Cost of living comparison

United Arab Emirates

compared to

Maldives

Male vs. Abu Dhabi Cost of Living Summary

Male is 9.8% cheaper than Abu Dhabi.

Restaurants: pay 16.1% less in Male
Groceries: pay 31.0% more in Male
Transportation: pay 34.2% more in Male
Housing: pay 28.3% less in Male
Childcare: pay 72.8% less in Male
Entertainment and Sports: pay 1.7% more in Male
Clothing: pay 18.4% less in Male

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

Male vs. Abu Dhabi Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 16.1% less for restaurants

	Abu Dhabi	Male
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$10.89 AED40.01	$5.56 MVR85.56	-49.0%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$9.53 AED35.01	$9.80 MVR150.98	+2.9%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.29 AED4.74	$1.45 MVR22.29	+12.2%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.44 AED1.62	$0.31 MVR4.70	-30.6%
Average			-16.1%

Abu Dhabi vs. Male - Cost of restaurants

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pay 31.0% more for groceries

	Abu Dhabi	Male
Bread 1 loaf	$1.60 AED5.89	$1.59 MVR24.49	-0.8%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.28 AED19.39	$4.58 MVR70.46	-13.3%
Milk (1 gallon)	$7.50 AED27.54	$6.95 MVR107.00	-7.3%
Eggs 1 dozen	$3.64 AED13.37	$1.76 MVR27.18	-51.5%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$4.12 AED15.12	$2.82 MVR43.37	-31.6%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.15 AED4.21	$1.84 MVR28.31	+60.3%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.82 AED3.00	$1.73 MVR26.63	+111.9%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.83 AED3.05	$1.96 MVR30.25	+136.8%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.67 AED2.47	$1.48 MVR22.83	+120.8%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.53 AED1.96	$0.70 MVR10.77	+31.3%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.65 AED2.39	$0.55 MVR8.45	-15.9%
Average			+31.0%

Abu Dhabi vs. Male - Cost of groceries

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pay 34.2% more for transportation

	Abu Dhabi	Male
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$2.94 AED10.80	$3.54 MVR54.53	+20.4%
Monthly public transit pass	$25.87 AED95.02	$28.91 MVR445.28	+11.8%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$44,639.07 AED164K	$32,679.74 MVR503K	-26.8%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$7.62 AED28.00	$17.65 MVR271.76	+131.5%
Average			+34.2%

Abu Dhabi vs. Male - Cost of transportation

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pay 28.3% less for housing

	Abu Dhabi	Male
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$100.96 AED370.86	$81.15 MVR1,249.78	-19.6%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,490.68 AED5,475.49	$965.87 MVR14,874.36	-35.2%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$1,109.19 AED4,074.21	$678.10 MVR10,442.81	-38.9%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$115.93 AED425.83	$93.30 MVR1,436.78	-19.5%
Average			-28.3%

Abu Dhabi vs. Male - Cost of housing

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pay 72.8% less for childcare

	Abu Dhabi	Male
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$625.43 AED2,297.28	$165.36 MVR2,546.54	-73.6%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$12,786.81 AED46,967.88	$3,587.42 MVR55,246.24	-71.9%
Average			-72.8%

Abu Dhabi vs. Male - Cost of childcare

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pay 1.7% more for entertainment and sports

	Abu Dhabi	Male
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$11.29 AED41.45	$4.74 MVR72.97	-58.0%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$5.77 AED21.18	$3.31 MVR50.96	-42.6%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$6.26 AED23.00	$13.07 MVR201.31	+108.7%
Monthly membership at local gym	$62.90 AED231.03	$80.61 MVR1,241.39	+28.2%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$13.61 AED50.01	$9.80 MVR150.98	-28.0%
Average			+1.7%

Abu Dhabi vs. Male - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 18.4% less for clothing

	Abu Dhabi	Male
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$60.62 AED222.66	$43.03 MVR662.64	-29.0%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$51.93 AED190.75	$56.86 MVR875.69	+9.5%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$98.09 AED360.29	$90.20 MVR1,389.02	-8.0%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$96.21 AED353.40	$51.74 MVR796.84	-46.2%
Average			-18.4%

Abu Dhabi vs. Male - Cost of clothing

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The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: June 2026

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