Cost of living comparison

United Arab Emirates

compared to

Chile

Santiago vs. Abu Dhabi Cost of Living Summary

Santiago is 38.9% cheaper than Abu Dhabi.

Restaurants: pay 24.4% more in Santiago
Groceries: pay 8.2% less in Santiago
Transportation: pay 11.6% more in Santiago
Housing: pay 68.3% less in Santiago
Childcare: pay 36.4% less in Santiago
Entertainment and Sports: pay 54.3% less in Santiago
Clothing: pay 32.4% less in Santiago

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

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Santiago vs. Abu Dhabi Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 24.4% more for restaurants

	Abu Dhabi	Santiago
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$8.17 AED30.00	$10.23 CLF0.2600	+25.3%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$9.53 AED35.00	$8.70 CLF0.2200	-8.7%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.15 AED4.24	$1.71 CLF0.0400	+47.8%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.42 AED1.53	$1.25 CLF0.0300	+199.9%
Average			+24.4%

Abu Dhabi vs. Santiago - Cost of restaurants

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pay 8.2% less for groceries

	Abu Dhabi	Santiago
Bread 1 loaf	$1.62 AED5.94	$1.81 CLF0.0500	+12.1%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.81 AED21.35	$5.64 CLF0.1400	-3.0%
Milk (1 gallon)	$7.38 AED27.11	$4.81 CLF0.1200	-34.8%
Eggs 1 dozen	$3.49 AED12.81	$4.18 CLF0.1100	+19.8%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$4.40 AED16.17	$3.11 CLF0.0800	-29.3%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.12 AED4.13	$0.90 CLF0.0200	-19.7%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.95 AED3.48	$0.70 CLF0.0200	-26.3%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.84 AED3.09	$0.74 CLF0.0200	-12.3%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.71 AED2.60	$0.78 CLF0.0200	+10.6%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.55 AED2.03	$0.49 CLF0.0100	-10.7%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.53 AED1.96	$0.68 CLF0.0200	+26.9%
Average			-8.2%

Abu Dhabi vs. Santiago - Cost of groceries

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pay 11.6% more for transportation

	Abu Dhabi	Santiago
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$3.63 AED13.33	$5.77 CLF0.1500	+59.0%
Monthly public transit pass	$26.55 AED97.50	$40.93 CLF1.0300	+54.2%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$29,949.09 AED110K	$17,743.12 CLF448.6700	-40.8%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$7.62 AED28.00	$7.37 CLF0.1900	-3.4%
Average			+11.6%

Abu Dhabi vs. Santiago - Cost of transportation

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pay 68.3% less for housing

	Abu Dhabi	Santiago
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$88.30 AED324.32	$19.07 CLF0.4800	-78.4%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,966.33 AED7,222.34	$552.81 CLF13.9800	-71.9%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$1,399.56 AED5,140.58	$376.90 CLF9.5300	-73.1%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$148.00 AED543.60	$113.86 CLF2.8800	-23.1%
Average			-68.3%

Abu Dhabi vs. Santiago - Cost of housing

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pay 36.4% less for childcare

	Abu Dhabi	Santiago
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$790.93 AED2,905.08	$432.52 CLF10.9400	-45.3%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$14,819.26 AED54,431.15	$10,959.69 CLF277.1400	-26.0%
Average			-36.4%

Abu Dhabi vs. Santiago - Cost of childcare

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pay 54.3% less for entertainment and sports

	Abu Dhabi	Santiago
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$11.57 AED42.50	$4.09 CLF0.1000	-64.6%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$5.96 AED21.88	$3.25 CLF0.0800	-45.5%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$6.67 AED24.50	$5.22 CLF0.1300	-21.8%
Monthly membership at local gym	$95.29 AED350.01	$33.92 CLF0.8600	-64.4%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$14.97 AED55.00	$7.52 CLF0.1900	-49.8%
Average			-54.3%

Abu Dhabi vs. Santiago - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 32.4% less for clothing

	Abu Dhabi	Santiago
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$61.46 AED225.76	$50.25 CLF1.2700	-18.2%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$49.09 AED180.32	$28.71 CLF0.7300	-41.5%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$111.63 AED410.01	$66.29 CLF1.6800	-40.6%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$110.14 AED404.56	$80.84 CLF2.0400	-26.6%
Average			-32.4%

Abu Dhabi vs. Santiago - Cost of clothing

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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

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