Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dhaka and Batu Kawan

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $422 a month against $963 in Batu Kawan, rent and utilities included – about $6,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

20

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
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Dhaka Living Index
47

Cost of Living Index in Batu Kawan
Learn more

Batu Kawan Living Index

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Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$422

/mo nomad

Batu Kawan

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$963

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dhaka and in Batu Kawan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $422 in Dhaka versus $963 in Batu Kawan.

Dhaka $422
Batu Kawan $963

Estimated couple costs with rent: $728 in Dhaka versus $1,506 in Batu Kawan.

Dhaka $728
Batu Kawan $1,506

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,033 in Dhaka versus $2,050 in Batu Kawan.

Dhaka $1,033
Batu Kawan $2,050

Living in Dhaka costs roughly 56% less than in Batu Kawan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Dhaka 69% lower, Batu Kawan 29% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.40 ৳298

$4.80 MYR 19.57

-50.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$12.93 ৳1,604

$29.52 MYR 120

-56.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.78 ৳593

$4.96 MYR 20.20

-3.63%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.92 ৳610

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.96 ৳491

Cappuccino

$2.38 ৳295

$3.02 MYR 12.30

-21.19%

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

$0.30 ৳37.11

$0.79 MYR 3.21

-62.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.17 ৳21.32

$0.42 MYR 1.72

-59.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.45 MYR 18.15

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.14 MYR 25.00

Milk (1 liter)

$0.79 ৳97.5

$1.45 MYR 5.90

-45.52%

White Bread (500g)

$0.63 ৳78.4

$1.11 MYR 4.52

-43.24%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.72 ৳89.1

$0.71 MYR 2.90

1.41%

Eggs

$1.18 ৳147

$2.12 MYR 8.63

-44.34%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 ৳1,083

$13.88 MYR 56.6

-37.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ৳409

$4.46 MYR 18.19

-26.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.64 ৳824

$10.00 MYR 40.76

-33.60%

Apples (1kg)

$2.80 ৳347

$3.33 MYR 13.56

-15.92%

Banana (1kg)

$0.86 ৳107

$1.77 MYR 7.22

-51.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.32 ৳287

$2.22 MYR 9.04

4.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.61 ৳75.8

$1.50 MYR 6.11

-59.33%

Potato (1kg)

$0.23 ৳28.30

$1.21 MYR 4.94

-80.99%

Onion (1kg)

$0.48 ৳59.9

$1.38 MYR 5.62

-65.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.33 ৳41.25

$1.17 MYR 4.75

-71.79%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.30 ৳37.58

$0.66 MYR 2.68

-54.55%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$12.23 ৳1,516

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.23 ৳649

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.51 ৳808

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.29 ৳408

$4.48 MYR 18.24

-26.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.69 MYR 80.2

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.37 MYR 13.74

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.05 MYR 20.57

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.41 ৳51.3

$0.76 MYR 3.08

-46.05%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.27 ৳2,638

$12.18 MYR 49.61

74.63%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.18 ৳147

$0.75 MYR 3.07

57.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.38 ৳47.19

$1.20 MYR 4.91

-68.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.27 ৳406

$4.96 MYR 20.22

-34.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.16 ৳143

$0.81 MYR 3.29

43.21%

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

$29.9K ৳3.7M

$31.9K MYR 129.8K

-6.15%

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

$32.5K ৳4.0M

$34.1K MYR 139.0K

-4.73%

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

$46.86 ৳5,813

$63.1 MYR 257

-25.71%

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

$4.31 ৳535

$8.70 MYR 35.45

-50.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.09 ৳1,376

$24.35 MYR 99.2

-54.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$17.52 ৳2,173

$32.29 MYR 132

-45.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.67 ৳2,191

$7.09 MYR 28.88

149.22%

Cinema Ticket

$4.31 ৳534

$3.68 MYR 15.01

17.12%

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

$139 ৳17.2K

$237 MYR 967

-41.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,570 ৳318.8K

$13.0K MYR 52.8K

-80.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$16.32 ৳2,025

$71.8 MYR 293

-77.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$19.36 ৳2,402

$42.73 MYR 174

-54.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$45.97 ৳5,702

$84.5 MYR 344

-45.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$36.74 ৳4,557

$85.9 MYR 350

-57.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$145 ৳18.0K

$412 MYR 1,679

-64.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$68.1 ৳8,449

$289 MYR 1,176

-76.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$461 ৳57.2K

$704 MYR 2,869

-34.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$232 ৳28.8K

$555 MYR 2,263

-58.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,575 ৳195.4K

$1,973 MYR 8,040

-20.17%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$789 ৳97.9K

$1,208 MYR 4,921

-34.64%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$245 ৳30.3K

$1,870 MYR 7,618

-86.92%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.67

166.75%

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

Last update for Dhaka: October 26, 2026

Last update for Batu Kawan: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Dhaka

$122 29%

Batu Kawan

$260 27% 112% $137

Accommodation & Living

Dhaka

$68 16.1%

Batu Kawan

$289 30% 324% $220

Eating Out

Dhaka

$64 15.2%

Batu Kawan

$129 13.4% 102% $65

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dhaka

$62 14.8%

Batu Kawan

$96 10% 54.4% $34

Clothing & Footwear

Dhaka

$53 12.6%

Batu Kawan

$128 13.3% 141% $75

Sport & Entertainment

Dhaka

$26 6.2%

Batu Kawan

$40 4.1% 51.8% $14

Getting Around

Dhaka

$26 6.2%

Batu Kawan

$22 2.3% 15.5% $4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $145 in Dhaka and $412 in Batu Kawan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Batu Kawan pays about 7.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $13 in Dhaka vs $30 in Batu Kawan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $122 vs $260 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🇲🇾 Batu Kawan

🕒 Local time

22:42 10:42 PM

00:42 12:42 AM

2 h ahead of Dhaka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

21,741,000 Capital

11,409

💱 Currency

Bangladeshi Taka BDT ৳

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 BDT = 8.06 USD

1,000 BDT = 7.24 EUR

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.221 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MYR, USD, EUR to BDT – Bangladeshi Taka Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇩 Bangladeshi Taka (৳)

Bangladeshi Taka exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 124 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.06 USD). 1 EUR = 138 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.24 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 4.07 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.53 MYR (1 MYR = 0.221 EUR).

USD to BDT in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Dhaka Batu Kawan 2,320 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Dhaka
Batu Kawan

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

Dhaka vs Batu Kawan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 128% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 87% lower in Dhaka. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $145 in Dhaka versus $412 in Batu Kawan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $422 per month in Dhaka versus $963 in Batu Kawan – a 128% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Batu Kawan runs roughly 43% less than in Dhaka. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you’re watching your 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.

It comes down to priorities – Dhaka wins on affordability, Batu Kawan on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.