Dubai v the world: comparing the cost of everyday items

Deutsche Bank’s Mapping the World’s Prices 2019 survey, published this week, found that while rents have declined in the region, expatriate workers in Dubai have seen their disposable income drop by nearly a fifth over the last year.

Below we take a deeper dive into how much some basic items cost in the emirate, how they compare to the rest of the world and any changes in prices in the major expat cities over the last year.

Monthly salary (net of taxes):

01. San Francisco: $6,526 – up 31%
02. Zurich: $5,896 – down 9%
03. New York City: $4,612 – up 12%
10. London: $2,956 – down 13%
14. Dubai: $2,856 – down 17%
33. Riyadh: $1,473 – down 17%
45. Mumbai: $592 – down 22%

Monthly rent for a mid-range two bedroom apartment

01. Hong Kong: $3,685 – down 1%
02. San Francisco: $3,631 – down 1%
03. New York City: $2,909 – up 2%
06. London: $2,338 – Down 3%
18. Dubai: $1,576 – down 12%
36. Riyadh: $928 – up 19%
46. Mumbai: Up 1%

Disposable Income Index after Rents (assuming 2 people working and sharing)

01. San Francisco: $4,710 – Up 50%
02. Zurich: $4,626 – Up 1%
03. Chicago: $3,298 – Up 12%
05. New York City: $3,157 – Up 17%
11. Dubai: $2,068 – Down 19%
25. London: $1,787 – Down 18%
31. Riyadh: $1,009 – Down 27%
46. Mumbai: $284 – Down 37%

Cost of a weekend getaway

(Defined as two nights at a standard 5-star hotel room, two pub meals for two, two restaurant dinners for two, car rental for two days, two pints of beer, four litres of soft drinks/water, and a bit of shopping, including purchases of a pair of jeans and a pair of sports shoes)

Weekend Getaway Index

01. Milan: $2,706
02. Copenhagen $2,120
03. Zurich: $2,104
06. London: $2,049
25. Dubai: $1,327
44. Mumbai: $900

Cost of an iPhone XS

01. Brazil: $2050
02. Turkey: $1880
03. Argentina: $1776
04. India: $1635
19. United Kingdom: $1483
33. Saudi Arabia: $1333
35. United Arab Emirates: $1323
39. United States: $1251

Daily Car Rental

01. London: $172.4 – Down 4%
02. Jakarta: $161.7 – No change
03. Hong Kong: $160.6 – Down 27%
07. New York City: $143.6 – Down 2%
31. New Delhi: $70.5 – Up 18%
32. Dubai: $67.2 – Up 17%
36. Riyadh: $62.7

Five Star Hotel Rooms with a View

01. Milan: $961
02. Madrid: $721
03. Vienna: $716
07. London: $618
18. Riyadh: $442
22. New York City: $415
29. Dubai: $339
39. Mumbai: $269

Litres of Coca-Cola

01. Oslo: $4.73 – Down 1%
02. Copenhagen: $2.98 – Down 13%
03. Amsterdam: $2.67 – Down 9%
07. London: $2.45 – Down 2%
08. New York City: $2.40 – No change
28. Riyadh: $1.95 – Up 12%
31. Dubai: $1.91 – Up 11%
50. Mumbai: $1.11 – Down 5%

Beer in a Neighbourhood Pub (500ml or 1 pint) in Expat Area

01. Dubai: $11.4 – Down 5%
02. Oslo: $9.8 – Down 32%
03. Copenhagen: $8.5 – Up 27%
06. New York City: $7.7 – No change
40. Mumbai: $3.6 – Down 9%

Pair of Sport Shoes (Nike, Adidas or Equivalent Brands)

01. Zurich: $150.9 – Down 4%
02. Copenhagen: $132.9 – Down 5%
03. Oslo: $124.1 – Down 12%
04. Dubai: $119.2 – Up 23%
17. London: $101.9 – No change
15. Riyadh: $102.7 – Up 23%
30. New York City: $93 – No change
52. Mumbai: $60.6 – Up 1%

Pair of Levis Jeans (Levis 501 or similar)

01. Zurich: $119.6 – Down 1%
02. Copenhagen: $118.7 – Up 4%
03. Oslo: $115.3 206% -15%
11. London: $96.8 – Down 2%
22. Dubai: $81.1 – Up 2%
36. Riyadh: $61.1 – Up 64%
39. New York City: $56.0 – Up 4%
53. Mumbai: $34.9 – Down 12%

Monthly Ticket Public Transport

01. London: $179.4 – Down 9%
02. Dublin: $128.1 Down 11%
03. Auckland: $125.7 – Down 8%
05. New York City: $121.0 – No change
22. Dubai: $70.2 – Down 9%
50. Riyadh: $24.0 – Down 39%
54. Mumbai: $16.8 – No change

New Mid-Size Car (Equivalent to Volkswagen Golf), no Extras

01. Singapore: $76,313 – Down 12%
02. Copenhagen: $39,904 – Down 9%
03. Oslo: $39,273 – Down 7%
22. London: $23,981 – No change
23. Dubai: $23,602 – up 8%
25. New York City: $23,454 – Up 2%
50. Riyadh: $16,877 – Down 11%
54. Mumbai: $12,147 – Down 3%

Litre (1/4 Gallon) of Gas

01. Hong Kong: $2.04 – up 7%
02. Oslo: $1.85 – Down 2%
03. Amsterdam: $1.78 – Down 9%
09. London: $1.68 – No change
29. Mumbai: $1.17 – Up 1%
45. New York City: $0.80 – No change
51. Dubai: $0.63 – Up 15%
54. Riyadh: $0.40 – Up 15%

Taxi Trip on a Business Day, Basic Tariff, 8km (5 miles)

01. Zurich: $38.2 – Up 1%
02. Amsterdam: $27.8 – Down 1%
03. Tokyo: $27.7 – Down 16%
10. London: $21.9 – Down 21%
16. New York City: $19.0 – Up 6%
38. Dubai: $8.7 – Up 10%
44. Riyadh: $6.7 – Down 14%
53. Mumbai: $3.2 – Up 3%

Ticket to the Cinema

01. Zurich: $19 - Down 5%
02. London: $16.8 – No change
03. New York City: $16.5 – Up 6%
09. Riyadh: $14.8 – Up 13%
25. Dubai: $11.0 – Up 5%
45. Mumbai: $5.0 – Up 26%

Month of Gym Membership in the Business District

01. Hong Kong: $125.4 – Up 19%
02. Singapore: $121.0 – Up 17%
03. Dubai: $110.0 – Down 8%
05. Riyadh: $105.3 - Up 6%
09. New York City: $96.0 – Down 4%
10. London: $87.7 – Down 11%
20. Mumbai: $54.7 – Up 17%

Men's Standard Haircut in the Expat Area of the City

01. Copenhagen: $47.6 – Up 23%
02. Oslo: $44.5 – Up 11%
03. Zurich: $41.2 – Down 10%
12. New York City: $28.0 – Up 8%
24. London: $19.4 – Down 23%
31. Dubai: $17.2 – Down 6%
50. Riyadh: $5.3 – Down 9%
51. Mumbai: $5.2 – Up 1%

Pack of Marlboro Cigarettes

01. Melbourne: $23.1 – Up 2%
02. Sydney: $22.4 – Up 2%
03. Auckland: $18.5 – Down 3%
05. London: $14.2 – Up 2%
08. New York City: $14.0 – No change
22. Riyadh: $7.2 – Up 13%
38. Mumbai: $4.1 – Up 16%

Hourly Rate for Cleaning

01. Stockholm: $39 – Up 26%
02. Helsinki: $39 – Up 7%
03. Oslo: $37 – Up 5%
08. New York City: $25 – Up 4%
20. London: $15 – Down 7%
31. Riyadh: $11 – Up 32%
32. Dubai: $10 – Down 10%
36. Mumbai: $9 – Down 28%

Month of Internet (8 Mbps)

01. Dubai: $82 – Down 4%
02. Dublin: $52 – Up 7%
03. New York City: $52 – Up 11%
28. London: $28 – Down 3%
49. Mumbai: $13 – Down 6%

Cappuccino in Expat Area of the City

01. Copenhagen: $6.3 – Down 4%
02. Dubai: $6.0 – Up 10%
03. Hong Kong: $5.7 – Up 2%
11. New York City: $5.0 – No change
19. London: $4.1 – Down 7%
32. Mumbai: $3.6 – Up 15%

Summer Dress in a High Street Store (Zara, H&M or similar retailers)

01. Riyadh: $68 – Up 35%
02. Dubai: $67 – Up 10%
03. Zurich: $67 – Up 21%
20. London: $46 – Up 1%
34. New York City: $41 – Down 5%
37. Mumbai: $40 – Down 18%

Read the full report here.