Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Yaounde and Dubai

For one person, living is cheaper in Yaounde: $704 a month against $2,889 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $26,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

34

Cost of Living Index in Yaounde
Learn more

Yaounde Living Index
139

Cost of Living Index in Dubai
Learn more

Dubai Living Index

Jump to prices

Yaounde

🇨🇲 Cameroon

$704

/mo nomad

Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,889

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $704 in Yaounde versus $2,889 in Dubai.

Yaounde $704
Dubai $2,889

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,169 in Yaounde versus $4,444 in Dubai.

Yaounde $1,169
Dubai $4,444

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,635 in Yaounde versus $5,999 in Dubai.

Yaounde $1,635
Dubai $5,999

Living in Yaounde costs roughly 76% less than in Dubai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Yaounde is 48% below, Dubai is 114% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.37 FCFA 1,969

$12.94 AED 47.54

-73.96%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.9 FCFA 29.7K

$83.2 AED 306

-38.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.15 FCFA 3,004

$9.35 AED 34.32

-44.92%

Cappuccino

$1.94 FCFA 1,133

$5.88 AED 21.59

-67.01%

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

$1.53 FCFA 891

$1.57 AED 5.77

-2.55%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.51 FCFA 296

$0.94 AED 3.47

-45.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.21 FCFA 706

$13.44 AED 49.37

-91.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.66 FCFA 969

$13.57 AED 49.84

-87.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.69 FCFA 2,152

$1.86 AED 6.83

98.39%

White Bread (500g)

$1.08 FCFA 633

$1.56 AED 5.73

-30.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.32 FCFA 770

$2.64 AED 9.68

-50.00%

Eggs

$1.94 FCFA 1,134

$3.53 AED 12.96

-45.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.50 FCFA 7,883

$12.97 AED 47.62

4.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.82 FCFA 3,397

$9.94 AED 36.51

-41.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.18 FCFA 3,605

$12.92 AED 47.45

-52.17%

Apples (1kg)

$5.01 FCFA 2,925

$2.55 AED 9.36

96.47%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 FCFA 1,150

$2.05 AED 7.54

-3.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.00 FCFA 1,170

$1.84 AED 6.77

8.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.36 FCFA 796

$1.54 AED 5.64

-11.69%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 FCFA 921

$1.17 AED 4.31

35.04%

Onion (1kg)

$1.46 FCFA 853

$1.02 AED 3.76

43.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 FCFA 656

$1.57 AED 5.75

-28.66%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.61 FCFA 355

$0.67 AED 2.46

-8.96%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.73 FCFA 1,009

$6.31 AED 23.17

-72.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.64 FCFA 5,043

$16.16 AED 59.4

-46.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.32 FCFA 770

$2.58 AED 9.48

-48.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 FCFA 1,130

$2.89 AED 10.60

-32.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.53 FCFA 310

$1.40 AED 5.15

-62.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$17.20 FCFA 10.0K

$82.4 AED 303

-79.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.62 FCFA 361

$3.29 AED 12.07

-81.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.44 FCFA 257

$0.65 AED 2.40

-32.31%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.08 FCFA 3,551

$8.13 AED 29.84

-25.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 FCFA 815

$1.00 AED 3.68

40.00%

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

$29.8K FCFA 17.4M

$26.3K AED 96.6K

13.31%

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

$21.6K FCFA 12.6M

$22.0K AED 81.0K

-1.85%

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

$77.8 FCFA 45.4K

$239 AED 877

-67.42%

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

$22.10 FCFA 12.9K

$56.9 AED 209

-61.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.5 FCFA 30.1K

$93.9 AED 345

-45.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$22.99 FCFA 13.4K

$90.8 AED 334

-74.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.21 FCFA 4,209

$46.38 AED 170

-84.45%

Cinema Ticket

$8.59 FCFA 5,012

$16.24 AED 59.6

-47.11%

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

$512 FCFA 298.9K

$934 AED 3,429

-45.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,315 FCFA 1.4M

$20.9K AED 76.8K

-88.93%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.19 FCFA 10.0K

$70.7 AED 260

-75.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.31 FCFA 15.9K

$61.3 AED 225

-55.48%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$25.17 FCFA 14.7K

$103 AED 377

-75.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$55.2 FCFA 32.2K

$116 AED 426

-52.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$140 FCFA 81.5K

$2,487 AED 9,134

-94.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$103 FCFA 60.3K

$1,520 AED 5,581

-93.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$406 FCFA 236.8K

$5,234 AED 19.2K

-92.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$208 FCFA 121.3K

$3,028 AED 11.1K

-93.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$839 FCFA 489.9K

$6,982 AED 25.6K

-87.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$590 FCFA 344.2K

$4,433 AED 16.3K

-86.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$138 FCFA 80.4K

$3,553 AED 13.0K

-96.12%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.57

184.46%

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

Last update for Yaounde: November 1, 2026

Last update for Dubai: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Yaounde

$248 35.2%

Dubai

$297 10.3% 19.9% $49

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Yaounde

$151 21.5%

Dubai

$390 13.5% 157% $238

Accommodation & Living

Yaounde

$103 14.7%

Dubai

$1.5K 52.6% 1371% $1.4K

Eating Out

Yaounde

$83 11.8%

Dubai

$307 10.6% 268% $223

Clothing & Footwear

Yaounde

$56 8%

Dubai

$158 5.5% 181% $102

Sport & Entertainment

Yaounde

$40 5.7%

Dubai

$123 4.3% 207% $83

Getting Around

Yaounde

$22 3.2%

Dubai

$95 3.3% 327% $72

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $140 in Yaounde and $2,487 in Dubai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dubai pays about 26 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $51 in Yaounde vs $83 in Dubai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $248 vs $297 per month, with Yaounde cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇲 Yaounde

🇦🇪 Dubai

🕒 Local time

04:49 4:49 AM

07:49 7:49 AM

3 h ahead of Yaounde

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,817,524 Capital

3,790,000

💱 Currency

Central African CFA Franc XAF Fr

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 XAF = 1.71 USD

1,000 XAF = 1.53 EUR

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.243 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AED, USD, EUR to XAF – Central African CFA Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🌐 Central African CFA Franc (Fr)

Central African CFA Franc exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 584 XAF (1,000 XAF = 1.71 USD). 1 EUR = 655 XAF (1,000 XAF = 1.53 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 XAF in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Yaounde Dubai 5,220 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Yaounde
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

Yaounde vs Dubai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yaounde is about 76% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 96% lower in Yaounde. 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: $140 in Yaounde versus $2,487 in Dubai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Yaounde runs roughly 79% less than in Dubai. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $512 in Yaounde versus $934 in Dubai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $704 in Yaounde versus $2,889 in Dubai, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Yaounde but tight or insufficient in Dubai. The gap between the two cities makes Yaounde 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.

Expats usually find Yaounde gentler on the wallet – expenses run 76% less than in Dubai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.