# Costs in Fujairah: Family of four



## SAmum

Hi,

My husband has a job offer in Fujairah and we are wondering if his salary will be enough for a family of four to live on.

What is the average rental cost for a 2/3 bedroomed apartment and average monthly utility bill?

What does the average monthly food bill cost for a family of four?

How much are the school fees for the private schools in Fujairah?

How is the quality of family life in Fujairah-safety, entertainment, education, etc.

I would appreciate as much information as possible. 

Thank You!


----------



## Jumeirah Jim

jeez is there anything you DO KNOW about Fujairah???


----------



## SAmum

There is no need for sarcasm! If you can't help me then move along...


----------



## AbdulBaqi

SAmum said:


> Hi,
> 
> My husband has a job offer in Fujairah and we are wondering if his salary will be enough for a family of four to live on.
> 
> What is the average rental cost for a 2/3 bedroomed apartment and average monthly utility bill?
> 
> What does the average monthly food bill cost for a family of four?
> 
> How much are the school fees for the private schools in Fujairah?
> 
> How is the quality of family life in Fujairah-safety, entertainment, education, etc.
> 
> I would appreciate as much information as possible.
> 
> Thank You!


I live in Fujairah (the emirate), and it would help if you told us how much he would be making a month. So, you are not getting an accommodation from the company? They need to be compensating you for that. Food is cheap here, but I'm not from South Africa so I couldn't give you an accurate estimate. However, one dirham here equals 2.73 south african rand, so you can make an estimate from there. I will give you some general prices:

Milk is around five dirhams for one liter.
One and half liters of bottled water is 1 dirham or a little more depending on the brand.
Fresh bread is around 1 dirham a piece for a big piece of afghani bread, one and half dirhams for a sliced loaf or a package of pitas. 
Besides that I can't remember exact specifics, but you can guess that drinks are one dirham to a few depending on what exactly it is. Meat is a little expensive but depending on the region and type it can be okay. 

I would guess that a family of four's food bill for a month could be between 1,000 and 2,000 dirhams, all depending on what exactly you buy, how fast you eat it, what brands, and if you eat out or not (eating out is also very cheap, not the American places but the local ones, even the fancy places can usually be relatively cheap, a family of four can eat their fill for around 60 or 70 dirhams, even cheaper depending on the time you buy it and what exactly you buy. For example, sandwiches are the cheapest and can cost a few dirhams each).

If you mean you are offered a job in Fujairah as in the city, that is good because Fujairah is also the name of the emirate itself, and I don't live in Fujairah the city, which is also the captial of the emirate, but I know it well. The city of Fujairah in Fujairah is the largest populated area in the emirate, but that's not saying much if you compare it to Abu Dhabi or Dubai. It is the eight largest city in all of the UAE if I remember correctly. There are a few malls here, which is a big deal for the area and a drawing point for people who live outside of the main city, dozens of restaurants, and contains the only place in Fujairah that you can find every American fast food place very close to each other. Gas is 1.6 dirhams a liter if I remember correctly, but there is also a place owned by Oman that you can get gas for even cheaper. Taxis are a norm here until you get a car, which is a must for a family, and are relatively cheap, starting at three dirhams. However, the best option is to find a private taxi (there are a lot here, and don't worry they will see you and ask you if you need a ride), which is even cheaper, and you can always work out a deal with some guy versus an employee of a company. 

As my accommodation is 100% covered by my company, I couldn't guess how much a place would cost, or utilities. I do know that utilities are generally cheap, except in the summer months when you have the A/C going all the time. My friend has a three bedroom apartment with four bathrooms and his water and power bill was 700 dirhams for one of the summer months, which is a lot here and he blames it on his kids for messing with the A/C and running the water too much. I also remember someone telling me that leases here are usually three years long, just to give you a heads up to ask. If I were to guess how much a 2/3 bedroom apartment would be, I would guess at least a few thousand dirhams a month, not including utilities. Private schools will be expensive in the UAE no matter where you go, and again this is something you would have to look into more yourself. However, in general, if you live in Fujairah the city or very close to it, the quality of life is very good and there are many things to do, the beach, the malls, movies, parks, shopping, etc, but you will most likely want to spend most of your weekends at Dubai or Abu Dhabi once you get a car (from the city it is about a three hour car ride to Dubai or longer, about five or so to Abu Dhabi, both one way). Both expats and locals that live here in Fujairah usually always go to Dubai and Abu Dhabi on the weekends, while the locals and expats from those two cities come here for the beach and the much cheaper prices on everything (to give you an idea, just multiply every price by about three, and that's how expensive Dubai is. Abu Dhabi is probably around the same).


Hope that helps, sorry it's so long.


----------



## SAmum

Many thanks, Abdul Baqi. You have been a huge Help


----------

