Cost of living comparison

compared to

Douglas vs. Abu Dhabi Cost of Living Summary

Douglas is 27.1% more expensive than Abu Dhabi.

Restaurants
pay 2.4 times more in Douglas
Groceries
pay 44.6% more in Douglas
Transportation
pay 2.1 times more in Douglas
Housing
pay 19.7% less in Douglas
Childcare
pay 2.8 times more in Douglas
Entertainment and Sports
pay 10.4% less in Douglas
Clothing
pay 2.1% less in Douglas

The cost of childcare, restaurants, transportation, and groceries in Douglas are more expensive than in Abu Dhabi. Expenses including housing, entertainment and sports, and clothing are lower in Douglas. Notably, childcare, restaurants, and transportation are significantly more expensive in Douglas.

Douglas vs. Abu Dhabi Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Douglas instead of Abu Dhabi, you would:

pay 2.4 times more for restaurants

 
Abu Dhabi
Douglas
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $8.17
AED30.00
$27.75
£21.00
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$9.53
AED35.00
$11.89
£9.00
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $1.15
AED4.24
$2.71
£2.05

Improve prices ·

pay 44.6% more for groceries

 
Abu Dhabi
Douglas
Bread
1 loaf
$1.62
AED5.94
$2.63
£1.99
Local cheese (8 oz) $5.81
AED21.35
$4.01
£3.03
Milk (1 gallon) $7.38
AED27.11
$9.41
£7.12

Improve prices ·

pay 2.1 times more for transportation

 
Abu Dhabi
Douglas
Gasoline (1 gallon) $3.63
AED13.33
$7.35
£5.57
Monthly public transit pass $26.55
AED97.50
$96.91
£73.34
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $29,949.09
AED110K
$43,752.78
£33,113.41

Improve prices ·

pay 19.7% less for housing

 
Abu Dhabi
Douglas
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$88.30
AED324.32
$72.49
£54.86
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,966.33
AED7,222.34
$1,233.89
£933.85
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $1,399.56
AED5,140.58
$1,068.05
£808.33

Improve prices ·

pay 2.8 times more for childcare

 
Abu Dhabi
Douglas
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $790.93
AED2,905.08
$1,739.89
£1,316.80
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $14,819.26
AED54,431.15
$52,196.76
£39,504.07

Improve prices ·

pay 10.4% less for entertainment and sports

 
Abu Dhabi
Douglas
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $11.57
AED42.50
$6.54
£4.95
Cappuccino in mid-range area $5.96
AED21.88
$5.01
£3.79
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$6.67
AED24.50
$22.46
£17.00

Improve prices ·

pay 2.1% less for clothing

 
Abu Dhabi
Douglas
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$61.46
AED225.76
$99.11
£75.01
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$49.09
AED180.32
$44.60
£33.75
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$111.63
AED410.01
$111.22
£84.18

Improve prices ·

We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated November 2026). How we calculate this

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

See the cost of living in United Arab Emirates vs. Isle of Man. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within United Arab Emirates and Isle of Man.

Help us improve these prices

MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate. Learn more

Ask the Elsewhere Community

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Douglas or Abu Dhabi. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.