Cost of living comparison

compared to

Maldives vs. Saudi Arabia Cost of Living Summary

Maldives is 17.2% more expensive than Saudi Arabia overall.

Restaurants: pay 30.3% more in Maldives
Groceries: pay 45.8% more in Maldives
Transportation: pay 14.4% more in Maldives
Housing: pay 60.9% more in Maldives
Childcare: pay 49.0% less in Maldives
Entertainment and Sports: pay 29.3% more in Maldives
Clothing: pay 11.4% less in Maldives

The cost of housing, groceries, restaurants, entertainment and sports, and transportation in Maldives are more expensive than in Saudi Arabia. Expenses including childcare and clothing are lower in Maldives.

Maldives vs. Saudi Arabia Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Maldives instead of Saudi Arabia, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 30.3% more for restaurants

	Saudi Arabia	Maldives
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$6.32 SAR23.70	$5.56 MVR85.56	-12.1%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$7.73 SAR29.00	$9.80 MVR150.98	+26.8%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.74 SAR2.79	$1.45 MVR22.29	+94.8%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.27 SAR1.02	$0.31 MVR4.70	+11.8%
Average			+30.3%

Saudi Arabia vs. Maldives - Cost of restaurants

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pay 45.8% more for groceries

	Saudi Arabia	Maldives
Bread 1 loaf	$0.92 SAR3.43	$1.59 MVR24.49	+73.8%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$3.62 SAR13.56	$4.58 MVR70.46	+26.5%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.74 SAR25.26	$6.95 MVR107.00	+3.2%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.52 SAR9.47	$1.67 MVR25.67	-34.0%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$3.28 SAR12.28	$2.82 MVR43.37	-14.0%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.97 SAR3.63	$1.84 MVR28.31	+89.9%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.78 SAR2.91	$1.73 MVR26.63	+122.5%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.80 SAR3.00	$1.96 MVR30.25	+145.7%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.74 SAR2.77	$1.48 MVR22.83	+100.8%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.66 SAR2.49	$0.70 MVR10.77	+5.3%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.65 SAR2.43	$0.55 MVR8.45	-15.5%
Average			+45.8%

Saudi Arabia vs. Maldives - Cost of groceries

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pay 14.4% more for transportation

	Saudi Arabia	Maldives
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$2.32 SAR8.72	$3.54 MVR54.53	+52.4%
Monthly public transit pass	$33.84 SAR126.92	$28.91 MVR445.28	-14.6%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$25,756.63 SAR96,608.57	$32,679.74 MVR503,267.97	+26.9%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$19.00 SAR71.26	$17.65 MVR271.76	-7.1%
Average			+14.4%

Saudi Arabia vs. Maldives - Cost of transportation

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pay 60.9% more for housing

	Saudi Arabia	Maldives
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$74.04 SAR277.70	$61.82 MVR952.02	-16.5%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$434.87 SAR1,631.13	$1,136.53 MVR17,502.54	+161.3%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$360.33 SAR1,351.52	$731.21 MVR11,260.62	+102.9%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$97.42 SAR365.42	$93.30 MVR1,436.78	-4.2%
Average			+60.9%

Saudi Arabia vs. Maldives - Cost of housing

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pay 49.0% less for childcare

	Saudi Arabia	Maldives
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$350.88 SAR1,316.09	$164.38 MVR2,531.44	-53.2%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$6,485.70 SAR24,326.72	$3,587.42 MVR55,246.24	-44.7%
Average			-49.0%

Saudi Arabia vs. Maldives - Cost of childcare

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pay 29.3% more for entertainment and sports

	Saudi Arabia	Maldives
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.89 SAR7.09	$4.74 MVR72.97	+150.8%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.48 SAR13.06	$3.31 MVR50.96	-5.0%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$7.47 SAR28.00	$13.07 MVR201.31	+75.1%
Monthly membership at local gym	$106.43 SAR399.18	$72.98 MVR1,123.97	-31.4%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$17.24 SAR64.67	$9.80 MVR150.98	-43.1%
Average			+29.3%

Saudi Arabia vs. Maldives - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 11.4% less for clothing

	Saudi Arabia	Maldives
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$48.71 SAR182.69	$43.03 MVR662.64	-11.7%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$57.50 SAR215.68	$56.86 MVR875.69	-1.1%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$88.56 SAR332.16	$90.20 MVR1,389.02	+1.9%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$79.17 SAR296.96	$51.74 MVR796.84	-34.6%
Average			-11.4%

Saudi Arabia vs. Maldives - 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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