Cost of living comparison
compared to
Abu Dhabi vs. San Salvador Cost of Living Summary
Abu Dhabi is 63.8% more expensive than San Salvador.
- Restaurants
-
pay 13.4% more in Abu Dhabi
- Groceries
-
pay 8.0% less in Abu Dhabi
- Transportation
-
pay 12.5% more in Abu Dhabi
- Housing
-
pay 71.5% more in Abu Dhabi
- Childcare
-
pay 2.9 times more in Abu Dhabi
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 2.7 times more in Abu Dhabi
- Clothing
-
pay 6.9% less in Abu Dhabi
The cost of childcare, entertainment and sports, housing, restaurants, and transportation in Abu Dhabi are more expensive than in San Salvador. Expenses including groceries and clothing are lower in Abu Dhabi. Notably, childcare and entertainment and sports are significantly more expensive in Abu Dhabi.
Abu Dhabi vs. San Salvador Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Abu Dhabi instead of San Salvador, you would:
pay 13.4% more for restaurants
|
San Salvador
|
Abu Dhabi
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$7.00
SVC61.08
|
$10.89
AED40.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$7.00
SVC61.08
|
$9.53
AED35.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.14
SVC9.90
|
$1.29
AED4.74
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.91
SVC7.95
|
$0.44
AED1.61
|
|
San Salvador vs. Abu Dhabi - Cost of restaurants
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pay 8.0% less for groceries
|
San Salvador
|
Abu Dhabi
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.95
SVC17.01
|
$1.60
AED5.89
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$3.77
SVC32.86
|
$5.28
AED19.39
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.84
SVC59.68
|
$7.50
AED27.54
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.01
SVC26.26
|
$3.64
AED13.37
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$2.99
SVC26.05
|
$4.12
AED15.11
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.77
SVC15.46
|
$1.15
AED4.21
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.76
SVC6.60
|
$0.82
AED3.00
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.17
SVC10.17
|
$0.83
AED3.05
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.22
SVC10.61
|
$0.67
AED2.46
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.97
SVC8.44
|
$0.53
AED1.96
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.98
SVC8.51
|
$0.65
AED2.39
|
|
San Salvador vs. Abu Dhabi - Cost of groceries
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pay 12.5% more for transportation
|
San Salvador
|
Abu Dhabi
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.82
SVC33.34
|
$2.94
AED10.80
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$15.00
SVC130.88
|
$25.87
AED95.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$25,500.00
SVC222,494.28
|
$44,639.07
AED163,937.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$29.93
SVC261.12
|
$7.62
AED28.00
|
|
San Salvador vs. Abu Dhabi - Cost of transportation
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pay 71.5% more for housing
|
San Salvador
|
Abu Dhabi
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$43.33
SVC378.09
|
$100.96
AED370.79
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$900.00
SVC7,852.74
|
$1,490.68
AED5,474.52
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$758.33
SVC6,616.66
|
$1,109.19
AED4,073.48
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$82.16
SVC716.84
|
$115.93
AED425.75
|
|
San Salvador vs. Abu Dhabi - Cost of housing
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pay 2.9 times more for childcare
|
San Salvador
|
Abu Dhabi
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$162.67
SVC1,419.31
|
$625.43
AED2,296.88
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$6,420.00
SVC56,016.21
|
$12,786.81
AED46,959.57
|
|
San Salvador vs. Abu Dhabi - Cost of childcare
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pay 2.7 times more for entertainment and sports
|
San Salvador
|
Abu Dhabi
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.00
SVC17.45
|
$11.29
AED41.45
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.25
SVC28.35
|
$5.77
AED21.18
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$4.00
SVC34.90
|
$6.26
AED23.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$30.80
SVC268.74
|
$62.90
AED230.98
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$5.25
SVC45.81
|
$13.61
AED50.00
|
|
San Salvador vs. Abu Dhabi - Cost of entertainment and sports
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pay 6.9% less for clothing
|
San Salvador
|
Abu Dhabi
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$62.60
SVC546.20
|
$60.62
AED222.62
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$45.83
SVC399.91
|
$51.93
AED190.71
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$131.80
SVC1,149.99
|
$98.09
AED360.23
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$109.17
SVC952.51
|
$96.21
AED353.33
|
|
San Salvador vs. Abu Dhabi - 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: December 2025
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cost of living in El Salvador vs. United Arab Emirates.
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