Cost of Living in Abu Dhabi

Summary about cost of living in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates:

Restaurants
Edit Range
Meal, Inexpensive Restaurant 35.00 AED 18.00-60.00
Meal for 2 People, Mid-range Restaurant, Three-course 240.00 AED 140.00-450.00
McMeal at McDonalds (or Equivalent Combo Meal) 30.00 AED 30.00-40.00
Domestic Beer (1 pint draught) 40.00 AED 25.00-65.00
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 40.00 AED 30.00-59.00
Cappuccino (regular) 18.92 AED 6.00-40.00
Coke/Pepsi (12 oz small bottle) 3.59 AED 2.50-6.00
Water (12 oz small bottle) 1.24 AED 1.00-3.00
Markets
Edit
Milk (regular), (1 gallon) 25.06 AED 15.14-45.42
Loaf of Fresh White Bread (1 lb) 4.31 AED 2.72-8.16
Rice (white), (1 lb) 2.93 AED 1.81-5.90
Eggs (regular) (12) 10.12 AED 6.00-14.40
Local Cheese (1 lb) 13.09 AED 6.35-31.75
Chicken Fillets (1 lb) 12.61 AED 6.80-20.41
Beef Round (1 lb) (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) 17.74 AED 11.34-36.29
Apples (1 lb) 3.57 AED 1.81-5.44
Banana (1 lb) 2.76 AED 1.81-4.08
Oranges (1 lb) 2.86 AED 1.59-5.44
Tomato (1 lb) 2.27 AED 1.34-3.18
Potato (1 lb) 1.75 AED 0.84-3.18
Onion (1 lb) 1.59 AED 0.91-2.72
Lettuce (1 head) 4.73 AED 2.00-8.00
Water (1.5 liter bottle) 2.11 AED 1.00-3.00
Bottle of Wine (Mid-Range) 60.00 AED 30.00-100.00
Domestic Beer (0.5 liter bottle) 9.47 AED 5.00-15.00
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 12.00 AED 6.00-20.00
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro) 22.00 AED 20.00-25.00
Transportation
Edit
One-way Ticket (Local Transport) 2.00 AED 2.00-4.00
Monthly Pass (Regular Price) 80.00 AED 80.00-120.00
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff) 12.00 AED 5.00-13.00
Taxi 1 mile (Normal Tariff) 3.22 AED 2.91-7.64
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff) 30.00 AED 20.00-55.00
Gasoline (1 gallon) 14.37 AED 11.36-17.22
Volkswagen Golf 1.4 90 KW Trendline (Or Equivalent New Car) 89,500.00 AED 75,000.00-120,000.00
Toyota Corolla Sedan 1.6l 97kW Comfort (Or Equivalent New Car) 75,800.00 AED 70,000.00-85,000.00
Utilities (Monthly)
Edit
Basic (Electricity, Heating, Cooling, Water, Garbage) for 915 sq ft Apartment 646.03 AED 383.87-1,000.00
1 min. of Prepaid Mobile Tariff Local (No Discounts or Plans) 0.72 AED 0.30-1.00
Internet (60 Mbps or More, Unlimited Data, Cable/ADSL) 380.21 AED 300.00-500.00
Sports And Leisure
Edit
Fitness Club, Monthly Fee for 1 Adult 262.13 AED 100.00-500.00
Tennis Court Rent (1 Hour on Weekend) 141.05 AED 60.00-200.00
Cinema, International Release, 1 Seat 45.00 AED 35.00-55.00
Childcare
Edit
Preschool (or Kindergarten), Full Day, Private, Monthly for 1 Child 2,242.03 AED 1,200.00-4,822.00
International Primary School, Yearly for 1 Child 34,639.84 AED 20,000.00-60,000.00
Clothing And Shoes
Edit
1 Pair of Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar) 196.20 AED 59.00-379.00
1 Summer Dress in a Chain Store (Zara, H&M, ...) 171.27 AED 50.00-295.00
1 Pair of Nike Running Shoes (Mid-Range) 336.88 AED 199.00-500.00
1 Pair of Men Leather Business Shoes 348.12 AED 150.00-500.00
Rent Per Month
Edit
Apartment (1 bedroom) in City Centre 5,774.44 AED 4,000.00-8,130.00
Apartment (1 bedroom) Outside of Centre 4,452.48 AED 3,000.00-6,150.00
Apartment (3 bedrooms) in City Centre 10,483.13 AED 7,000.00-19,000.00
Apartment (3 bedrooms) Outside of Centre 7,853.73 AED 5,000.00-10,800.00
Buy Apartment Price
Edit
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment in City Centre 1,289.69 AED 929.02-1,523.60
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment Outside of Centre 1,196.87 AED 799.99-1,523.60
Salaries And Financing
Edit
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax) 12,930.98 AED
Mortgage Interest Rate in Percentages (%), Yearly, for 20 Years Fixed-Rate 4.73 3.00-5.75

Prices in Abu Dhabi

This city had 2075 entries in the past 12 months by 268 different contributors.
Last update: March 2023
Sources and References
Distribution of Expenses Using Our Statistical Model:
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22 Comments so far
Anonymous on Sep 18, 2022:
If i have 3000AED per month and accommodation is provided by company
So can i survive with this salary?
Anonymous on Sep 13, 2022:
Abu Dhabi expensive more than Bangkok Thailand
actually Bangkok 3000usd per mont enough .
So I ma RF Engineer more experience 20year I am focus 5000 usd at there
Thank
Leigh on Oct 11, 2021:
I've got an offer of 500k aed per year for a family of 3. Any good?
Anonymous on Aug 04, 2021:
Hello,

I got an offer costing 15,000 Emarati Dirham . Can i survive with this salary me and my wife & one school going kid.
John on Jan 10, 2021:
I wonder while Dubai is about 8% more expensive than Athens and in Athens you need 850 euros to live in Dubai you need about 2500 euros. I estimate that they have entered the market of Dubai either businessmen or banks and have created a bubble market. The same has been done in Bulgaria where the cost of living is about 750 euros with the cost of buying an apartment in the center is 1500-2000 euros the same Serbia that costs is about 450 euros. with the cost of buying an apartment 2500-3000 euros.
These prices are unbelievable and you owe it to the Germans to come in and create a bubble in real estate prices.
If you want send me where you owe the price difference. I am not referring to very expensive areas of Dubai but to popular neighborhoods within the city center.
Anna on Dec 25, 2020:
Hey,
I have lived in abu dhabi for a long time and I feel I can help anyone with making a few pointers
A good studio in abu dhabi is around 3.5k monthly
A good one bedroom is around 4.5k monthly
2 bedroom 7.5k monthly
3 bedroom 9k monthly
For food and groceries I would expect around 1k monthly if you enjoy cooking at home per person
But if you eat out a lot expect more of 1.8/2k monthly per person
If you have kids it really does vary, it can be 2k a month and can go up to 6k depending on the school, some really good schools are 2k a month so I would not stress over very expensive education.
For leisure, if you are not a big spender 600AED a month is good but if you like entertainment and a lot of things then again expect 1.5k or more a month.
For reference a movie ticket is 40AED per person
The biggest controversy here is transpor, public transport is cheap but not good around 60AED, taxis can get pretty expensive averaging 15AED per ride. Buying a car is costly, a brand new bmw youre looking at 200k or a new toyota is 100k but if you decide on a cheaper option and get monthly payments then it is 100% doable as UAE weather definitely needs a car. For example I bought a brand new 2020 CIVIC LX sport for 70k, 20% downpayment of 14k and a monthly 1.1k for 36 months. Another example, a 2016 lancer with low mileage would be around 22k.
If you have any other questions Id love to help with no cost just email me on srh-01@hotmail .com
Jolly cargo on May 20, 2020:
Hello
I have a job but my salary is 3000 and I pay my room 850 and about my foods and my utilities and taxi I sent also my family in Philippine also my country is locked down I don’t have enough money...
Anonymous on Apr 18, 2020:
Sorry, my bad I did not read your offer carefully. If it includes accommodation then you can save AED 1000 per month and convert it to your local currency as a saving per month.
Anonymous on Apr 18, 2020:
I doubt that you can save much in AED 3000 per month because a single bed will cost you AED 900-1000 per month (on room sharing basis). You need additional AED 1200 per month for food, AED 150 for mobile & Internet, and on weekends you will go out to Malls or Shopping Centers and you will end up spending AED 150-200 every weekend. If you can curtail any of these expenses then you can save something but it will totally depend on you, as to how you can live on a very tight budget.
Anonymous on Mar 01, 2020:
I got an offer of 3000AED in Abu Dhabi with accommodation & travel free of cost in company's side. Fr food,internet,phone call I want to balance in this 3000 AED... Although I wanna save a huge amount & wanna send to my family(dad,mom,wife & a kid(4yrs old))... those all possible with this salary package?? Pls anyone reply soon.!!
BETSIE BAHRU on Feb 28, 2020:
Hello everyone,
Im looking for a job in Abu Dhabi, How do u think i should apply for one?
Any recommendations?
I have a bachelor's degree!
Please send some tips and hints, Thanks.
Anonymous on Feb 19, 2020:
@Rahamanuddin: 2 bhk will roughly starts from 6k aed per month. For kid education minimum 1500 aed per month. So I see you could live decently in 15 k aed (until you don't plan to buy BMW here). Rest would be your saving.
Md Rahamanuddin on Feb 06, 2020:
Hi,
I have 8+ experience and planning to move UAE, currently in negotiation with salary with one of the IT company. I am married and have 3 kids(2 school going kids).Company is offering only salary + VISA + yearly travel. What should be expected salary so i can bear 2BHK rent + education for 2 kids with some savings.
Manoj on Nov 06, 2019:
I completed mtech in India ...can I get job in Dubai .....I m expecting 20k AED..
........please refer me
Tridib Kumar halder on Sep 09, 2019:
I got a offer on Abu Dhabi..for job which will pay me 1100 dirhams monthly....so is it legit.......pls tell so.....all other accomodation are free
AbuDhabi on Aug 30, 2019:
Hey,

Got an offer for 26100 all in , child education and health insurance are covered by company. Do you think is decent for family of 3 , 2 adults and 1,5 yo baby ? Thanks !
Fed on Jul 29, 2019:
Hello

Could you please verify if the offer is legit. Thanks

28,800 AED-Monthly salary
2,000 AED WEekly allowance
3,600 AED monthly car maintenance
170,660 AED Yearly House furnishing
3,203 AED Monthly Entertainment and REcreation
4,489 AED monthly travel allowance
170,660 AED annual House furnishing
Free accommodation
60days paid annual leave
business class free tickets
Medical treatment free
children's education free
provide personal car
provide telephone + covers 100% bill
Joshua Ghosn on Jun 12, 2019:
I have an offer of 24700 plus housing allowance. Pls I need advice on how this is enough for a couple without children. Thanks in advance!!!
sara on May 09, 2019:
Hi, I am a single mom with one child and I want to stay at Abu dhabi for 3 month. I want to know about Kindergarten's fee.
Thanks
Steven a on Apr 27, 2019:
Hi. I am in the process of applying for a position that would pay £45-50k per year. What quality of Life could I expect for a Family of 4
Anonymous on Mar 14, 2019:
Hi the above information's are completely wrong it is in the higher side seems like a guess work........
prosper on Mar 10, 2019:
I got an offer of 21500 Pls I need advice on how too save.