Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dhaka and Kuala Terengganu

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $406 a month against $924 in Kuala Terengganu, rent and utilities included – about $6,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

20

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
Learn more

Dhaka Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Kuala Terengganu
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Kuala Terengganu Living Index

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Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$406

/mo nomad

Kuala Terengganu

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$924

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dhaka and in Kuala Terengganu

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 Kuala Terengganu actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $406 in Dhaka versus $924 in Kuala Terengganu.

Dhaka $406
Kuala Terengganu $924

Estimated couple costs with rent: $687 in Dhaka versus $1,372 in Kuala Terengganu.

Dhaka $687
Kuala Terengganu $1,372

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $969 in Dhaka versus $1,821 in Kuala Terengganu.

Dhaka $969
Kuala Terengganu $1,821

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

Both cities sit below the global median: Dhaka 70% lower, Kuala Terengganu 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.28 ৳282

$2.49 MYR 10.15

-8.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$12.33 ৳1,523

$23.06 MYR 94.1

-46.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.95 ৳488

$4.72 MYR 19.25

-16.31%

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

$2.72 MYR 11.08

-16.18%

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

$0.33 ৳40.88

$0.47 MYR 1.90

-29.79%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.16 ৳19.86

$0.28 MYR 1.14

-42.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.56 MYR 14.52

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.18 MYR 17.05

Milk (1 liter)

$0.85 ৳104

$1.70 MYR 6.94

-50.00%

White Bread (500g)

$0.60 ৳74.5

$1.02 MYR 4.15

-41.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.69 ৳85.4

$1.28 MYR 5.22

-46.09%

Eggs

$1.23 ৳152

$2.13 MYR 8.68

-42.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.80 ৳1,087

$15.66 MYR 63.9

-43.81%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.33 ৳412

$4.35 MYR 17.73

-23.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.63 ৳819

$8.41 MYR 34.29

-21.17%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 ৳352

$3.36 MYR 13.73

-15.18%

Banana (1kg)

$0.90 ৳111

$1.61 MYR 6.59

-44.10%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.34 ৳289

$2.10 MYR 8.59

11.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.63 ৳78.4

$1.50 MYR 6.13

-58.00%

Potato (1kg)

$0.24 ৳29.59

$1.47 MYR 6.01

-83.67%

Onion (1kg)

$0.46 ৳57.3

$1.09 MYR 4.45

-57.80%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.35 ৳42.79

$1.00 MYR 4.09

-65.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.28 ৳34.24

$0.53 MYR 2.17

-47.17%

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

$4.46 MYR 18.18

-26.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.84 MYR 72.8

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.92 MYR 11.91

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.82 MYR 19.66

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.42 ৳52.3

$0.67 MYR 2.75

-37.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.43 ৳2,772

$10.62 MYR 43.31

111.21%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.19 ৳147

$1.27 MYR 5.20

-6.30%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.39 ৳48.71

$0.46 MYR 1.89

-15.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.28 ৳406

$6.55 MYR 26.73

-49.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 ৳136

$0.90 MYR 3.65

22.22%

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

$29.4K ৳3.6M

$43.8K MYR 178.8K

-32.85%

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

$32.2K ৳4.0M

$32.1K MYR 131.0K

0.16%

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

$38.28 ৳4,729

$45.25 MYR 185

-15.40%

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

$4.09 ৳506

$8.79 MYR 35.87

-53.47%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.02 ৳1,114

$25.10 MYR 102

-64.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$13.66 ৳1,688

$44.04 MYR 180

-68.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.21 ৳1,261

$7.97 MYR 32.49

28.11%

Cinema Ticket

$4.11 ৳508

$4.81 MYR 19.61

-14.55%

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

$90.7 ৳11.2K

$172 MYR 701

-47.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,591 ৳320.2K

$6,936 MYR 28.3K

-62.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.06 ৳2,108

$57.5 MYR 235

-70.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$21.38 ৳2,641

$36.37 MYR 148

-41.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$51.4 ৳6,355

$86.5 MYR 353

-40.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$36.78 ৳4,545

$68.0 MYR 278

-45.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$133 ৳16.4K

$361 MYR 1,472

-63.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$65.1 ৳8,041

$312 MYR 1,275

-79.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$377 ৳46.6K

$722 MYR 2,946

-47.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$192 ৳23.8K

$471 MYR 1,923

-59.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,621 ৳200.3K

$2,073 MYR 8,456

-21.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$760 ৳93.9K

$1,145 MYR 4,669

-33.60%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$246 ৳30.4K

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 Kuala Terengganu: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Dhaka

$124 30.5%

Kuala Terengganu

$254 27.5% 106% $131

Accommodation & Living

Dhaka

$65 16%

Kuala Terengganu

$312 33.8% 380% $247

Eating Out

Dhaka

$59 14.6%

Kuala Terengganu

$96 10.4% 61.3% $36

Clothing & Footwear

Dhaka

$57 14.1%

Kuala Terengganu

$112 12.1% 96.1% $55

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dhaka

$51 12.7%

Kuala Terengganu

$79 8.6% 54% $28

Getting Around

Dhaka

$27 6.7%

Kuala Terengganu

$17 1.8% 38% $10

Sport & Entertainment

Dhaka

$22 5.4%

Kuala Terengganu

$54 5.8% 145% $32

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $133 in Dhaka and $361 in Kuala Terengganu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $12.00 in Dhaka vs $23.00 in Kuala Terengganu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $124 vs $254 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🇲🇾 Kuala Terengganu

🕒 Local time

10:12 10:12 AM

12:12 12:12 PM

2 h ahead of Dhaka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

21,741,000 Capital

375,424

💱 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

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Highest

Between locations

Dhaka Kuala Terengganu 2,460 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Dhaka
Kuala Terengganu

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 Kuala Terengganu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

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

You'd need roughly $609 in Dhaka and $1,386 in Kuala Terengganu to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $133 in Dhaka versus $361 in Kuala Terengganu. 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 $924 in Kuala Terengganu – a 128% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Dhaka runs roughly 111% less than in Kuala Terengganu. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Dhaka gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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, Dhaka and Kuala Terengganu 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 128% less than in Kuala Terengganu. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.