Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dhaka and Skudai

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $422 a month against $900 in Skudai, rent and utilities included – about $5,700 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
43

Cost of Living Index in Skudai
Learn more

Skudai Living Index

Jump to prices

Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$422

/mo nomad

Skudai

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$900

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dhaka and in Skudai

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $422 in Dhaka versus $900 in Skudai.

Dhaka $422
Skudai $900

Estimated couple costs with rent: $728 in Dhaka versus $1,370 in Skudai.

Dhaka $728
Skudai $1,370

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,033 in Dhaka versus $1,840 in Skudai.

Dhaka $1,033
Skudai $1,840

Living in Dhaka costs roughly 53% less than in Skudai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Dhaka 69% lower, Skudai 34% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.40 ৳297

$3.63 MYR 14.84

-33.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$12.93 ৳1,603

$18.25 MYR 74.6

-29.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.78 ৳593

$4.90 MYR 20.05

-2.45%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.92 ৳610

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.96 ৳490

Cappuccino

$2.38 ৳295

$2.87 MYR 11.73

-17.07%

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

$0.30 ৳37.09

$0.83 MYR 3.40

-63.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.17 ৳21.31

$0.45 MYR 1.83

-62.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.33 MYR 13.62

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.62 MYR 22.97

Milk (1 liter)

$0.79 ৳97.5

$1.74 MYR 7.11

-54.60%

White Bread (500g)

$0.63 ৳78.3

$1.02 MYR 4.18

-38.24%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.72 ৳89.1

$1.48 MYR 6.06

-51.35%

Eggs

$1.18 ৳147

$1.66 MYR 6.78

-28.92%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 ৳1,082

$9.64 MYR 39.43

-9.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ৳409

$3.20 MYR 13.09

3.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.64 ৳824

$9.61 MYR 39.28

-30.91%

Apples (1kg)

$2.80 ৳347

$3.42 MYR 13.98

-18.13%

Banana (1kg)

$0.86 ৳107

$1.70 MYR 6.94

-49.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.32 ৳287

$2.61 MYR 10.68

-11.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.61 ৳75.7

$1.64 MYR 6.69

-62.80%

Potato (1kg)

$0.23 ৳28.29

$1.41 MYR 5.75

-83.69%

Onion (1kg)

$0.48 ৳59.9

$1.73 MYR 7.08

-72.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.33 ৳41.23

$1.37 MYR 5.59

-75.91%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.30 ৳37.56

$0.51 MYR 2.09

-41.18%

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 ৳807

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.29 ৳408

$4.28 MYR 17.49

-23.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.83 MYR 56.5

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.74 MYR 11.19

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.99 MYR 12.22

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.41 ৳51.3

$0.83 MYR 3.40

-50.60%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.27 ৳2,637

$10.95 MYR 44.78

94.25%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.18 ৳147

$1.01 MYR 4.13

16.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.38 ৳47.16

$0.36 MYR 1.46

5.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.27 ৳406

$9.03 MYR 36.92

-63.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.16 ৳143

$0.86 MYR 3.51

34.88%

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

$29.9K ৳3.7M

$44.3K MYR 181.0K

-32.45%

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

$32.5K ৳4.0M

$36.0K MYR 147.2K

-9.71%

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

$46.86 ৳5,810

$48.79 MYR 199

-3.96%

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

$4.31 ৳535

$8.16 MYR 33.38

-47.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.09 ৳1,375

$26.88 MYR 110

-58.74%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$17.52 ৳2,172

$36.95 MYR 151

-52.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.67 ৳2,190

$7.55 MYR 30.86

134.04%

Cinema Ticket

$4.31 ৳534

$4.93 MYR 20.17

-12.58%

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

$139 ৳17.2K

$235 MYR 962

-40.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,570 ৳318.6K

$4,393 MYR 18.0K

-41.50%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$16.32 ৳2,024

$50.5 MYR 206

-67.69%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$19.36 ৳2,401

$16.62 MYR 68.0

16.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$45.97 ৳5,699

$77.2 MYR 316

-40.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$36.74 ৳4,555

$85.4 MYR 349

-56.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$145 ৳18.0K

$357 MYR 1,461

-59.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$68.1 ৳8,445

$311 MYR 1,270

-78.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$461 ৳57.1K

$650 MYR 2,659

-29.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$232 ৳28.8K

$565 MYR 2,310

-58.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,575 ৳195.3K

$1,956 MYR 7,997

-19.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$789 ৳97.9K

$1,161 MYR 4,746

-32.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$245 ৳30.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.67

4.06

162.81%

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

Last update for Dhaka: October 26, 2026

Last update for Skudai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Dhaka

$122 29%

Skudai

$226 25.2% 84.9% $104

Accommodation & Living

Dhaka

$68 16.1%

Skudai

$311 34.5% 356% $243

Eating Out

Dhaka

$64 15.2%

Skudai

$111 12.4% 73.8% $47

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dhaka

$62 14.8%

Skudai

$84 9.3% 34.6% $22

Clothing & Footwear

Dhaka

$53 12.6%

Skudai

$103 11.5% 94.1% $50

Sport & Entertainment

Dhaka

$26 6.2%

Skudai

$47 5.2% 79.2% $21

Getting Around

Dhaka

$26 6.2%

Skudai

$17 1.9% 34.4% $8.9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $145 in Dhaka and $357 in Skudai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $13 in Dhaka vs $18 in Skudai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $122 vs $226 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🇲🇾 Skudai

🕒 Local time

00:15 12:15 AM

02:15 2:15 AM

2 h ahead of Dhaka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

21,741,000 Capital

159,733

💱 Currency

Bangladeshi Taka BDT ৳

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 BDT = 8.07 USD

1,000 BDT = 7.23 EUR

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.219 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 27, 2026: 1 USD = 124 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.07 USD). 1 EUR = 138 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.23 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 27, 2026: 1 USD = 4.09 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.56 MYR (1 MYR = 0.219 EUR).

USD to BDT in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Dhaka Skudai 2,850 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Dhaka
Skudai

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 Skudai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 113% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $633 in Dhaka and $1,349 in Skudai 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: $145 in Dhaka versus $357 in Skudai. 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 $900 in Skudai – a 113% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Skudai runs roughly 49% less than in Dhaka. 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.