Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dhaka and Shah Alam

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $406 a month against $933 in Shah Alam, rent and utilities included – about $6,300 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
46

Cost of Living Index in Shah Alam
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Shah Alam Living Index

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Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$406

/mo nomad

Shah Alam

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$933

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dhaka and in Shah Alam

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 Shah Alam actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $406 in Dhaka versus $933 in Shah Alam.

Dhaka $406
Shah Alam $933

Estimated couple costs with rent: $687 in Dhaka versus $1,429 in Shah Alam.

Dhaka $687
Shah Alam $1,429

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $969 in Dhaka versus $1,925 in Shah Alam.

Dhaka $969
Shah Alam $1,925

Living in Dhaka costs roughly 57% less than in Shah Alam, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Dhaka 70% lower, Shah Alam 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.28 ৳282

$3.72 MYR 15.19

-38.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$12.33 ৳1,523

$19.34 MYR 78.9

-36.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.95 ৳488

$4.21 MYR 17.16

-6.18%

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

$2.87 MYR 11.70

-20.56%

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

$0.33 ৳40.88

$0.78 MYR 3.17

-57.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.16 ৳19.86

$0.39 MYR 1.58

-58.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 MYR 13.85

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.33 MYR 17.65

Milk (1 liter)

$0.85 ৳104

$1.79 MYR 7.29

-52.51%

White Bread (500g)

$0.60 ৳74.5

$1.06 MYR 4.31

-43.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.69 ৳85.4

$1.47 MYR 6.01

-53.06%

Eggs

$1.23 ৳152

$2.17 MYR 8.85

-43.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.80 ৳1,087

$13.59 MYR 55.4

-35.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.33 ৳412

$4.36 MYR 17.78

-23.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.63 ৳819

$9.51 MYR 38.79

-30.28%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 ৳352

$3.53 MYR 14.38

-19.26%

Banana (1kg)

$0.90 ৳111

$1.62 MYR 6.61

-44.44%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.34 ৳289

$2.62 MYR 10.67

-10.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.63 ৳78.4

$1.73 MYR 7.05

-63.58%

Potato (1kg)

$0.24 ৳29.59

$1.25 MYR 5.08

-80.80%

Onion (1kg)

$0.46 ৳57.3

$2.04 MYR 8.33

-77.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.35 ৳42.79

$1.43 MYR 5.82

-75.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.28 ৳34.24

$0.54 MYR 2.19

-48.15%

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

$4.33 MYR 17.66

-24.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.85 MYR 76.9

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.76 MYR 11.26

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.64 MYR 18.94

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.42 ৳52.3

$0.75 MYR 3.05

-44.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.43 ৳2,772

$16.11 MYR 65.7

39.23%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.19 ৳147

$1.20 MYR 4.90

-0.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.39 ৳48.71

$0.41 MYR 1.67

-4.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.28 ৳406

$7.48 MYR 30.52

-56.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 ৳136

$0.81 MYR 3.32

35.80%

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

$29.4K ৳3.6M

$42.1K MYR 171.7K

-30.06%

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

$32.2K ৳4.0M

$34.9K MYR 142.5K

-7.92%

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

$38.28 ৳4,729

$36.85 MYR 150

3.88%

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

$4.09 ৳506

$9.64 MYR 39.32

-57.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.02 ৳1,114

$28.94 MYR 118

-68.83%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$13.66 ৳1,688

$40.19 MYR 164

-66.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.21 ৳1,261

$4.88 MYR 19.92

109.22%

Cinema Ticket

$4.11 ৳508

$6.58 MYR 26.86

-37.54%

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

$90.7 ৳11.2K

$199 MYR 812

-54.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,591 ৳320.2K

$4,548 MYR 18.6K

-43.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.06 ৳2,108

$57.6 MYR 235

-70.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$21.38 ৳2,641

$39.52 MYR 161

-45.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$51.4 ৳6,355

$67.8 MYR 277

-24.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$36.78 ৳4,545

$70.0 MYR 285

-47.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$133 ৳16.4K

$340 MYR 1,386

-60.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$65.1 ৳8,041

$308 MYR 1,255

-78.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$377 ৳46.6K

$564 MYR 2,301

-33.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$192 ৳23.8K

$560 MYR 2,283

-65.61%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,621 ৳200.3K

$1,502 MYR 6,128

7.94%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$760 ৳93.9K

$1,165 MYR 4,753

-34.78%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$246 ৳30.4K

$1,264 MYR 5,156

-80.53%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.48

4.04

159.41%

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

Last update for Dhaka: October 10, 2026

Last update for Shah Alam: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Dhaka

$124 30.5%

Shah Alam

$261 28% 111% $138

Accommodation & Living

Dhaka

$65 16%

Shah Alam

$308 33% 373% $243

Eating Out

Dhaka

$59 14.6%

Shah Alam

$107 11.5% 80.3% $48

Clothing & Footwear

Dhaka

$57 14.1%

Shah Alam

$106 11.3% 85.4% $49

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dhaka

$51 12.7%

Shah Alam

$75 8.1% 46.8% $24

Getting Around

Dhaka

$27 6.7%

Shah Alam

$22 2.4% 18.1% $4.9

Sport & Entertainment

Dhaka

$22 5.4%

Shah Alam

$53 5.7% 144% $31

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $133 in Dhaka and $340 in Shah Alam. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Shah Alam pays 414% 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 Shah Alam for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $124 vs $261 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🇲🇾 Shah Alam

🕒 Local time

15:54 3:54 PM

17:54 5:54 PM

2 h ahead of Dhaka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

21,741,000 Capital

812,327

💱 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 18, 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 18, 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 Shah Alam 2,590 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Dhaka
Shah Alam

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 Shah Alam: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 130% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 414% lower in Shah Alam. 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 $340 in Shah Alam. 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 $933 in Shah Alam – a 130% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Dhaka runs roughly 39% less than in Shah Alam. 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 Shah Alam 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 130% less than in Shah Alam. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.