Cost of living comparison
compared to
United States vs. United Arab Emirates Cost of Living Summary
United States is 40.5% more expensive than United Arab Emirates overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 2.1 times more in United States
- Groceries
-
pay 86.8% more in United States
- Transportation
-
pay 24.9% more in United States
- Housing
-
pay 20.5% more in United States
- Childcare
-
pay 3.0 times more in United States
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 11.5% less in United States
- Clothing
-
pay 2.6% less in United States
The cost of childcare, restaurants, groceries, transportation, and housing in United States are more expensive than in United Arab Emirates. Expenses including entertainment and sports and clothing are lower in United States. Notably, childcare, restaurants, and groceries are significantly more expensive in United States.
United States vs. United Arab Emirates Cost Breakdown
If you lived in United States instead of United Arab Emirates, you would:
pay 2.1 times more for restaurants
|
United Arab Emirates
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$8.43
AED30.95
|
$19.86
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$8.55
AED31.39
|
$11.42
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.07
AED3.94
|
$2.67
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.45
AED1.66
|
$2.05
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. United States - Cost of restaurants
pay 86.8% more for groceries
|
United Arab Emirates
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.46
AED5.38
|
$3.63
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.94
AED18.13
|
$6.52
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.75
AED24.79
|
$3.98
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.80
AED10.28
|
$4.30
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.68
AED13.51
|
$5.46
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$0.97
AED3.58
|
$2.34
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.76
AED2.80
|
$0.80
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.72
AED2.65
|
$2.02
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.58
AED2.13
|
$2.19
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.48
AED1.75
|
$1.34
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.47
AED1.74
|
$1.39
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. United States - Cost of groceries
pay 24.9% more for transportation
|
United Arab Emirates
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.40
AED12.50
|
$4.01
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$49.01
AED180.00
|
$66.70
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$33,745.09
AED124K
|
$34,164.82
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$7.71
AED28.31
|
$18.02
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. United States - Cost of transportation
pay 20.5% more for housing
|
United Arab Emirates
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$87.46
AED321.23
|
$70.22
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,419.61
AED5,214.23
|
$1,681.01
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,087.32
AED3,993.73
|
$1,404.28
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$131.39
AED482.60
|
$157.64
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. United States - Cost of housing
pay 3.0 times more for childcare
|
United Arab Emirates
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$481.84
AED1,769.81
|
$1,450.99
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$8,191.72
AED30,088.20
|
$24,361.50
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. United States - Cost of childcare
pay 11.5% less for entertainment and sports
|
United Arab Emirates
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$10.81
AED39.72
|
$6.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.99
AED18.34
|
$5.31
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$6.20
AED22.77
|
$10.42
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$69.98
AED257.02
|
$50.68
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.30
AED48.83
|
$13.95
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. United States - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 2.6% less for clothing
|
United Arab Emirates
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$53.49
AED196.45
|
$53.15
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$52.36
AED192.32
|
$41.88
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$95.31
AED350.08
|
$89.76
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$94.82
AED348.27
|
$114.01
|
|
United Arab Emirates vs. United States - Cost of clothing
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated November 2026). How we calculate this
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