sharjah cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇦🇪 Umm Al Quwain

🇦🇪 Sharjah

🕒 Local time

05:25 5:25 AM

Same time as Umm Al Quwain

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

34,637

1,400,000

💱 Currency

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

📈 Exchange rate

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.244 EUR

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.244 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Umm Al Quwain Sharjah 26 km

From you

Umm Al Quwain
Sharjah

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

Umm Al Quwain vs Sharjah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,447 in Umm Al Quwain and $1,726 in Sharjah, so Umm Al Quwain is about 16% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 50% higher in Umm Al Quwain, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $683 in Umm Al Quwain versus $816 in Sharjah. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $491 in Umm Al Quwain versus $340 in Sharjah. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Umm Al Quwain – a meal for two runs $27 versus $32 in Sharjah. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Umm Al Quwain is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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, Umm Al Quwain and Sharjah are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.