Cost of living comparison
compared to
Melbourne vs. Dubai Cost of Living Summary
Melbourne is 45.9% more expensive than Dubai.
- Restaurants
-
pay 96.4% more in Melbourne
- Groceries
-
pay 68.0% more in Melbourne
- Transportation
-
pay 42.9% more in Melbourne
- Housing
-
pay 31.1% less in Melbourne
- Childcare
-
pay 95.3% more in Melbourne
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 64.8% more in Melbourne
- Clothing
-
pay 14.8% less in Melbourne
The cost of restaurants, childcare, groceries, entertainment and sports, and transportation in Melbourne are more expensive than in Dubai. Expenses including housing and clothing are lower in Melbourne. Notably, restaurants and childcare are significantly more expensive in Melbourne.
Melbourne vs. Dubai Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Melbourne instead of Dubai, you would:
pay 96.4% more for restaurants
|
Dubai
|
Melbourne
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$10.89
AED40.00
|
$19.63
A$29.65
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.53
AED35.00
|
$10.47
A$15.82
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.19
AED4.37
|
$2.69
A$4.07
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.90
AED3.31
|
$2.43
A$3.67
|
|
Dubai vs. Melbourne - Cost of restaurants
pay 68.0% more for groceries
|
Dubai
|
Melbourne
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.41
AED5.18
|
$2.73
A$4.13
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.45
AED20.01
|
$4.60
A$6.95
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$7.12
AED26.15
|
$6.19
A$9.36
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.39
AED12.43
|
$5.43
A$8.20
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.21
AED15.45
|
$4.11
A$6.21
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.05
AED3.86
|
$1.52
A$2.29
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.86
AED3.16
|
$1.36
A$2.05
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.78
AED2.88
|
$1.40
A$2.11
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.65
AED2.40
|
$1.87
A$2.83
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.53
AED1.94
|
$1.29
A$1.95
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.52
AED1.92
|
$1.11
A$1.68
|
|
Dubai vs. Melbourne - Cost of groceries
pay 42.9% more for transportation
|
Dubai
|
Melbourne
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.82
AED10.37
|
$4.42
A$6.68
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$87.13
AED320.00
|
$122.33
A$184.85
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$27,229.41
AED100,000.00
|
$29,060.36
A$43,911.22
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$8.71
AED32.00
|
$14.62
A$22.09
|
|
Dubai vs. Melbourne - Cost of transportation
pay 31.1% less for housing
|
Dubai
|
Melbourne
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$98.23
AED360.76
|
$51.49
A$77.80
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,362.29
AED8,675.50
|
$1,557.21
A$2,353.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,533.56
AED5,632.00
|
$1,186.33
A$1,792.58
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$159.06
AED584.17
|
$127.27
A$192.31
|
|
Dubai vs. Melbourne - Cost of housing
pay 95.3% more for childcare
|
Dubai
|
Melbourne
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$823.12
AED3,022.92
|
$1,960.54
A$2,962.44
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$14,907.17
AED54,746.58
|
$22,736.38
A$34,355.46
|
|
Dubai vs. Melbourne - Cost of childcare
pay 64.8% more for entertainment and sports
|
Dubai
|
Melbourne
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$13.61
AED50.00
|
$7.85
A$11.86
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.65
AED20.75
|
$3.69
A$5.58
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$6.13
AED22.50
|
$32.71
A$49.42
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$84.61
AED310.71
|
$49.01
A$74.05
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$14.98
AED55.00
|
$16.35
A$24.71
|
|
Dubai vs. Melbourne - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 14.8% less for clothing
|
Dubai
|
Melbourne
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$81.30
AED298.59
|
$70.24
A$106.13
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$63.28
AED232.39
|
$53.21
A$80.41
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$129.71
AED476.35
|
$107.56
A$162.53
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$124.75
AED458.15
|
$109.31
A$165.17
|
|
Dubai vs. Melbourne - Cost of clothing
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: December 2025
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