# Dubai — relocation profile

Dubai, United Arab Emirates · Authoritarian regime · livability 59/100

## At a glance

- **Country:** United Arab Emirates
- **Region:** Asia
- **Estimated monthly cost of living (solo, renting in the centre):** $4,463/month
- **Livability score:** 59 / 100 (rank 99 of 132 Townleap cities)
- **Settler safety score:** 40 / 100 (rank 109 of 132)
- **Cost vs New York City:** 45% cheaper
- **Also appears in:** Remote Workers, Beach Life, Budget Maximizers, Startup Cities, Sun + Beach, Rising Stars, Remote Work Visa Cities, English-Friendly Cities, Asia & Pacific, Tech Settler, Leaving the UK, Freelance-Friendly

## Cost of living

| Item | USD / month |
| --- | --- |
| Rent — 1-bed, city centre | $2,288 |
| Rent — 1-bed, outside centre | $1,450 |
| Rent — 3-bed, city centre | $4,327 |
| Average net salary (after tax) | $3,960 |
| **Total monthly cost (solo, rent included)** | **$4,463** |

One-off cost to land (deposit, agency fee, furnishing, first admin): $8,280.

Reference point: 45% cheaper than NYC.

## Settling

- **Democracy index (EIU, 0–10):** 3.1
- **Regime type:** Authoritarian regime
- **Homicide rate:** 0.8 per 100,000/year
- **English proficiency:** Moderate (EF EPI 540)
- **Main languages:** Arabic

## Day to day

- **Summer (low–high):** 29–41°C
- **Winter (low–high):** 15–25°C
- **Internet speed:** 377.96 Mbps
- **Healthcare index (0–100):** 68.6
- **Natural features:** sea

## Economy

- **GDP per capita:** $79,229 (2024, country-level)
- **Inflation:** 1.7% (2024)
- **Unemployment:** 2.2% (2025)
- **Population:** 3,944,751

## Similar cities

| City | Country | Rent (1-bed, centre) | Monthly cost | Page |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Da Nang | Vietnam | $475 | $1,183 | /cities/da-nang |
| Shenzhen | China | $743 | $1,750 | /cities/shenzhen |
| Shanghai | China | $907 | $1,987 | /cities/shanghai |
| Almaty | Kazakhstan | $756 | $1,991 | /cities/almaty |
| Beijing | China | $1,059 | $2,159 | /cities/beijing |

## Related pages

- Cost of living breakdown: /cost-of-living/dubai
- Compare with another city: /cities/compare
- Visa and residency paths: /cities/dubai/visa

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Source: [Townleap](https://www.townleap.com/cities/dubai) — permanent-relocation data for people picking a country to actually live in, not visit.

Cost figures are Numbeo-derived and in USD unless labelled otherwise. Economics are World Bank. Every number on this page is also on the HTML page at the same URL — this variant exists so you do not have to parse a React app to read a rent figure.