Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kedah and Austin, TX

For one person, living is cheaper in Kedah: $877 a month against $2,607 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $20,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

44

Cost of Living Index in Kedah
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Kedah Living Index
125

Cost of Living Index in Austin, TX
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Austin, TX Living Index

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Kedah

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$877

/mo nomad

Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,607

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Kedah and in Austin, TX

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $877 in Kedah versus $2,607 in Austin, TX.

Kedah $877
Austin, TX $2,607

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,399 in Kedah versus $4,031 in Austin, TX.

Kedah $1,399
Austin, TX $4,031

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,920 in Kedah versus $5,454 in Austin, TX.

Kedah $1,920
Austin, TX $5,454

Living in Kedah costs roughly 66% less than in Austin, TX, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Kedah is 36% below, Austin, TX is 92% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.72 MYR 15.14

$20.35 $20.35

-81.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$12.32 MYR 50.2

$84.7 $84.7

-85.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.56 MYR 18.59

$12.12 $12.12

-62.38%

Cappuccino

$2.91 MYR 11.87

$5.65 $5.65

-48.50%

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

$0.77 MYR 3.14

$3.68 $3.68

-79.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.39 MYR 1.59

$2.36 $2.36

-83.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.24 MYR 17.26

$7.87 $7.87

-46.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 MYR 17.75

$8.82 $8.82

-50.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.88 MYR 7.66

$1.14 $1.14

64.91%

White Bread (500g)

$1.06 MYR 4.32

$3.69 $3.69

-71.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 MYR 6.99

$3.31 $3.31

-48.04%

Eggs

$2.19 MYR 8.91

$4.15 $4.15

-47.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.55 MYR 55.2

$12.98 $12.98

4.39%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.34 MYR 17.69

$13.86 $13.86

-68.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.84 MYR 36.02

$16.34 $16.34

-45.90%

Apples (1kg)

$2.94 MYR 11.98

$4.69 $4.69

-37.31%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 MYR 6.65

$1.45 $1.45

12.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.75 MYR 11.20

$5.11 $5.11

-46.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.45 MYR 5.92

$4.52 $4.52

-67.92%

Potato (1kg)

$1.10 MYR 4.48

$3.08 $3.08

-64.29%

Onion (1kg)

$1.09 MYR 4.43

$2.38 $2.38

-54.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 MYR 4.61

$1.80 $1.80

-37.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.57 MYR 2.34

$2.22 $2.22

-74.32%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.62 MYR 18.83

$9.97 $9.97

-53.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.76 MYR 76.5

$15.05 $15.05

24.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.98 MYR 12.15

$2.91 $2.91

2.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.33 MYR 21.72

$3.33 $3.33

60.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.76 MYR 3.10

$1.22 $1.22

-37.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.85 MYR 52.4

$40.53 $40.53

-68.30%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.66 MYR 6.76

$2.78 $2.78

-40.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.38 MYR 1.54

$1.65 $1.65

-76.97%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.29 MYR 29.70

$35.39 $35.39

-79.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.60 MYR 2.46

$0.95 $0.95

-36.84%

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

$45.6K MYR 185.9K

$34.2K $34.2K

33.44%

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

$35.8K MYR 146.1K

$26.8K $26.8K

33.93%

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

$36.47 MYR 149

$223 $223

-83.65%

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

$9.66 MYR 39.35

$58.5 $58.5

-83.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.48 MYR 120

$71.2 $71.2

-58.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.63 MYR 141

$53.0 $53.0

-34.71%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.85 MYR 27.92

$16.75 $16.75

-59.10%

Cinema Ticket

$4.79 MYR 19.53

$14.06 $14.06

-65.93%

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

$388 MYR 1,579

$1,459 $1,459

-73.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.7K MYR 43.4K

$21.3K $21.3K

-50.07%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.9 MYR 240

$52.5 $52.5

12.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.76 MYR 142

$42.75 $42.75

-18.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$81.6 MYR 333

$86.4 $86.4

-5.58%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$70.7 MYR 288

$104 $104

-31.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$358 MYR 1,458

$2,112 $2,112

-83.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$258 MYR 1,051

$1,230 $1,230

-79.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$712 MYR 2,902

$3,863 $3,863

-81.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$607 MYR 2,472

$2,407 $2,407

-74.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,930 MYR 7,865

$7,426 $7,426

-74.01%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,258 MYR 5,124

$3,060 $3,060

-58.90%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,339 MYR 5,456

$5,179 $5,179

-74.14%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.04

6.82

-40.76%

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

Last update for Kedah: October 25, 2026

Last update for Austin, TX: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kedah

$258 29.4%

Austin, TX

$1.2K 47.2% 377% $973

Groceries & Markets

Kedah

$257 29.3%

Austin, TX

$410 15.7% 59.7% $153

Eating Out

Kedah

$113 12.9%

Austin, TX

$348 13.4% 208% $235

Clothing & Footwear

Kedah

$111 12.6%

Austin, TX

$128 4.9% 16.1% $18

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kedah

$76 8.6%

Austin, TX

$353 13.5% 366% $277

Sport & Entertainment

Kedah

$44 5%

Austin, TX

$81 3.1% 83.5% $37

Getting Around

Kedah

$19 2.2%

Austin, TX

$56 2.2% 190% $37

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $358 in Kedah and $2,112 in Austin, TX. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Austin, TX pays about 3.9 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $12 in Kedah vs $85 in Austin, TX for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $257 vs $410 per month, with Kedah cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Kedah

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🕒 Local time

21:55 9:55 PM

08:55 8:55 AM

13 h behind Kedah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

417,800

974,447

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.221 EUR

1 USD = 0.899 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 4.07 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.53 MYR (1 MYR = 0.221 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.899 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Kedah Austin, TX 15,530 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Kedah
Austin, TX

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

Kedah vs Austin, TX: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kedah wins on cost – living expenses run 66% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Kedah the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 74% lower in Kedah. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $358 in Kedah versus $2,112 in Austin, TX. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $877 per month in Kedah versus $2,607 in Austin, TX – a 197% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Kedah runs roughly 68% less than in Austin, TX. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you’re watching your budget.

At $877 in Kedah versus $2,607 in Austin, TX, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Kedah but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Kedah 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.

Expats usually find Kedah gentler on the wallet – expenses run 66% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.