Cost of living comparison

compared to

Ottawa vs. United Arab Emirates Cost of Living Summary

Ottawa is 39.2% more expensive than United Arab Emirates overall.

Restaurants
pay 2.1 times more in Ottawa
Groceries
pay 81.0% more in Ottawa
Transportation
pay 39.1% more in Ottawa
Housing
pay 7.2% less in Ottawa
Childcare
pay 75.7% more in Ottawa
Entertainment and Sports
pay 4.2% less in Ottawa
Clothing
pay 23.7% less in Ottawa

The cost of restaurants, groceries, childcare, and transportation in Ottawa are more expensive than in United Arab Emirates. Expenses including clothing, housing, and entertainment and sports are lower in Ottawa. Notably, restaurants, groceries, and childcare are significantly more expensive in Ottawa.

Ottawa vs. United Arab Emirates Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Ottawa instead of United Arab Emirates, you would:

pay 2.1 times more for restaurants

 
United Arab Emirates
Ottawa
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $7.91
AED29.06
$17.99
CA$24.87
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$8.65
AED31.75
$11.01
CA$15.22
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $1.04
AED3.83
$2.00
CA$2.77

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pay 81.0% more for groceries

 
United Arab Emirates
Ottawa
Bread
1 loaf
$1.47
AED5.39
$2.73
CA$3.77
Local cheese (8 oz) $5.36
AED19.68
$5.85
CA$8.09
Milk (1 gallon) $6.96
AED25.56
$8.65
CA$11.97

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pay 39.1% more for transportation

 
United Arab Emirates
Ottawa
Gasoline (1 gallon) $2.91
AED10.69
$4.05
CA$5.60
Monthly public transit pass $53.10
AED195.00
$97.12
CA$134.31
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $40,680.12
AED149,397.75
$24,444.83
CA$33,803.54

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pay 7.2% less for housing

 
United Arab Emirates
Ottawa
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$101.41
AED372.42
$49.93
CA$69.04
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,438.18
AED5,281.71
$1,452.55
CA$2,008.67
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $990.79
AED3,638.67
$1,228.71
CA$1,699.13

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pay 75.7% more for childcare

 
United Arab Emirates
Ottawa
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $497.28
AED1,826.25
$788.18
CA$1,089.93
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $8,164.49
AED29,984.10
$15,753.32
CA$21,784.48

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pay 4.2% less for entertainment and sports

 
United Arab Emirates
Ottawa
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $10.43
AED38.31
$5.76
CA$7.96
Cappuccino in mid-range area $4.99
AED18.32
$3.74
CA$5.18
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$6.23
AED22.88
$12.95
CA$17.91

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pay 23.7% less for clothing

 
United Arab Emirates
Ottawa
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$75.04
AED275.58
$52.82
CA$73.05
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$59.50
AED218.51
$38.91
CA$53.81
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$105.66
AED388.03
$87.10
CA$120.44

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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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