Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between George Town, Malaysia and Bitola

For one person, living is cheaper in Bitola: $859 a month against $952 in George Town, rent and utilities included – about $1,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

46

Cost of Living Index in George Town
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George Town Living Index
41

Cost of Living Index in Bitola
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Bitola Living Index

Jump to prices

George Town

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$952

/mo nomad

Bitola

🇲🇰 North Macedonia

$859

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in George Town and in Bitola

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $952 in George Town versus $859 in Bitola.

George Town $952
Bitola $859

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,558 in George Town versus $1,289 in Bitola.

George Town $1,558
Bitola $1,289

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,164 in George Town versus $1,718 in Bitola.

George Town $2,164
Bitola $1,718

Living in George Town is roughly 11% more expensive than in Bitola, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: George Town 30% lower, Bitola 37% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.46 MYR 14.02

$5.23 MKD 287

-33.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$15.45 MYR 62.7

$26.77 MKD 1,472

-42.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.68 MYR 18.98

$5.04 MKD 277

-7.14%

Cappuccino

$2.75 MYR 11.16

$1.96 MKD 108

40.31%

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

$0.70 MYR 2.85

$1.71 MKD 93.9

-59.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.35 MYR 1.42

$1.46 MKD 80.3

-76.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.47 MYR 10.04

$2.16 MKD 119

14.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.42 MYR 17.95

$2.62 MKD 144

68.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.87 MYR 7.59

$1.38 MKD 75.7

35.51%

White Bread (500g)

$1.05 MYR 4.26

$0.66 MKD 36.57

59.09%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.73 MYR 7.02

$1.72 MKD 94.7

0.58%

Eggs

$2.22 MYR 9.00

$1.98 MKD 109

12.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.65 MYR 55.4

$9.93 MKD 546

37.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.48 MYR 18.16

$6.81 MKD 375

-34.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.70 MYR 35.28

$13.08 MKD 719

-33.49%

Apples (1kg)

$2.34 MYR 9.48

$1.01 MKD 55.4

131.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.46 MYR 5.91

$1.39 MKD 76.6

5.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.22 MYR 9.01

$1.24 MKD 68.1

79.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.20 MYR 4.87

$1.59 MKD 87.4

-24.53%

Potato (1kg)

$0.92 MYR 3.72

$0.91 MKD 49.82

1.10%

Onion (1kg)

$0.85 MYR 3.46

$1.34 MKD 73.6

-36.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.74 MYR 3.02

$0.53 MKD 28.91

39.62%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 MYR 2.38

$0.50 MKD 27.30

18.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.58 MYR 18.56

$3.30 MKD 181

38.79%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.84 MYR 76.4

$6.06 MKD 333

210.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.41 MYR 9.78

$0.91 MKD 49.92

164.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.56 MYR 14.46

$1.83 MKD 101

94.54%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.47 MYR 1.93

$0.54 MKD 29.49

-12.96%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.01 MYR 48.74

$16.24 MKD 893

-26.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.23 MYR 5.00

$1.08 MKD 59.3

13.89%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.51 MYR 2.05

$0.57 MKD 31.35

-10.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.53 MYR 26.51

$6.32 MKD 348

3.32%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.82 MYR 3.34

$1.50 MKD 82.4

-45.33%

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

$45.5K MYR 184.8K

$30.9K MKD 1.7M

47.52%

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

$34.6K MYR 140.5K

$32.4K MKD 1.8M

7.00%

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

$36.85 MYR 149

$148 MKD 8,113

-75.02%

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

$8.05 MYR 32.65

$14.08 MKD 774

-42.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.38 MYR 115

$12.62 MKD 694

124.88%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.35 MYR 164

$22.16 MKD 1,219

82.08%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.03 MYR 20.40

$6.43 MKD 354

-21.77%

Cinema Ticket

$4.52 MYR 18.32

$4.57 MKD 252

-1.09%

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

$168 MYR 684

$211 MKD 11.6K

-20.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,958 MYR 20.1K

$1,167 MKD 64.2K

324.70%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.2 MYR 216

$76.3 MKD 4,198

-30.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.86 MYR 141

$46.27 MKD 2,545

-24.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.5 MYR 298

$73.3 MKD 4,029

0.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$70.8 MYR 287

$111 MKD 6,088

-36.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$709 MYR 2,876

$260 MKD 14.3K

173.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$366 MYR 1,486

$185 MKD 10.2K

97.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,104 MYR 4,478

$396 MKD 21.8K

178.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$904 MYR 3,669

$293 MKD 16.1K

208.73%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,709 MKD 94.0K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,142 MKD 62.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,057 MYR 4,288

$750 MKD 41.3K

40.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.04

6.45

-37.36%

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

Last update for George Town: October 26, 2026

Last update for Bitola: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

George Town

$366 38.5%

Bitola

$185 21.6% 49.4% $181

Groceries & Markets

George Town

$241 25.3%

Bitola

$198 23.1% 17.7% $43

Clothing & Footwear

George Town

$105 11%

Bitola

$138 16.1% 31.9% $33

Eating Out

George Town

$100 10.5%

Bitola

$109 12.7% 9.1% $9.1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

George Town

$73 7.7%

Bitola

$174 20.3% 138% $101

Sport & Entertainment

George Town

$49 5.2%

Bitola

$31 3.7% 36.6% $18

Getting Around

George Town

$18 1.9%

Bitola

$22 2.6% 26.3% $4.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $709 in George Town and $260 in Bitola. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

George Town pays 41% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $15 in George Town vs $27 in Bitola. Groceries flip the comparison at $241 vs $198, with Bitola cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇾 George Town

🇲🇰 Bitola

🕒 Local time

13:44 1:44 PM

06:44 6:44 AM

7 h behind George Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

794,313

74,550

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

North Macedonian Denar MKD ден

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.246 USD

1 MYR = 0.221 EUR

100 MKD = 1.82 USD

100 MKD = 1.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MKD, USD, EUR to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 4.06 MYR (1 MYR = 0.246 USD). 1 EUR = 4.53 MYR (1 MYR = 0.221 EUR).

North Macedonian Denar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 55 MKD (100 MKD = 1.82 USD). 1 EUR = 61.41 MKD (100 MKD = 1.63 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

George Town Bitola 8,690 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

George Town
Bitola

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

George Town vs Bitola: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $952 in George Town and $859 in Bitola, so Bitola is about 10% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 41% higher in George Town, 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: $709 in George Town versus $260 in Bitola. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 22% higher in George Town. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in George Town – a meal for two runs $15 versus $27 in Bitola. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Bitola 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, George Town and Bitola are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Bitola wins on affordability, George Town on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.