Cost of living comparison
compared to
North Korea vs. United Arab Emirates Cost of Living Summary
North Korea is 5.1% more expensive than United Arab Emirates overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 2.3 times more in North Korea
- Groceries
-
pay 3.0% less in North Korea
- Housing
-
pay 83.5% less in North Korea
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 21.1% less in North Korea
Expenses including housing, entertainment and sports, and groceries are lower in North Korea. Notably, restaurants is significantly more expensive in North Korea.
North Korea vs. United Arab Emirates Cost Breakdown
If you lived in North Korea instead of United Arab Emirates, you would:
pay 2.3 times more for restaurants
|
United Arab Emirates
|
North Korea
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$7.91
AED29.06
|
?? | |
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$8.65
AED31.75
|
?? | |
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.04
AED3.83
|
$2.34
KPW2,102
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.50
AED1.85
|
$1.17
KPW1,051
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. North Korea - Cost of restaurants
pay 3.0% less for groceries
|
United Arab Emirates
|
North Korea
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.47
AED5.39
|
$2.40
KPW2,161
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.36
AED19.68
|
?? | |
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.96
AED25.56
|
$3.70
KPW3,332
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.81
AED10.34
|
$2.08
KPW1,876
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.68
AED13.51
|
?? | |
| Apples (1 lb) |
$0.98
AED3.59
|
?? | |
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.75
AED2.75
|
?? | |
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.73
AED2.69
|
?? | |
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.59
AED2.15
|
?? | |
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.48
AED1.76
|
?? | |
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.53
AED1.93
|
?? | |
United Arab Emirates vs. North Korea - Cost of groceries
pay (unknown) more for transportation
|
United Arab Emirates
|
North Korea
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.91
AED10.69
|
?? | |
| Monthly public transit pass |
$53.10
AED195.00
|
?? | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$40,680.12
AED149,397.75
|
?? | |
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$8.50
AED31.21
|
?? |
United Arab Emirates vs. North Korea - Cost of transportation
pay 83.5% less for housing
|
United Arab Emirates
|
North Korea
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$101.41
AED372.42
|
?? | |
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,438.18
AED5,281.71
|
$93.44
KPW84,095
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$990.79
AED3,638.67
|
$262.80
KPW236,518
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$122.67
AED450.49
|
?? | |
United Arab Emirates vs. North Korea - Cost of housing
pay (unknown) more for childcare
|
United Arab Emirates
|
North Korea
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$497.28
AED1,826.25
|
?? | |
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$8,164.49
AED29,984.10
|
?? |
United Arab Emirates vs. North Korea - Cost of childcare
pay 21.1% less for entertainment and sports
|
United Arab Emirates
|
North Korea
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$10.43
AED38.31
|
$14.02
KPW12,614
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.99
AED18.32
|
$1.17
KPW1,051
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$6.23
AED22.88
|
?? | |
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$75.55
AED277.45
|
?? | |
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.19
AED48.44
|
?? | |
United Arab Emirates vs. North Korea - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay (unknown) more for clothing
|
United Arab Emirates
|
North Korea
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$75.04
AED275.58
|
?? | |
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$59.50
AED218.51
|
?? | |
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$105.66
AED388.03
|
?? | |
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$106.53
AED391.23
|
?? |
United Arab Emirates vs. North Korea - 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
Change currency:
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about North Korea or United Arab Emirates. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.