Cost of Living Comparison Between Brisbane and Cairns Cost of Living Comparison Between Brisbane and Cairns

🙂 Solo nomad: Brisbane is 11% cheaper than Cairns without rent, and 0.8% more expensive with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Brisbane is 18% cheaper than Cairns without rent, and 3.8% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.24 A$24.88

$11.67 A$17.88

39.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$71.2 A$109

$81.9 A$125

-13.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.6 A$14.7

$10.66 A$16.33

-9.94%

Cappuccino

$3.6 A$5.51

$3.92 A$6.01

-8.16%

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

$2.74 A$4.2

$2.73 A$4.19

0.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 A$3.29

$2.26 A$3.46

-4.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.36 A$9.75

$6.58 A$10.09

-3.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.97 A$12.2

$7.07 A$10.83

12.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.6 A$2.45

$1.7 A$2.61

-5.88%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 A$3.39

$2.51 A$3.85

-11.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.8 A$2.76

$2.71 A$4.15

-33.58%

Eggs

$4.47 A$6.85

$3.93 A$6.02

13.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.05 A$12.33

$7.87 A$12.06

2.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.09 A$12.4

$9.19 A$14.08

-11.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.4 A$20.53

$12.84 A$19.67

4.36%

Apples (1kg)

$3.25 A$4.98

$2.99 A$4.58

8.70%

Banana (1kg)

$2.75 A$4.21

$2.31 A$3.53

19.05%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.66 A$4.07

Tomato (1kg)

$4.23 A$6.48

$7.39 A$11.32

-42.76%

Potato (1kg)

$2.41 A$3.69

$2.28 A$3.5

5.70%

Onion (1kg)

$2.26 A$3.46

$2.23 A$3.42

1.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.24 A$3.44

$2.27 A$3.47

-1.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 A$1.89

$2.88 A$4.42

-56.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$32.96 A$50.5

$29.83 A$45.69

10.49%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.07 A$20.02

$11.03 A$16.89

18.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.47 A$6.85

$3.39 A$5.2

31.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.04 A$6.19

$3.52 A$5.39

14.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 A$0.53

$3.22 A$4.94

-89.44%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.98 A$41.33

$65.4 A$100

-58.77%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.23 A$3.41

$6.44 A$9.86

-65.37%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 A$2.4

$3.13 A$4.8

-50.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.95 A$52

$33.86 A$51.9

0.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.23 A$1.89

$1.15 A$1.77

6.96%

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

$28.6K A$43.8K

$22.7K A$34.8K

26.07%

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

$22.6K A$34.7K

$19.2K A$29.4K

17.98%

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

$144 A$221

$153 A$234

-5.70%

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

$25.53 A$39.11

$37.09 A$56.8

-31.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.9 A$82.6

$59 A$90.3

-8.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 A$75.1

$38.89 A$59.6

26.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.02 A$26.07

$15.92 A$24.39

6.91%

Cinema Ticket

$13.17 A$20.18

$12.98 A$19.88

1.46%

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

$1,646 A$2,521

$1,628 A$2,494

1.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,863 A$13.6K

$12.1K A$18.5K

-26.77%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.8 A$111

$83 A$127

-12.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.21 A$67.7

$66.2 A$101

-33.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.5 A$145

$98.2 A$150

-3.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 A$155

$135 A$206

-24.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,588 A$2,433

$1,193 A$1,828

33.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,237 A$1,894

$1,110 A$1,701

11.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,568 A$3,935

$2,042 A$3,128

25.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,885 A$2,888

$1,858 A$2,847

1.46%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,805 A$13.5K

$6,035 A$9,246

45.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,597 A$10.1K

$4,795 A$7,346

37.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,896 A$5,968

$2,813 A$4,310

38.47%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.24

6.96

-10.34%

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

Last update for Brisbane: October 28, 2025

Last update for Cairns: October 27, 2025

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