Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dhaka and Johor Bahru

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $406 a month against $1,056 in Johor Bahru, rent and utilities included – about $7,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

20

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
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Dhaka Living Index
51

Cost of Living Index in Johor Bahru
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Johor Bahru Living Index

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Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$406

/mo nomad

Johor Bahru

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$1,056

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dhaka and in Johor Bahru

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 Johor Bahru actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $406 in Dhaka versus $1,056 in Johor Bahru.

Dhaka $406
Johor Bahru $1,056

Estimated couple costs with rent: $687 in Dhaka versus $1,551 in Johor Bahru.

Dhaka $687
Johor Bahru $1,551

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $969 in Dhaka versus $2,046 in Johor Bahru.

Dhaka $969
Johor Bahru $2,046

Living in Dhaka costs roughly 62% less than in Johor Bahru, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Dhaka 70% lower, Johor Bahru 22% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.28 ৳282

$3.56 MYR 14.53

-35.96%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$12.33 ৳1,523

$18.68 MYR 76.2

-33.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.95 ৳488

$4.93 MYR 20.11

-19.88%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.48 ৳554

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.13 ৳510

Cappuccino

$2.28 ৳281

$2.86 MYR 11.67

-20.28%

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

$0.33 ৳40.88

$0.84 MYR 3.45

-60.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.16 ৳19.86

$0.55 MYR 2.25

-70.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.54 MYR 18.52

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.20 MYR 25.31

Milk (1 liter)

$0.85 ৳104

$1.66 MYR 6.79

-48.80%

White Bread (500g)

$0.60 ৳74.5

$1.11 MYR 4.52

-45.95%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.69 ৳85.4

$1.50 MYR 6.13

-54.00%

Eggs

$1.23 ৳152

$1.72 MYR 7.00

-28.49%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.80 ৳1,087

$17.86 MYR 72.9

-50.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.33 ৳412

$4.56 MYR 18.58

-26.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.63 ৳819

$10.49 MYR 42.80

-36.80%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 ৳352

$3.26 MYR 13.28

-12.58%

Banana (1kg)

$0.90 ৳111

$1.70 MYR 6.94

-47.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.34 ৳289

$3.91 MYR 15.96

-40.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.63 ৳78.4

$1.68 MYR 6.86

-62.50%

Potato (1kg)

$0.24 ৳29.59

$1.47 MYR 6.00

-83.67%

Onion (1kg)

$0.46 ৳57.3

$1.65 MYR 6.74

-72.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.35 ৳42.79

$1.32 MYR 5.37

-73.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.28 ৳34.24

$0.55 MYR 2.24

-49.09%

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)

$3.28 ৳405

$4.17 MYR 17.01

-21.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.98 MYR 57.1

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.84 MYR 11.59

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.11 MYR 12.68

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.42 ৳52.3

$0.71 MYR 2.90

-40.85%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.43 ৳2,772

$12.11 MYR 49.42

85.22%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.19 ৳147

$0.96 MYR 3.90

23.96%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.39 ৳48.71

$0.70 MYR 2.85

-44.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.28 ৳406

$9.50 MYR 38.75

-65.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 ৳136

$0.83 MYR 3.40

32.53%

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

$29.4K ৳3.6M

$41.1K MYR 167.8K

-28.43%

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

$32.2K ৳4.0M

$36.1K MYR 147.2K

-10.88%

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

$38.28 ৳4,729

$53.0 MYR 216

-27.81%

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

$4.09 ৳506

$10.99 MYR 44.84

-62.78%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.02 ৳1,114

$28.42 MYR 116

-68.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$13.66 ৳1,688

$39.45 MYR 161

-65.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.21 ৳1,261

$5.63 MYR 22.97

81.35%

Cinema Ticket

$4.11 ৳508

$4.92 MYR 20.08

-16.46%

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

$90.7 ৳11.2K

$161 MYR 658

-43.78%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,591 ৳320.2K

$4,478 MYR 18.3K

-42.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.06 ৳2,108

$54.2 MYR 221

-68.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$21.38 ৳2,641

$16.54 MYR 67.5

29.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$51.4 ৳6,355

$81.5 MYR 332

-36.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$36.78 ৳4,545

$97.3 MYR 397

-62.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$133 ৳16.4K

$517 MYR 2,109

-74.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$65.1 ৳8,041

$397 MYR 1,620

-83.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$377 ৳46.6K

$900 MYR 3,673

-58.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$192 ৳23.8K

$624 MYR 2,548

-69.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,621 ৳200.3K

$2,019 MYR 8,238

-19.71%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$760 ৳93.9K

$1,167 MYR 4,759

-34.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$246 ৳30.4K

$1,060 MYR 4,325

-76.79%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.48

4.06

158.13%

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

Last update for Dhaka: October 10, 2026

Last update for Johor Bahru: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Dhaka

$124 30.5%

Johor Bahru

$267 25.3% 116% $143

Accommodation & Living

Dhaka

$65 16%

Johor Bahru

$397 37.6% 510% $332

Eating Out

Dhaka

$59 14.6%

Johor Bahru

$118 11.2% 99.1% $59

Clothing & Footwear

Dhaka

$57 14.1%

Johor Bahru

$112 10.6% 97.1% $55

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dhaka

$51 12.7%

Johor Bahru

$92 8.8% 79.9% $41

Getting Around

Dhaka

$27 6.7%

Johor Bahru

$19 1.8% 28.9% $7.9

Sport & Entertainment

Dhaka

$22 5.4%

Johor Bahru

$49 4.7% 125% $27

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $133 in Dhaka and $517 in Johor Bahru. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Johor Bahru pays 331% 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: $12.00 in Dhaka vs $19.00 in Johor Bahru for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $124 vs $267 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🇲🇾 Johor Bahru

🕒 Local time

10:02 10:02 AM

12:02 12:02 PM

2 h ahead of Dhaka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

21,741,000 Capital

858,118

💱 Currency

Bangladeshi Taka BDT ৳

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD

1,000 BDT = 7.2 EUR

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.218 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 19, 2026: 1 USD = 124 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD). 1 EUR = 139 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.2 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.59 MYR (1 MYR = 0.218 EUR).

USD to BDT in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Dhaka Johor Bahru 2,870 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Dhaka
Johor Bahru

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 Johor Bahru: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 160% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 331% lower in Johor Bahru. 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: $133 in Dhaka versus $517 in Johor Bahru. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $406 per month in Dhaka versus $1,056 in Johor Bahru – a 160% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Dhaka runs roughly 85% less than in Johor Bahru. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $406 in Dhaka versus $1,056 in Johor Bahru, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Dhaka but tight or insufficient in Johor Bahru. The gap between the two cities makes Dhaka the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Dhaka is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Johor Bahru, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Dhaka and Johor Bahru 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 160% less than in Johor Bahru. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.