Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Gavle and Malmo

For one person, living is cheaper in Gavle: $1,439 a month against $2,075 in Malmo, rent and utilities included – about $7,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

69

Cost of Living Index in Gavle
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Gavle Living Index
100

Cost of Living Index in Malmo
Learn more

Malmo Living Index

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Gavle

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,439

/mo nomad

Malmo

🇸🇪 Sweden

$2,075

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Gavle and in Malmo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,439 in Gavle versus $2,075 in Malmo.

Gavle $1,439
Malmo $2,075

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,286 in Gavle versus $3,158 in Malmo.

Gavle $2,286
Malmo $3,158

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,134 in Gavle versus $4,240 in Malmo.

Gavle $3,134
Malmo $4,240

Living in Gavle costs roughly 31% less than in Malmo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Gavle 6% above, Malmo 53% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.69 SEK 136

$15.01 SEK 149

-8.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.4 SEK 786

$75.8 SEK 751

4.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.31 SEK 92.2

$11.86 SEK 118

-21.50%

Cappuccino

$4.42 SEK 43.79

$4.96 SEK 49.10

-10.89%

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

$2.07 SEK 20.51

$3.32 SEK 32.92

-37.65%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.91 SEK 18.95

$2.58 SEK 25.61

-25.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.79 SEK 77.2

$8.60 SEK 85.2

-9.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.75 SEK 76.8

$8.79 SEK 87.1

-11.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 SEK 16.12

$1.74 SEK 17.20

-6.32%

White Bread (500g)

$2.61 SEK 25.84

$2.88 SEK 28.56

-9.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.73 SEK 36.95

$3.54 SEK 35.10

5.37%

Eggs

$3.81 SEK 37.80

$4.12 SEK 40.86

-7.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.13 SEK 90.4

$13.03 SEK 129

-29.93%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.29 SEK 102

$12.13 SEK 120

-15.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.73 SEK 186

$21.58 SEK 214

-13.21%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 SEK 30.25

$3.08 SEK 30.48

-0.97%

Banana (1kg)

$2.74 SEK 27.16

$2.63 SEK 26.06

4.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.27 SEK 32.43

$3.10 SEK 30.72

5.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.35 SEK 43.07

$4.27 SEK 42.26

1.87%

Potato (1kg)

$1.73 SEK 17.12

$1.69 SEK 16.73

2.37%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 SEK 17.99

$1.55 SEK 15.35

17.42%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.55 SEK 25.26

$2.46 SEK 24.35

3.66%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.05 SEK 20.35

$1.18 SEK 11.71

73.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.99 SEK 79.1

$7.99 SEK 79.2

Wine (Bottle)

$11.13 SEK 110

$11.66 SEK 116

-4.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.64 SEK 16.23

$1.99 SEK 19.68

-17.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.55 SEK 15.34

$2.27 SEK 22.52

-31.72%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.25 SEK 32.22

$3.15 SEK 31.23

3.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.4 SEK 598

$64.9 SEK 643

-6.95%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.52 SEK 44.83

$6.17 SEK 61.2

-26.74%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 SEK 15.16

$2.43 SEK 24.06

-37.04%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.87 SEK 336

$51.3 SEK 508

-33.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.81 SEK 17.90

$1.76 SEK 17.41

2.84%

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

$25.8K SEK 255.2K

$33.1K SEK 327.5K

-22.08%

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

$28.1K SEK 278.1K

$33.7K SEK 334.2K

-16.79%

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

$55.6 SEK 551

$141 SEK 1,401

-60.67%

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

$21.93 SEK 217

$25.81 SEK 256

-15.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.60 SEK 392

$39.83 SEK 395

-0.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$47.32 SEK 469

$39.84 SEK 395

18.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$30.01 SEK 297

Cinema Ticket

$15.22 SEK 151

$17.05 SEK 169

-10.73%

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

$133 SEK 1,321

$172 SEK 1,703

-22.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.3K SEK 151.1K

$3,383 SEK 33.5K

350.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.6 SEK 699

$101 SEK 1,004

-30.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.8 SEK 583

$44.66 SEK 443

31.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$50.9 SEK 505

$114 SEK 1,132

-55.41%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.5 SEK 887

$156 SEK 1,548

-42.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$579 SEK 5,738

$1,082 SEK 10.7K

-46.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$425 SEK 4,208

$836 SEK 8,280

-49.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$762 SEK 7,546

$1,765 SEK 17.5K

-56.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$665 SEK 6,593

$1,372 SEK 13.6K

-51.49%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,945 SEK 19.3K

$4,013 SEK 39.8K

-51.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,333 SEK 13.2K

$3,220 SEK 31.9K

-58.60%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,144 SEK 31.1K

$3,099 SEK 30.7K

1.44%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.37

3.05

10.49%

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

Last update for Gavle: October 17, 2026

Last update for Malmo: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Gavle

$425 29.5%

Malmo

$836 40.3% 96.8% $411

Groceries & Markets

Gavle

$351 24.4%

Malmo

$376 18.1% 7.1% $25

Eating Out

Gavle

$261 18.1%

Malmo

$299 14.4% 14.7% $38

Clothing & Footwear

Gavle

$121 8.4%

Malmo

$187 9% 54.4% $66

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Gavle

$117 8.1%

Malmo

$207 10% 76.7% $90

Getting Around

Gavle

$86 6%

Malmo

$96 4.6% 12% $10

Sport & Entertainment

Gavle

$78 5.4%

Malmo

$74 3.6% 4.9% $3.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $579 in Gavle and $1,082 in Malmo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Gavle pays 1% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $79.0 in Gavle vs $76.0 in Malmo. Groceries flip the comparison at $351 vs $376, with Gavle cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇸🇪 Gavle

🇸🇪 Malmo

🕒 Local time

09:43 9:43 AM

Same time as Gavle

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

100,000

316,588

💱 Currency

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 SEK = 10.09 USD

100 SEK = 8.98 EUR

100 SEK = 10.09 USD

100 SEK = 8.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Gavle Malmo 610 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Gavle
Malmo

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

Gavle vs Malmo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Gavle and Malmo differ by about 44% in total monthly costs ($1,439 vs $2,075 including rent). Gavle is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 1% higher in Gavle, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $579 in Gavle versus $1,082 in Malmo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Gavle runs roughly 7% less than in Malmo. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $133 in Gavle versus $172 in Malmo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,439 in Gavle versus $2,075 in Malmo, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Gavle but tight or insufficient in Malmo. The gap between the two cities makes Gavle 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, Gavle and Malmo 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 Gavle gentler on the wallet – expenses run 44% less than in Malmo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.