Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Balga and Dhaka

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $406 a month against $2,511 in Balga, rent and utilities included – about $25,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

124

Cost of Living Index in Balga
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Balga Living Index
20

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
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Dhaka Living Index

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Balga

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,511

/mo nomad

Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$406

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Balga and in Dhaka

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Balga and in Dhaka actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,511 in Balga versus $406 in Dhaka.

Balga $2,511
Dhaka $406

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,781 in Balga versus $687 in Dhaka.

Balga $3,781
Dhaka $687

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,052 in Balga versus $969 in Dhaka.

Balga $5,052
Dhaka $969

Living in Balga is roughly 519% more expensive than in Dhaka, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Balga is 86% above, Dhaka is 70% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.89 A$28.62

$2.28 ৳282

772.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.9 A$122

$12.33 ৳1,523

588.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.54 A$15.16

$3.95 ৳488

166.84%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.48 ৳554

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.13 ৳510

Cappuccino

$4.47 A$6.43

$2.28 ৳281

96.05%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.83 A$4.08

$0.33 ৳40.88

757.58%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.21 A$3.18

$0.16 ৳19.86

1281.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.33 A$11.98

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.48 A$12.21

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 A$2.46

$0.85 ৳104

101.18%

White Bread (500g)

$3.14 A$4.52

$0.60 ৳74.5

423.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.97 A$2.83

$0.69 ৳85.4

185.51%

Eggs

$5.30 A$7.62

$1.23 ৳152

330.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.50 A$13.66

$8.80 ৳1,087

7.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.43 A$13.57

$3.33 ৳412

183.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.90 A$20.00

$6.63 ৳819

109.65%

Apples (1kg)

$4.60 A$6.61

$2.85 ৳352

61.40%

Banana (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.45

$0.90 ৳111

244.44%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.42 A$4.92

$2.34 ৳289

46.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.99 A$7.18

$0.63 ৳78.4

692.06%

Potato (1kg)

$2.82 A$4.05

$0.24 ৳29.59

1075.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.98 A$2.84

$0.46 ৳57.3

330.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.25 A$3.23

$0.35 ৳42.79

542.86%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.32 A$1.90

$0.28 ৳34.24

371.43%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$12.11 ৳1,496

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.31 ৳656

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.42 ৳794

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$41.48 A$59.7

$3.28 ৳405

1164.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.65 A$18.21

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.32 A$6.21

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.55 A$5.11

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.62 A$3.77

$0.42 ৳52.3

523.81%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.4 A$106

$22.43 ৳2,772

227.33%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.57 A$5.14

$1.19 ৳147

200.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.43 A$2.06

$0.39 ৳48.71

266.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$41.05 A$59.1

$3.28 ৳406

1151.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.39 A$2.00

$1.10 ৳136

26.36%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$27.0K A$38.8K

$29.4K ৳3.6M

-8.36%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$29.2K A$42.0K

$32.2K ৳4.0M

-9.28%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$194 A$279

$38.28 ৳4,729

406.69%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$32.84 A$47.26

$4.09 ৳506

702.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$62.9 A$90.5

$9.02 ৳1,114

597.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.7 A$91.7

$13.66 ৳1,688

366.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.91 A$25.77

$10.21 ৳1,261

75.42%

Cinema Ticket

$17.18 A$24.72

$4.11 ৳508

318.00%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$2,261 A$3,253

$90.7 ৳11.2K

2391.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.8K A$32.9K

$2,591 ৳320.2K

781.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$76.6 A$110

$17.06 ৳2,108

349.00%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$64.9 A$93.4

$21.38 ৳2,641

203.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$174

$51.4 ৳6,355

134.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$165 A$237

$36.78 ৳4,545

347.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,321 A$1,901

$133 ৳16.4K

893.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,147 A$1,650

$65.1 ৳8,041

1662.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,150 A$3,094

$377 ৳46.6K

469.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,981 A$2,851

$192 ৳23.8K

929.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,585 A$8,037

$1,621 ৳200.3K

244.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,491 A$7,902

$760 ৳93.9K

622.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,320 A$4,778

$246 ৳30.4K

1249.22%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.91

10.48

-43.61%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Balga: October 10, 2026

Last update for Dhaka: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Balga

$1.1K 45.7%

Dhaka

$65 16% 94.3% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Balga

$366 14.6%

Dhaka

$124 30.5% 66.2% $243

Eating Out

Balga

$323 12.9%

Dhaka

$59 14.6% 81.6% $264

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Balga

$290 11.5%

Dhaka

$51 12.7% 82.3% $238

Clothing & Footwear

Balga

$192 7.7%

Dhaka

$57 14.1% 70.3% $135

Sport & Entertainment

Balga

$98 3.9%

Dhaka

$22 5.4% 77.7% $76

Getting Around

Balga

$95 3.8%

Dhaka

$27 6.7% 71.2% $67

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,321 in Balga and $133 in Dhaka. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Balga pays 1249% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $85.0 in Balga vs $12.00 in Dhaka for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $366 vs $124 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Balga

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🕒 Local time

02:02 2:02 AM

00:02 12:02 AM

2 h behind Balga

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

12,685

21,741,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Bangladeshi Taka BDT ৳

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD

1,000 BDT = 7.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BDT, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

Bangladeshi Taka exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 124 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD). 1 EUR = 139 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.2 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Balga Dhaka 6,750 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Balga
Dhaka

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Balga vs Dhaka: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Balga and Dhaka differ by about 519% in total monthly costs ($2,511 vs $406 including rent). Dhaka is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 1249% higher in Balga, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,321 in Balga versus $133 in Dhaka. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Dhaka – a meal for two runs $12.00 versus $85.0 in Balga. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $2,511 per month in Balga versus $406 in Dhaka – a 519% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $406 in Dhaka versus $2,511 in Balga, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Dhaka but tight or insufficient in Balga. The gap between the two cities makes Dhaka the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Balga and Dhaka are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Dhaka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 519% less than in Balga. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.