Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ipoh and Brasilia

For one person, living is cheaper in Ipoh: $826 a month against $916 in Brasilia, rent and utilities included – about $1,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

40

Cost of Living Index in Ipoh
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Ipoh Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Brasilia
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Brasilia Living Index

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Ipoh

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$826

/mo nomad

Brasilia

🇧🇷 Brazil

$916

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ipoh and in Brasilia

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $826 in Ipoh versus $916 in Brasilia.

Ipoh $826
Brasilia $916

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,228 in Ipoh versus $1,514 in Brasilia.

Ipoh $1,228
Brasilia $1,514

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,629 in Ipoh versus $2,112 in Brasilia.

Ipoh $1,629
Brasilia $2,112

Living in Ipoh costs roughly 10% less than in Brasilia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Ipoh 39% lower, Brasilia 33% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.23 MYR 13.10

$8.44 R$45.89

-61.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.61 MYR 79.5

$36.71 R$200

-46.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.33 MYR 17.54

$7.98 R$43.42

-45.74%

Cappuccino

$2.78 MYR 11.28

$2.53 R$13.74

9.88%

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

$0.70 MYR 2.82

$1.42 R$7.72

-50.70%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.46 MYR 1.87

$1.00 R$5.45

-54.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.51 MYR 18.30

$2.20 R$11.96

105.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.71 MYR 19.09

$3.76 R$20.43

25.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.97 MYR 7.99

$1.02 R$5.54

93.14%

White Bread (500g)

$1.02 MYR 4.12

$1.95 R$10.63

-47.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.36 MYR 5.52

$1.24 R$6.75

9.68%

Eggs

$2.24 MYR 9.09

$2.27 R$12.37

-1.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.38 MYR 54.2

$11.17 R$60.8

19.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.54 MYR 18.41

$3.86 R$21.02

17.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.82 MYR 31.72

$8.58 R$46.66

-8.86%

Apples (1kg)

$3.09 MYR 12.51

$2.31 R$12.54

33.77%

Banana (1kg)

$1.85 MYR 7.51

$1.38 R$7.50

34.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.32 MYR 9.42

$1.26 R$6.84

84.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 MYR 6.06

$1.52 R$8.27

-1.32%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 MYR 5.17

$1.11 R$6.05

15.32%

Onion (1kg)

$1.36 MYR 5.52

$0.98 R$5.31

38.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 MYR 4.53

$0.76 R$4.11

47.37%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.45 MYR 1.82

$0.93 R$5.08

-51.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.54 MYR 18.40

$2.36 R$12.86

92.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.30 MYR 70.1

$7.67 R$41.71

125.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.41 MYR 13.81

$1.24 R$6.75

175.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.49 MYR 18.20

$2.36 R$12.81

90.25%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.73 R$3.96

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.76 R$162

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.23 MYR 4.99

$1.01 R$5.52

21.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.19 MYR 4.83

$0.86 R$4.67

38.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.01 MYR 20.32

$5.77 R$31.40

-13.17%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.52 MYR 2.09

$1.25 R$6.79

-58.40%

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

$44.6K MYR 180.8K

$22.0K R$119.4K

103.18%

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

$34.5K MYR 139.9K

$31.9K R$173.3K

8.34%

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

$64.0 MYR 259

$92.1 R$501

-30.53%

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

$8.65 MYR 35.08

$11.85 R$64.4

-27.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.30 MYR 107

$20.93 R$114

25.66%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$24.72 MYR 100

$30.47 R$166

-18.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.29 R$143

Cinema Ticket

$3.50 MYR 14.19

$7.46 R$40.61

-53.08%

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

$458 MYR 1,855

$764 R$4,158

-40.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.2K MYR 53.5K

$15.7K R$85.5K

-16.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.4 MYR 249

$52.6 R$286

16.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.45 MYR 148

$42.10 R$229

-13.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$62.1 MYR 252

$79.4 R$432

-21.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.1 MYR 243

$83.6 R$455

-28.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$325 MYR 1,316

$517 R$2,813

-37.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$230 MYR 931

$242 R$1,314

-4.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$495 MYR 2,006

$1,156 R$6,290

-57.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$361 MYR 1,463

$580 R$3,153

-37.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,398 R$13.0K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 R$9,128

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$950 MYR 3,851

$784 R$4,267

21.12%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.99

12.12

-67.08%

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

Last update for Ipoh: October 24, 2026

Last update for Brasilia: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Ipoh

$251 30.4%

Brasilia

$201 21.9% 20.1% $50

Accommodation & Living

Ipoh

$230 27.8%

Brasilia

$242 26.4% 5.2% $12

Eating Out

Ipoh

$109 13.2%

Brasilia

$150 16.4% 37.8% $41

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ipoh

$99 12%

Brasilia

$125 13.6% 26.2% $26

Clothing & Footwear

Ipoh

$99 12%

Brasilia

$116 12.7% 17.1% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Ipoh

$32 3.8%

Brasilia

$45 5% 43.1% $14

Getting Around

Ipoh

$7.2 * 0.9%

Brasilia

$38 4.1% 428% $31

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $325 in Ipoh and $517 in Brasilia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ipoh pays 21% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $20 in Ipoh vs $37 in Brasilia. Groceries flip the comparison at $251 vs $201, with Brasilia cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Ipoh

🇧🇷 Brasilia

🕒 Local time

15:16 3:16 PM

04:16 4:16 AM

11 h behind Ipoh

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

759,952

2,817,381 Capital

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.247 USD

1 MYR = 0.22 EUR

1 BRL = 0.184 USD

1 BRL = 0.164 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 4.05 MYR (1 MYR = 0.247 USD). 1 EUR = 4.54 MYR (1 MYR = 0.22 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 5.44 BRL (1 BRL = 0.184 USD). 1 EUR = 6.09 BRL (1 BRL = 0.164 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Ipoh Brasilia 16,410 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Ipoh
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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

Ipoh vs Brasilia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $826 in Ipoh and $916 in Brasilia, so Ipoh is about 10% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 21% higher in Ipoh, 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: $325 in Ipoh versus $517 in Brasilia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $458 in Ipoh versus $764 in Brasilia. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Ipoh – a meal for two runs $20 versus $37 in Brasilia. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Ipoh is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.