Cost of living comparison

United Arab Emirates

compared to

South Africa

Johannesburg vs. Al Ain Cost of Living Summary

Johannesburg is 2.1% more expensive than Al Ain.

Restaurants: pay 49.0% more in Johannesburg
Groceries: pay 11.9% less in Johannesburg
Transportation: pay 79.0% more in Johannesburg
Housing: pay 35.2% less in Johannesburg
Childcare: pay 31.5% less in Johannesburg
Entertainment and Sports: pay 47.4% less in Johannesburg
Clothing: pay 12.4% more in Johannesburg

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

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Johannesburg vs. Al Ain Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Johannesburg instead of Al Ain, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 49.0% more for restaurants

	Al Ain	Johannesburg
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$7.49 AED27.50	$11.47 ZAR188.63	+53.2%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$8.44 AED31.00	$4.93 ZAR81.11	-41.6%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.77 AED2.81	$1.06 ZAR17.46	+38.7%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.34 AED1.25	$0.84 ZAR13.74	+145.6%
Average			+49.0%

Al Ain vs. Johannesburg - Cost of restaurants

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pay 11.9% less for groceries

	Al Ain	Johannesburg
Bread 1 loaf	$1.60 AED5.89	$1.11 ZAR18.21	-30.9%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.28 AED19.39	$4.31 ZAR70.95	-18.3%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.96 AED25.55	$4.73 ZAR77.85	-31.9%
Eggs 1 dozen	$3.64 AED13.37	$2.37 ZAR39.00	-34.8%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$4.12 AED15.11	$2.30 ZAR37.89	-44.0%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.15 AED4.21	$0.78 ZAR12.89	-31.6%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.82 AED3.00	$0.72 ZAR11.77	-12.3%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.83 AED3.05	$0.72 ZAR11.80	-13.5%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.67 AED2.46	$0.80 ZAR13.12	+18.9%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.52 AED1.93	$0.66 ZAR10.83	+25.4%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.49 AED1.81	$0.70 ZAR11.57	+42.4%
Average			-11.9%

Al Ain vs. Johannesburg - Cost of groceries

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pay 79.0% more for transportation

	Al Ain	Johannesburg
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$2.91 AED10.69	$4.84 ZAR79.54	+66.1%
Monthly public transit pass	$24.51 AED90.00	$86.04 ZAR1,414.69	+251.1%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$44,639.07 AED164K	$22,943.68 ZAR377K	-48.6%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$7.62 AED28.00	$11.24 ZAR184.85	+47.5%
Average			+79.0%

Al Ain vs. Johannesburg - Cost of transportation

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pay 35.2% less for housing

	Al Ain	Johannesburg
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$100.96 AED370.79	$41.63 ZAR684.54	-58.8%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$717.04 AED2,633.33	$434.32 ZAR7,141.37	-39.4%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$778.22 AED2,858.00	$380.92 ZAR6,263.23	-51.1%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$86.72 AED318.49	$94.21 ZAR1,549.04	+8.6%
Average			-35.2%

Al Ain vs. Johannesburg - Cost of housing

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pay 31.5% less for childcare

	Al Ain	Johannesburg
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$625.43 AED2,296.88	$218.24 ZAR3,588.38	-65.1%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$5,445.88 AED20,000.00	$5,560.97 ZAR91,436.33	+2.1%
Average			-31.5%

Al Ain vs. Johannesburg - Cost of childcare

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pay 47.4% less for entertainment and sports

	Al Ain	Johannesburg
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$8.17 AED30.00	$2.58 ZAR42.44	-68.4%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$4.77 AED17.50	$2.24 ZAR36.87	-52.9%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$5.31 AED19.50	$3.15 ZAR51.87	-40.6%
Monthly membership at local gym	$49.16 AED180.56	$35.07 ZAR576.59	-28.7%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$13.61 AED50.00	$7.31 ZAR120.25	-46.3%
Average			-47.4%

Al Ain vs. Johannesburg - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 12.4% more for clothing

	Al Ain	Johannesburg
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$60.62 AED222.62	$53.86 ZAR885.64	-11.1%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$28.59 AED105.00	$41.32 ZAR679.48	+44.5%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$71.25 AED261.67	$92.73 ZAR1,524.72	+30.1%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$96.21 AED353.33	$82.91 ZAR1,363.18	-13.8%
Average			+12.4%

Al Ain vs. Johannesburg - 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: July 2026

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