Cost of living in the United Arab Emirates – 2015

Expected to have mixed reflections of market conditions. Cost of oil is going to fall, but UAE has fixed adminsitered gas prices. However, Governments income in AD is going to faill, might be, some social spending will increase. Some other cities which rely on say, non oil sector income, will see marginal growth in tourism and travel.
Consequently, in places like AD, cost of rent might go up, and places like Dubai, it might be stable. Cost of gas is fixed, and an expected marrginal increase of commodity prices by say, 5% including food and daily froceries. Hotel and dinning out, also to increse 2 to 3%.

Hi

housing is really expensive im giving more than half of my salary to rent sharing in a place with rats and cockroaches,
transportation increased also too much, foods and basic need products increased within 2 years , working conditions also are tough ( you may work unpaid and noone will help you get your rights, or without visa or be asked to buy visa and salaries are really low), for outing no discussion since if you manage to pass your month you should be content

How much does it cost to live in the United Arab Emirates?

> accommodation prices - too costly

> public transportation fares (tube, bus etc.) --its going high

> food prices (your monthly budget)-  costly

> health prices (for those who need medical insurance) -too high

> education prices (if you need to pay)

> energy prices (oil, electricity)

> common bills (Internet, television, telephone, mobile phone)

> price for a good menu in a traditional restaurant

> price for a coffee or a drink

> price for cinema tickets

Hi all,
Living is Abu Dhabi is very expensive. Rent which is already taking half or more of a common person, has increased and still increasing after the announcement of Expo2020 although its too far still. On the other hand, increase in fare in public transport has made the budget more tight. Prices for groceries are also increasing and adding to difficulties. Salaries are same or getting worse than before. No increments, no bonus and in such cases, switching is also useless and dangerous as hunting new job is not an easy task.
And finally, for schools, govt has moved many schools out of main city. The remaining have monopolistic competition with heavy school fees and others are too far to go for children. Now stuck whether to live near to school or near to my office? Also getting admission in a school is as difficult as walking on fire.

We have lived on reem island for two years,our rent has gone up three times,it is way too expensive.Our apartment building used to be a lovely quiet haven for us,the tower blocked next door has filled up,so we now have noisy noisy children everywhere,so much for quiet.
The only thing cheap here is petrol,food has gone up,utilities etc grrr.
Don't get me wrong great place to live ,but if price of living goes up,so should wages.
Oh except for the people who work for oil companies who get way way too much money,while the workers who Louise this country live hand to mouth.

How much does it cost to live in the United Arab Emirates?

I live in Dubai and here are my answers:

> accommodation prices - It takes more than half of my salary -- I earn 9000 dirhams and I pay 4500 + 300 for Internet

> public transportation fares (tube, bus etc.) -- senseless and I can not afford to have a car

> food prices (your monthly budget)-  buying stuff in hyper markets is a bit reasonable comparing it to prices in supermarkets.

> health prices (for those who need medical insurance) - I suffered for too long more than 4 years to work for emploeyrs who do not grant a medical insurance and was impossible to manage without asking friends to lend me the money.

> education prices (if you need to pay) ---- N/A

> energy prices (oil, electricity)-- For Dewa I can not understand the term housing fees / taxes why shall I pay this?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

> common bills (Internet, television, telephone, mobile phone)--- Not reasonable.

> price for a good menu in a traditional restaurant ---- expensive and small portions

> price for a coffee or a drink--- expensive!!

> price for cinema tickets --- standard.

> accommodation prices- The cost of accommodations varies widely depending on where you live. In Dubai, a 3 to 4 bedroom villa (what most Americans would call a semi-detatched townhouse) will cost anywhere from 110,000dhs/ year- Jumeirah Village Circle to over 250,000- Jumeirah 1, 2, 3 to prices in the 300,000+ range for a particularly prestigious neighborhood (al Barari, the Palm Jumeirah, etc.) Apartments are all over the place. Although there are very few reputable ones, best to get a real-estate agent to help. Soundest advice is to avoid accepting jobs that don't come with housing.

> public transportation fares (tube, bus etc.)- public transportation is reasonable, but not terribly efficient. The bus system is ok, where it goes but there are plenty of places without bus lines. The metro is good and popular, but if you have to go anywhere that is on the opposite side of the main roads, the crossover can be as much as a 15minute walk on each side. Metros are super crowded at peak times. The taxi system is also good, as long as you dont have to be anywhere within a particular timeframe, otherwise there is Uber and Careem for on-time car travel.

> food prices (your monthly budget)- IMHO food prices are akin to those in any major city. A few commodities (milk, eggs, yogurt, arabic bread) are still price controlled and local produce (cucumbers, tomato, herbs, dates etc.) is quite cheap. If you eat simply, you will be fine, but imported foods and specialty foods are expensive.

> health prices (for those who need medical insurance)- Do not accept a job without medical insurance, the costs to self-insure are incredibly high. Also, if you do have 'medical insurance' you may be surprised to find that you, in truth, do not have what you think of as insurance. Many companies here self-insure and what you really get is a case-by-case analysis by a random bureaucrat whose job is to save the company money. Also, understand that there is no insurance regulator in the UAE, insurance companies face little to no oversight and can pretty much pick and choose what they will pay for.

> education prices (if you need to pay)- Assume primary school is around 25,000dhs per year, secondary school at 45,000, but many schools cost MUCH MUCH more (75k +). Education is a business here, NOT a public service and schools are run as such. Many companies offer education support or school debentures (a fixed, reduced cost for employees of a particular company), but this does tend to drive up prices.

> energy prices (oil, electricity)- I have no idea what electricity and water cost (company housing) but assume for a family of 4, it will be in the range of 2000- 3000 per month as this is what people tell me is average. If your home has 'district cooling' this is a flat, rather than usage based rate.

> common bills (Internet, television, telephone, mobile phone)
internet- 400-600 dhs/month
television- 300- 500 dhs/
telephone- 300-500 dhs/month
mobile- 300-500 dhs/month (but a second line can be added for about 100 dhs/month

> price for a good menu in a traditional restaurant
500- 1000 depending on wine/ booze consumption
300-500 bistro
200- 300 cafe

> price for a coffee or a drink
anywhere from 20 - 70dhs depending on what it is

> price for cinema tickets
50 - 100dhs

Overall, Dubai at least is an incredibly expensive city. If you are looking at moving here do not even consider a package that nets you less than 30,000 per month or expect that your lifestyle is not going to exactly match up to the dream of living here. It certainly can be done on (a LOT!) less, but you really have to shape your expectations.