Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Forster and Taipei

For one person, living is cheaper in Taipei: $1,368 a month against $2,456 in Forster, rent and utilities included – about $13,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

123

Cost of Living Index in Forster
Learn more

Forster Living Index
67

Cost of Living Index in Taipei
Learn more

Taipei Living Index

Jump to prices

Forster

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,456

/mo nomad

Taipei

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,368

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Forster and in Taipei

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,456 in Forster versus $1,368 in Taipei.

Forster $2,456
Taipei $1,368

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,696 in Forster versus $2,202 in Taipei.

Forster $3,696
Taipei $2,202

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,937 in Forster versus $3,036 in Taipei.

Forster $4,937
Taipei $3,036

Living in Forster is roughly 80% more expensive than in Taipei, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Forster 82% above, Taipei 1% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.41 A$25.05

$4.60 NT$149

278.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$90.1 A$130

$47.13 NT$1,528

91.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.28 A$14.80

$5.58 NT$181

84.23%

Cappuccino

$3.93 A$5.66

$3.45 NT$112

13.91%

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

$2.88 A$4.14

$0.94 NT$30.61

206.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.16 A$3.11

$0.67 NT$21.73

222.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.11 A$10.23

$2.86 NT$92.7

148.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.51 A$7.93

$3.70 NT$120

48.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.68 A$2.42

$3.12 NT$101

-46.15%

White Bread (500g)

$2.77 A$3.99

$1.97 NT$64.0

40.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.36 A$3.40

$3.16 NT$103

-25.32%

Eggs

$5.41 A$7.78

$2.68 NT$86.9

101.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.05 A$17.34

$19.90 NT$645

-39.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.36 A$13.47

$9.85 NT$319

-4.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.51 A$23.77

$21.51 NT$698

-23.25%

Apples (1kg)

$3.91 A$5.63

$4.85 NT$157

-19.38%

Banana (1kg)

$3.24 A$4.66

$3.25 NT$105

-0.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.45 A$4.96

$3.03 NT$98.2

13.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.40 A$6.34

$4.53 NT$147

-2.87%

Potato (1kg)

$3.18 A$4.57

$2.79 NT$90.4

13.98%

Onion (1kg)

$2.33 A$3.35

$2.34 NT$75.9

-0.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.36 A$3.40

$1.68 NT$54.5

40.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 A$1.71

$1.10 NT$35.62

8.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.21 A$63.6

$3.80 NT$123

1063.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.74 A$19.77

$14.17 NT$460

-3.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.87 A$5.56

$1.63 NT$53.0

137.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 A$5.63

$2.29 NT$74.3

70.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.88 A$4.14

$0.65 NT$21.04

343.08%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$80.8 A$116

$37.88 NT$1,228

113.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.49 A$5.03

$2.68 NT$86.8

30.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 A$2.24

$0.82 NT$26.55

90.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.50 A$58.3

$9.17 NT$297

341.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 A$2.09

$1.02 NT$32.93

42.16%

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

$28.7K A$41.2K

$32.8K NT$1.1M

-12.65%

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

$30.0K A$43.1K

$24.5K NT$795.1K

22.29%

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

$222 A$319

$87.7 NT$2,843

153.01%

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

$27.32 A$39.31

$17.28 NT$560

58.10%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$56.5 A$81.3

$27.38 NT$888

106.25%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.2 A$82.3

$40.32 NT$1,308

41.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.94 A$28.69

$15.94 NT$517

25.09%

Cinema Ticket

$17.15 A$24.67

$9.83 NT$319

74.47%

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

$2,227 A$3,205

$663 NT$21.5K

236.10%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$27.9K A$40.1K

$16.6K NT$538.4K

67.93%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$62.4 NT$2,025

28.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$68.9 A$99.1

$39.51 NT$1,281

74.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$159

$84.5 NT$2,740

30.96%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 A$193

$106 NT$3,424

27.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,533 A$2,206

$999 NT$32.4K

53.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,118 A$1,609

$473 NT$15.3K

136.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,440 A$3,512

$1,565 NT$50.8K

55.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,911 A$2,750

$948 NT$30.7K

101.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,666 A$8,154

$11.9K NT$385.6K

-52.35%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,657 A$8,140

$7,306 NT$236.9K

-22.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,760 NT$57.1K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.84

2.4

143.33%

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

Last update for Forster: October 13, 2026

Last update for Taipei: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Forster

$1.1K 45.5%

Taipei

$473 34.6% 57.7% $645

Groceries & Markets

Forster

$376 15.3%

Taipei

$400 29.3% 6.6% $25

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Forster

$306 12.4%

Taipei

$132 9.7% 56.7% $173

Eating Out

Forster

$284 11.6%

Taipei

$123 9% 56.7% $161

Clothing & Footwear

Forster

$177 7.2%

Taipei

$131 9.6% 25.9% $46

Getting Around

Forster

$104 4.2%

Taipei

$47 3.5% 54.4% $56

Sport & Entertainment

Forster

$91 3.7%

Taipei

$60 4.4% 34.4% $31

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,533 in Forster and $999 in Taipei. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $90.0 in Forster vs $47.00 in Taipei. Groceries flip the comparison at $376 vs $400, with Forster cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Forster

🇹🇼 Taipei

🕒 Local time

02:00 2:00 AM

23:00 11:00 PM

3 h behind Forster

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

20,554

2,635,286 Capital

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

100 TWD = 3.08 USD

100 TWD = 2.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TWD, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 32.43 TWD (100 TWD = 3.08 USD). 1 EUR = 36.46 TWD (100 TWD = 2.74 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Forster Taipei 7,160 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Forster
Taipei

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

Forster vs Taipei: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Forster and Taipei differ by about 80% in total monthly costs ($2,456 vs $1,368 including rent). Taipei is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $3,684 in Forster and $2,052 in Taipei 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: $1,533 in Forster versus $999 in Taipei. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,227 in Forster versus $663 in Taipei. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Forster pay roughly 7% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,368 in Taipei versus $2,456 in Forster, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Taipei but tight or insufficient in Forster. The gap between the two cities makes Taipei the clear choice for anyone on this 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.

Safety-wise, Forster and Taipei 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 Taipei gentler on the wallet – expenses run 80% less than in Forster. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.