Cost of living comparison
compared to
Maldives vs. United Arab Emirates Cost of Living Summary
Maldives is 8.5% cheaper than United Arab Emirates overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 4.2% less in Maldives
- Groceries
-
pay 47.3% more in Maldives
- Transportation
-
pay 16.0% more in Maldives
- Housing
-
pay 27.5% less in Maldives
- Childcare
-
pay 61.5% less in Maldives
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 1.5% less in Maldives
- Clothing
-
pay 28.3% less in Maldives
The cost of groceries and transportation in Maldives are more expensive than in United Arab Emirates. Expenses including childcare, clothing, housing, restaurants, and entertainment and sports are lower in Maldives.
Maldives vs. United Arab Emirates Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Maldives instead of United Arab Emirates, you would:
pay 4.2% less for restaurants
|
United Arab Emirates
|
Maldives
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$7.91
AED29.06
|
$5.56
MVR85.83
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$8.65
AED31.75
|
$9.80
MVR151.47
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.04
AED3.83
|
$1.45
MVR22.36
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.50
AED1.85
|
$0.31
MVR4.71
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. Maldives - Cost of restaurants
pay 47.3% more for groceries
|
United Arab Emirates
|
Maldives
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.47
AED5.39
|
$1.59
MVR24.57
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.36
AED19.68
|
$4.58
MVR70.69
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.96
AED25.56
|
$6.95
MVR107.35
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.81
AED10.34
|
$1.67
MVR25.75
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.68
AED13.51
|
$2.82
MVR43.51
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$0.98
AED3.59
|
$1.84
MVR28.40
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.75
AED2.75
|
$1.73
MVR26.72
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.73
AED2.69
|
$1.96
MVR30.35
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.59
AED2.15
|
$1.48
MVR22.90
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.48
AED1.76
|
$0.70
MVR10.81
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.53
AED1.93
|
$0.55
MVR8.47
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. Maldives - Cost of groceries
pay 16.0% more for transportation
|
United Arab Emirates
|
Maldives
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.91
AED10.69
|
$3.54
MVR54.70
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$53.10
AED195.00
|
$28.91
MVR446.73
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$40,680.12
AED149,397.75
|
$32,679.74
MVR504,901.96
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$8.50
AED31.21
|
$17.65
MVR272.65
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. Maldives - Cost of transportation
pay 27.5% less for housing
|
United Arab Emirates
|
Maldives
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$101.41
AED372.42
|
$61.82
MVR955.11
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,438.18
AED5,281.71
|
$1,136.53
MVR17,559.37
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$990.79
AED3,638.67
|
$731.21
MVR11,297.18
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$122.67
AED450.49
|
$93.30
MVR1,441.45
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. Maldives - Cost of housing
pay 61.5% less for childcare
|
United Arab Emirates
|
Maldives
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$497.28
AED1,826.25
|
$164.38
MVR2,539.66
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$8,164.49
AED29,984.10
|
$3,587.42
MVR55,425.61
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. Maldives - Cost of childcare
pay 1.5% less for entertainment and sports
|
United Arab Emirates
|
Maldives
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$10.43
AED38.31
|
$4.74
MVR73.21
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.99
AED18.32
|
$3.31
MVR51.12
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$6.23
AED22.88
|
$13.07
MVR201.96
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$75.55
AED277.45
|
$72.98
MVR1,127.61
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.19
AED48.44
|
$9.80
MVR151.47
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. Maldives - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 28.3% less for clothing
|
United Arab Emirates
|
Maldives
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$75.04
AED275.58
|
$43.03
MVR664.79
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$59.50
AED218.51
|
$56.86
MVR878.53
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$105.66
AED388.03
|
$90.20
MVR1,393.53
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$106.53
AED391.23
|
$51.74
MVR799.43
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. Maldives - 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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