Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Fukushima and Melbourne

For one person, living is cheaper in Fukushima: $1,165 a month against $2,853 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $20,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Fukushima
Learn more

Fukushima Living Index
138

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
Learn more

Melbourne Living Index

Jump to prices

Fukushima

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,165

/mo nomad

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,853

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Fukushima and in Melbourne

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,165 in Fukushima versus $2,853 in Melbourne.

Fukushima $1,165
Melbourne $2,853

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,826 in Fukushima versus $4,275 in Melbourne.

Fukushima $1,826
Melbourne $4,275

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,487 in Fukushima versus $5,697 in Melbourne.

Fukushima $2,487
Melbourne $5,697

Living in Fukushima costs roughly 59% less than in Melbourne, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Fukushima is 14% below, Melbourne is 111% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.89 ¥930

$17.20 A$24.75

-65.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.92 ¥4,727

$83.1 A$120

-64.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.45 ¥703

$12.43 A$17.88

-64.20%

Cappuccino

$2.55 ¥404

$4.05 A$5.82

-37.04%

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

$0.94 ¥148

$3.12 A$4.50

-69.87%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.67 ¥106

$2.46 A$3.54

-72.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.61 ¥412

$9.52 A$13.71

-72.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.12 ¥493

$8.16 A$11.74

-61.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 ¥232

$1.56 A$2.25

-5.77%

White Bread (500g)

$1.55 ¥244

$2.90 A$4.18

-46.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.08 ¥645

$2.66 A$3.82

53.38%

Eggs

$2.08 ¥328

$5.37 A$7.72

-61.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.38 ¥1,639

$10.67 A$15.36

-2.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.69 ¥1,057

$9.85 A$14.17

-32.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.64 ¥2,629

$15.36 A$22.11

8.33%

Apples (1kg)

$3.77 ¥596

$4.17 A$6.00

-9.59%

Banana (1kg)

$2.26 ¥357

$3.15 A$4.53

-28.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.80 ¥443

$3.26 A$4.69

-14.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.07 ¥642

$4.76 A$6.85

-14.50%

Potato (1kg)

$2.48 ¥391

$3.06 A$4.41

-18.95%

Onion (1kg)

$2.57 ¥406

$2.47 A$3.55

4.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.29 ¥205

$2.45 A$3.52

-47.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.84 ¥132

$1.63 A$2.34

-48.47%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.89 ¥615

$45.17 A$65.0

-91.39%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.82 ¥1,077

$12.68 A$18.25

-46.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.84 ¥291

$5.69 A$8.18

-67.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.13 ¥337

$5.23 A$7.53

-59.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.49 ¥235

$3.87 A$5.57

-61.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$48.19 ¥7,613

$142 A$204

-66.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.18 ¥502

$4.54 A$6.53

-29.96%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.69 ¥425

$1.42 A$2.04

89.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$21.15 ¥3,342

$30.59 A$44.01

-30.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.02 ¥161

$1.47 A$2.11

-30.61%

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

$20.2K ¥3.2M

$28.9K A$41.5K

-30.18%

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

$15.6K ¥2.5M

$25.9K A$37.3K

-39.85%

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

$126 ¥19.9K

$235 A$338

-46.33%

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

$21.15 ¥3,342

$27.45 A$39.51

-22.95%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.04 ¥4,746

$56.1 A$80.8

-46.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 ¥8,154

$50.1 A$72.1

3.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.49 A$30.93

Cinema Ticket

$11.70 ¥1,849

$17.76 A$25.56

-34.12%

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

$453 ¥71.6K

$2,385 A$3,432

-81.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K ¥1.8M

$29.7K A$42.7K

-61.61%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$46.93 ¥7,414

$79.2 A$114

-40.72%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.00 ¥5,688

$49.49 A$71.2

-27.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$64.6 ¥10.2K

$118 A$170

-45.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.5 ¥13.3K

$132 A$190

-36.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$535 ¥84.5K

$1,763 A$2,537

-69.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$333 ¥52.5K

$1,411 A$2,031

-76.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,018 ¥160.9K

$3,522 A$5,069

-71.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$705 ¥111.4K

$2,525 A$3,634

-72.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,897 ¥615.6K

$7,136 A$10.3K

-45.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,857 ¥293.4K

$6,355 A$9,144

-70.78%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,258 A$6,128

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.21

5.9

-62.54%

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

Last update for Fukushima: October 17, 2026

Last update for Melbourne: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Fukushima

$333 28.5%

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.5% 324% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Fukushima

$288 24.7%

Melbourne

$388 13.6% 34.8% $100

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Fukushima

$177 15.2%

Melbourne

$319 11.2% 79.7% $141

Eating Out

Fukushima

$117 10%

Melbourne

$310 10.9% 165% $193

Clothing & Footwear

Fukushima

$104 9%

Melbourne

$171 6% 63.5% $66

Sport & Entertainment

Fukushima

$75 6.4%

Melbourne

$86 3% 14.1% $11

Getting Around

Fukushima

$71 6.1%

Melbourne

$169 5.9% 139% $98

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $535 in Fukushima and $1,763 in Melbourne. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $30.00 in Fukushima vs $83.0 in Melbourne for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $288 vs $388 per month, with Fukushima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Fukushima

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🕒 Local time

05:27 5:27 AM

07:27 7:27 AM

2 h ahead of Fukushima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

282,693

5,031,195

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

USD to JPY in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Fukushima Melbourne 8,420 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Fukushima
Melbourne

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

Fukushima vs Melbourne: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Fukushima is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 145% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $1,748 in Fukushima and $4,280 in Melbourne 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: $535 in Fukushima versus $1,763 in Melbourne. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 35% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Fukushima – a meal for two runs $30.00 versus $83.0 in Melbourne. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,165 in Fukushima versus $2,853 in Melbourne, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Fukushima but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Fukushima 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, Fukushima and Melbourne 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 Fukushima gentler on the wallet – expenses run 145% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.