Cost of living comparison

United Arab Emirates

compared to

United States

Scottsdale vs. Abu Dhabi Cost of Living Summary

Scottsdale is 48.9% more expensive than Abu Dhabi.

Restaurants: pay 2.7 times more in Scottsdale
Groceries: pay 66.2% more in Scottsdale
Transportation: pay 35.8% more in Scottsdale
Housing: pay 32.6% more in Scottsdale
Childcare: pay 58.1% more in Scottsdale
Entertainment and Sports: pay 10.5% less in Scottsdale
Clothing: pay 8.0% less in Scottsdale

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

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Scottsdale vs. Abu Dhabi Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 2.7 times more for restaurants

	Abu Dhabi	Scottsdale
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$10.89 AED40.00	$20.00	+83.6%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$9.53 AED35.00	$12.00	+25.9%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.29 AED4.74	$2.83	+119.0%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.44 AED1.61	$2.40	+444.8%
Average			+168.3%

Abu Dhabi vs. Scottsdale - Cost of restaurants

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pay 66.2% more for groceries

	Abu Dhabi	Scottsdale
Bread 1 loaf	$1.60 AED5.89	$3.58	+123.2%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.28 AED19.39	$5.82	+10.3%
Milk (1 gallon)	$7.50 AED27.54	$3.40	-54.6%
Eggs 1 dozen	$3.64 AED13.37	$4.35	+19.5%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$4.12 AED15.11	$5.64	+37.0%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.15 AED4.21	$2.06	+79.5%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.82 AED3.00	$0.75	-7.9%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.83 AED3.05	$1.74	+109.4%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.67 AED2.46	$1.90	+182.3%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.53 AED1.96	$1.27	+138.9%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.65 AED2.39	$1.24	+90.8%
Average			+66.2%

Abu Dhabi vs. Scottsdale - Cost of groceries

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pay 35.8% more for transportation

	Abu Dhabi	Scottsdale
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$2.94 AED10.80	$3.42	+16.4%
Monthly public transit pass	$25.87 AED95.00	$43.00	+66.2%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$44,639.07 AED164K	$36,113.30	-19.1%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$7.62 AED28.00	$13.69	+79.5%
Average			+35.8%

Abu Dhabi vs. Scottsdale - Cost of transportation

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pay 32.6% more for housing

	Abu Dhabi	Scottsdale
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$100.96 AED370.79	$81.88	-18.9%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,490.68 AED5,474.52	$1,883.33	+26.3%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$1,109.19 AED4,073.48	$1,708.33	+54.0%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$115.93 AED425.75	$196.17	+69.2%
Average			+32.6%

Abu Dhabi vs. Scottsdale - Cost of housing

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pay 58.1% more for childcare

	Abu Dhabi	Scottsdale
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$625.43 AED2,296.88	$1,214.72	+94.2%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$12,786.81 AED46,959.57	$15,605.00	+22.0%
Average			+58.1%

Abu Dhabi vs. Scottsdale - Cost of childcare

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pay 10.5% less for entertainment and sports

	Abu Dhabi	Scottsdale
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$11.29 AED41.45	$6.00	-46.8%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$5.77 AED21.18	$5.38	-6.8%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$6.26 AED23.00	$9.22	+47.3%
Monthly membership at local gym	$62.90 AED230.98	$34.33	-45.4%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$13.61 AED50.00	$13.50	-0.8%
Average			-10.5%

Abu Dhabi vs. Scottsdale - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 8.0% less for clothing

	Abu Dhabi	Scottsdale
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$60.62 AED222.62	$47.22	-22.1%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$51.93 AED190.71	$43.50	-16.2%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$98.09 AED360.23	$87.50	-10.8%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$96.21 AED353.33	$112.79	+17.2%
Average			-8.0%

Abu Dhabi vs. Scottsdale - 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: August 2026

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