Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Burnie and Melbourne

For one person, living is cheaper in Burnie: $1,646 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $14,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Burnie
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Burnie Living Index
138

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
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Melbourne Living Index

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Burnie

🇦🇺 Australia

$1,646

/mo nomad

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Burnie and in Melbourne

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,646 in Burnie versus $2,821 in Melbourne.

Burnie $1,646
Melbourne $2,821

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,474 in Burnie versus $4,235 in Melbourne.

Burnie $2,474
Melbourne $4,235

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,301 in Burnie versus $5,650 in Melbourne.

Burnie $3,301
Melbourne $5,650

Living in Burnie costs roughly 42% less than in Melbourne, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Burnie 22% above, Melbourne 109% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.62 A$26.80

$17.43 A$25.08

6.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$92.2 A$133

$84.6 A$122

9.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.60 A$8.06

$12.46 A$17.92

-55.06%

Cappuccino

$3.88 A$5.58

$4.11 A$5.91

-5.60%

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

$3.39 A$4.87

$3.06 A$4.40

10.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.76 A$2.53

$2.52 A$3.62

-30.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.25 A$6.11

$9.80 A$14.10

-56.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.83 A$8.39

$8.57 A$12.33

-31.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.85 A$2.66

$1.48 A$2.14

25.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.43 A$3.50

$2.94 A$4.23

-17.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.87 A$2.69

$2.66 A$3.82

-29.70%

Eggs

$5.04 A$7.25

$5.54 A$7.97

-9.03%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.90 A$14.24

$10.51 A$15.13

-5.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.17 A$8.87

$9.65 A$13.89

-36.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.30 A$24.89

$15.22 A$21.91

13.67%

Apples (1kg)

$2.81 A$4.04

$3.99 A$5.75

-29.57%

Banana (1kg)

$2.73 A$3.92

$3.02 A$4.34

-9.60%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.14 A$3.08

$3.10 A$4.46

-30.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.84 A$4.08

$4.82 A$6.93

-41.08%

Potato (1kg)

$2.52 A$3.63

$3.03 A$4.36

-16.83%

Onion (1kg)

$2.11 A$3.03

$2.44 A$3.52

-13.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.14 A$3.08

$2.46 A$3.54

-13.01%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 A$2.39

$1.63 A$2.34

1.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$36.64 A$52.7

$44.07 A$63.4

-16.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.64 A$21.06

$12.70 A$18.28

15.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.46 A$4.97

$5.54 A$7.97

-37.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.43 A$7.82

$5.23 A$7.52

3.82%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.89 A$2.72

$3.74 A$5.38

-49.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.67 A$3.84

$4.51 A$6.50

-40.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 A$2.96

$1.36 A$1.96

50.74%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$41.09 A$59.1

$30.45 A$43.81

34.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.29 A$1.86

$1.47 A$2.12

-12.24%

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

$26.9K A$38.7K

$29.0K A$41.7K

-7.16%

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

$31.2K A$44.8K

$26.5K A$38.1K

17.70%

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

$210 A$302

$234 A$336

-10.30%

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

$21.19 A$30.49

$27.93 A$40.19

-24.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$48.00 A$69.1

$55.7 A$80.2

-13.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$71.1

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

Cinema Ticket

$14.19 A$20.42

$15.09 A$21.72

-5.96%

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

$2,007 A$2,888

$2,371 A$3,412

-15.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.0K A$30.2K

$30.2K A$43.5K

-30.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$77.3 A$111

$80.0 A$115

-3.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$23.96 A$34.48

$50.7 A$73.0

-52.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 A$149

$121 A$174

-14.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$95.6 A$138

$130 A$188

-26.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$815 A$1,173

$1,759 A$2,531

-53.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$584 A$840

$1,390 A$2,000

-57.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,117 A$1,607

$3,494 A$5,027

-68.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$833 A$1,199

$2,493 A$3,588

-66.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,999 A$7,193

$4,383 A$6,307

14.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.6

5.9

-5.08%

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

Last update for Burnie: October 12, 2026

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Burnie

$584 35.5%

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3% 138% $806

Groceries & Markets

Burnie

$334 20.3%

Melbourne

$384 13.6% 15.1% $50

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Burnie

$279 16.9%

Melbourne

$317 11.3% 13.8% $39

Eating Out

Burnie

$266 16.2%

Melbourne

$315 11.2% 18.3% $49

Clothing & Footwear

Burnie

$135 8.2%

Melbourne

$172 6.1% 27.2% $37

Sport & Entertainment

Burnie

$28 * 1.7%

Melbourne

$80 2.8% 180% $51

Getting Around

Burnie

$21 * 1.3%

Melbourne

$164 5.8% 699% $143

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $815 in Burnie and $1,759 in Melbourne. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Burnie pays 14% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $92.0 in Burnie vs $85.0 in Melbourne. Groceries flip the comparison at $334 vs $384, with Burnie cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Burnie

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🕒 Local time

01:56 1:56 AM

Same time as Burnie

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

20,267

5,031,195

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Burnie Melbourne 370 km

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Burnie
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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

Burnie vs Melbourne: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Burnie is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 71% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 14% higher in Burnie, 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: $815 in Burnie versus $1,759 in Melbourne. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 15% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,646 per month in Burnie versus $2,821 in Melbourne – a 71% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,646 in Burnie versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Burnie but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Burnie 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, Burnie and Melbourne 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 Burnie gentler on the wallet – expenses run 71% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.