The UAE topped the list of Gulf Cooperation Council countries in the cost-of-living index for 2025, followed by Bahrain, then Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and finally the Sultanate of Oman.
The UAE ranked first in the Gulf and Arab countries, and 30th globally in the Cost-of-Living Index with an average score of 54.1 points, while Bahrain came in second in the Gulf, third in the Arab world and 38th globally, with an average score of 48.3 points.
Qatar ranked third in the Gulf, fourth in the Arab world and 40th globally, with 47.5 points, while Saudi Arabia came in fourth in the Gulf, fifth in the Arab world and 56th globally, with an average score of 41.9 points. Kuwait came in fifth in the Gulf, sixth in the Arab world and 60th globally, with a total of 40.4 points.
The 2025 Cost of Living Index by Country considered the Sultanate of Oman the cheapest Gulf country in terms of cost of living, ranking sixth in the Gulf, seventh in the Arab world, and 62nd globally, with an average score of 39.8 points.
Yemen ranked second in the Arab world in terms of high cost of living, followed by Palestine in eighth place, Lebanon in ninth and Somalia in tenth place.
Switzerland, the US Virgin Islands, Iceland, the Bahamas, Singapore, Hong Kong, Barbados, Norway, Papua New Guinea and Denmark topped the list of countries with the highest cost of living, respectively.
While Pakistan, Libya, Egypt, India, Afghanistan, Madagascar, Bangladesh, Russia and Paraguay were found to be the cheapest countries to live in of a total of 139 countries included in the index.
The annual index is based on five global standards to evaluate the cost-of-living rates in each country, including average rent prices, average cost of living with rental costs, average grocery prices, average restaurant prices and average purchasing power of the local currency based on average net salary.
