Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kalmar and Malmo

For one person, living is cheaper in Kalmar: $1,953 a month against $2,092 in Malmo, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

94

Cost of Living Index in Kalmar
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Kalmar Living Index
101

Cost of Living Index in Malmo
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Malmo Living Index

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Kalmar

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,953

/mo nomad

Malmo

🇸🇪 Sweden

$2,092

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Kalmar 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 Kalmar and in Malmo actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,953 per month in Kalmar vs $2,092 in Malmo, rent included.

Kalmar $1,953
Malmo $2,092

A couple spends around $2,895 per month in Kalmar vs $3,149 in Malmo, rent included.

Kalmar $2,895
Malmo $3,149

A family of three spends $3,837 per month in Kalmar vs $4,206 in Malmo, rent included.

Kalmar $3,837
Malmo $4,206

Kalmar is about 7% cheaper than Malmo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Kalmar and Malmo sit above the global median – Kalmar by 44%, Malmo by 54%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.36 SEK 152

$15.17 SEK 150

1.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$71.1 SEK 704

$76.1 SEK 753

-6.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.47 SEK 104

$12.18 SEK 121

-14.04%

Cappuccino

$4.67 SEK 46.27

$4.94 SEK 48.87

-5.47%

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

$2.81 SEK 27.87

$3.50 SEK 34.67

-19.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.55 SEK 25.27

$2.70 SEK 26.75

-5.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.69 SEK 96.0

$8.69 SEK 86.0

11.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.25 SEK 71.8

$9.11 SEK 90.2

-20.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 SEK 14.61

$1.67 SEK 16.50

-11.38%

White Bread (500g)

$3.01 SEK 29.84

$2.84 SEK 28.16

5.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.07 SEK 30.42

$3.44 SEK 34.06

-10.76%

Eggs

$4.65 SEK 46.08

$4.12 SEK 40.78

12.86%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.58 SEK 164

$13.17 SEK 130

25.89%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.89 SEK 108

$11.85 SEK 117

-8.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.80 SEK 226

$21.25 SEK 210

7.29%

Apples (1kg)

$2.49 SEK 24.63

$2.97 SEK 29.37

-16.16%

Banana (1kg)

$2.77 SEK 27.38

$2.63 SEK 25.99

5.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.57 SEK 35.35

$2.94 SEK 29.11

21.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.46 SEK 44.18

$4.26 SEK 42.15

4.69%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 SEK 16.57

$1.63 SEK 16.11

2.45%

Onion (1kg)

$2.27 SEK 22.49

$1.55 SEK 15.40

46.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.93 SEK 19.07

$2.51 SEK 24.88

-23.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.67 SEK 16.56

$1.18 SEK 11.65

41.53%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.79 SEK 77.1

$8.17 SEK 80.9

-4.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.14 SEK 90.5

$11.38 SEK 113

-19.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.93 SEK 19.13

$2.05 SEK 20.29

-5.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 SEK 25.19

$2.37 SEK 23.49

7.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.21 SEK 31.79

$3.22 SEK 31.93

-0.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$78.4 SEK 776

$63.9 SEK 633

22.66%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$10.03 SEK 99.4

$6.05 SEK 59.9

65.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.72 SEK 17.05

$2.48 SEK 24.59

-30.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$47.45 SEK 470

$49.44 SEK 490

-4.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.71 SEK 16.88

$1.79 SEK 17.71

-4.47%

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

$30.2K SEK 298.8K

$32.6K SEK 323.2K

-7.55%

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

$29.3K SEK 290.4K

$33.3K SEK 329.4K

-11.85%

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

$144 SEK 1,430

$144 SEK 1,424

0.40%

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

$27.58 SEK 273

$25.21 SEK 250

9.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.34 SEK 320

$40.19 SEK 398

-19.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.33 SEK 300

$39.31 SEK 389

-22.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.38 SEK 261

$29.48 SEK 292

-10.52%

Cinema Ticket

$14.58 SEK 144

$17.12 SEK 169

-14.84%

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

$142 SEK 1,401

$168 SEK 1,666

-15.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,986 SEK 49.4K

$3,352 SEK 33.2K

48.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.41 SEK 489

$102 SEK 1,010

-51.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.31 SEK 439

$45.62 SEK 452

-2.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.2 SEK 784

$111 SEK 1,096

-28.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$100 SEK 992

$156 SEK 1,547

-35.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$908 SEK 8,992

$1,100 SEK 10.9K

-17.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$778 SEK 7,699

$852 SEK 8,438

-8.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,325 SEK 13.1K

$1,765 SEK 17.5K

-24.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,123 SEK 11.1K

$1,343 SEK 13.3K

-16.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,073 SEK 40.3K

$4,098 SEK 40.6K

-0.62%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,733 SEK 27.1K

$3,158 SEK 31.3K

-13.45%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,864 SEK 28.4K

$2,979 SEK 29.5K

-3.86%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.93

3.05

28.85%

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

Last update for Kalmar: October 26, 2026

Last update for Malmo: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kalmar

$778 39.8%

Malmo

$852 40.8% 9.6% $75

Groceries & Markets

Kalmar

$384 19.7%

Malmo

$371 17.8% 3.4% $13

Eating Out

Kalmar

$295 15.1%

Malmo

$304 14.5% 3% $8.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kalmar

$204 10.5%

Malmo

$209 10% 2.4% $4.9

Clothing & Footwear

Kalmar

$123 6.3%

Malmo

$187 8.9% 51.8% $64

Getting Around

Kalmar

$110 5.6%

Malmo

$95 4.6% 13.3% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Kalmar

$59 3.1%

Malmo

$74 3.5% 23.6% $14

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $908 in Kalmar versus $1,100 in Malmo. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 4% higher in Malmo, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $71 in Kalmar versus $76 in Malmo. Groceries tell a different story – $384 in Kalmar vs $371 in Malmo – so Malmo wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇸🇪 Kalmar

🇸🇪 Malmo

🕒 Local time

13:41 1:41 PM

Same time as Kalmar

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

35,170

316,588

💱 Currency

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 SEK = 10.1 USD

100 SEK = 9.05 EUR

100 SEK = 10.1 USD

100 SEK = 9.05 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Kalmar Malmo 240 km

From you

Kalmar
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

Kalmar vs Malmo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,953 in Kalmar, $2,092 in Malmo – Kalmar comes out roughly 7% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,930 per month in Kalmar and $3,138 in Malmo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Kalmar, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $908 there versus $1,100 in Malmo.

Kindergarten costs $142 per month in Kalmar and $168 in Malmo. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 3% cheaper in Malmo – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$3,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,953 in Kalmar and $2,092 in Malmo, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Kalmar – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Kalmar. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Malmo makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.