Cost of Living Comparison Between Ipoh and Penang Cost of Living Comparison Between Ipoh and Penang

🙂 Solo nomad: Ipoh is 22% cheaper than Penang without rent, and 0.9% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Ipoh is 15.3% cheaper than Penang without rent, and 5% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.57 MYR 10.43

$3.11 MYR 12.61

-17.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.04 MYR 77.3

$21.15 MYR 85.9

-9.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.73 MYR 15.15

$4.33 MYR 17.57

-13.86%

Cappuccino

$2.31 MYR 9.40

$2.86 MYR 11.63

-19.23%

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

$0.72 MYR 2.91

$0.73 MYR 2.96

-1.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.34 MYR 1.37

$0.36 MYR 1.48

-5.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.56 MYR 14.46

$4.29 MYR 17.41

-17.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.39 MYR 17.82

$4.37 MYR 17.73

0.46%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.88 MYR 7.64

$1.88 MYR 7.63

White Bread (500g)

$0.99 MYR 4.04

$1.00 MYR 4.06

-1.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.31 MYR 5.30

$1.99 MYR 8.07

-34.17%

Eggs

$1.92 MYR 7.78

$2.05 MYR 8.33

-6.34%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.12 MYR 53.3

$16.99 MYR 69.0

-22.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.13 MYR 20.83

$5.18 MYR 21.02

-0.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.44 MYR 30.21

$14.97 MYR 60.8

-50.30%

Apples (1kg)

$2.97 MYR 12.04

$2.77 MYR 11.26

7.22%

Banana (1kg)

$1.74 MYR 7.06

$1.44 MYR 5.87

20.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.05 MYR 12.39

$2.70 MYR 10.96

12.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 MYR 8.54

$2.09 MYR 8.47

0.48%

Potato (1kg)

$1.46 MYR 5.91

$1.13 MYR 4.60

29.20%

Onion (1kg)

$1.41 MYR 5.73

$1.22 MYR 4.97

15.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.59 MYR 6.44

$0.95 MYR 3.84

67.37%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.46 MYR 1.87

$0.45 MYR 1.82

2.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.21 MYR 17.08

$4.22 MYR 17.12

-0.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.15 MYR 69.6

$19.31 MYR 78.4

-11.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.41 MYR 13.85

$2.62 MYR 10.63

30.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 MYR 17.70

$3.50 MYR 14.21

24.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 MYR 3.03

$0.46 MYR 1.85

63.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.74 MYR 47.68

$17.42 MYR 70.7

-32.61%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.20 MYR 4.89

$0.70 MYR 2.83

71.43%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.15 MYR 4.65

$0.50 MYR 2.03

130.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.17 MYR 16.94

$7.23 MYR 29.33

-42.32%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.50 MYR 2.02

$0.46 MYR 1.88

8.70%

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

$43.6K MYR 177.2K

$33.9K MYR 137.6K

28.80%

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

$31.4K MYR 127.3K

$27.7K MYR 112.3K

13.38%

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

$64.6 MYR 262

$38.60 MYR 157

67.46%

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

$9.46 MYR 38.41

$10.03 MYR 40.71

-5.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.88 MYR 113

$30.91 MYR 125

-9.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$23.47 MYR 95.3

$32.64 MYR 133

-28.09%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.04 MYR 24.51

$5.52 MYR 22.40

9.42%

Cinema Ticket

$3.04 MYR 12.35

$4.90 MYR 19.88

-37.96%

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

$118 MYR 479

$238 MYR 968

-50.56%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,317 MYR 9,405

$6,150 MYR 25.0K

-62.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.3 MYR 241

$55.6 MYR 226

6.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.12 MYR 110

$29.29 MYR 119

-7.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.9 MYR 300

$60.4 MYR 245

22.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$53.4 MYR 217

$52.8 MYR 214

1.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$392 MYR 1,591

$380 MYR 1,543

3.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$271 MYR 1,099

$227 MYR 920

19.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$637 MYR 2,586

$649 MYR 2,636

-1.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$470 MYR 1,909

$520 MYR 2,113

-9.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,235 MYR 9,072

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,156 MYR 4,693

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$979 MYR 3,973

$988 MYR 4,012

-0.98%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.96

4.16

-4.81%

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

Last update for Ipoh: January 12, 2026

Last update for Penang: January 13, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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