Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kepong and Dhaka

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $406 a month against $909 in Kepong, rent and utilities included – about $6,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

44

Cost of Living Index in Kepong
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Kepong Living Index
20

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
Learn more

Dhaka Living Index

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Kepong

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$909

/mo nomad

Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$406

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Kepong and in Dhaka

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $909 in Kepong versus $406 in Dhaka.

Kepong $909
Dhaka $406

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,366 in Kepong versus $687 in Dhaka.

Kepong $1,366
Dhaka $687

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,823 in Kepong versus $969 in Dhaka.

Kepong $1,823
Dhaka $969

Living in Kepong is roughly 124% more expensive than in Dhaka, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Kepong 33% lower, Dhaka 70% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.75 MYR 15.31

$2.28 ৳282

64.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.50 MYR 100.0

$12.33 ৳1,523

98.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.94 MYR 20.13

$3.95 ৳488

25.06%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.48 ৳554

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.13 ৳510

Cappuccino

$3.01 MYR 12.28

$2.28 ৳281

32.02%

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

$0.87 MYR 3.55

$0.33 ৳40.88

163.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.45 MYR 1.82

$0.16 ৳19.86

181.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 MYR 13.86

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.84 MYR 23.81

Milk (1 liter)

$1.76 MYR 7.18

$0.85 ৳104

107.06%

White Bread (500g)

$1.04 MYR 4.24

$0.60 ৳74.5

73.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MYR 5.81

$0.69 ৳85.4

105.80%

Eggs

$1.80 MYR 7.34

$1.23 ৳152

46.34%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.81 MYR 40.00

$8.80 ৳1,087

11.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 MYR 13.47

$3.33 ৳412

-0.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.58 MYR 39.08

$6.63 ৳819

44.49%

Apples (1kg)

$3.31 MYR 13.51

$2.85 ৳352

16.14%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 MYR 6.91

$0.90 ৳111

87.78%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.71 MYR 11.06

$2.34 ৳289

15.81%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.70 MYR 6.93

$0.63 ৳78.4

169.84%

Potato (1kg)

$1.47 MYR 5.99

$0.24 ৳29.59

512.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.66 MYR 6.77

$0.46 ৳57.3

260.87%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.32 MYR 5.37

$0.35 ৳42.79

277.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 MYR 2.22

$0.28 ৳34.24

96.43%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$12.11 ৳1,496

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.31 ৳656

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.42 ৳794

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.17 MYR 17.00

$3.28 ৳405

27.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.90 MYR 56.7

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.67 MYR 10.90

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.99 MYR 12.20

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.82 MYR 3.34

$0.42 ৳52.3

95.24%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.06 MYR 49.18

$22.43 ৳2,772

-46.23%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.00 MYR 4.09

$1.19 ৳147

-15.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.38 MYR 1.56

$0.39 ৳48.71

-2.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.05 MYR 36.91

$3.28 ৳406

175.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.86 MYR 3.53

$1.10 ৳136

-21.82%

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

$41.3K MYR 168.5K

$29.4K ৳3.6M

40.31%

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

$32.0K MYR 130.6K

$32.2K ৳4.0M

-0.45%

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

$49.51 MYR 202

$38.28 ৳4,729

29.34%

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

$8.27 MYR 33.74

$4.09 ৳506

102.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.27 MYR 111

$9.02 ৳1,114

202.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.01 MYR 159

$13.66 ৳1,688

185.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.74 MYR 27.48

$10.21 ৳1,261

-33.99%

Cinema Ticket

$4.86 MYR 19.82

$4.11 ৳508

18.25%

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

$164 MYR 668

$90.7 ৳11.2K

80.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,528 MYR 18.5K

$2,591 ৳320.2K

74.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.7 MYR 223

$17.06 ৳2,108

220.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.36 MYR 99.4

$21.38 ৳2,641

13.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.3 MYR 336

$51.4 ৳6,355

60.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.5 MYR 345

$36.78 ৳4,545

129.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$404 MYR 1,649

$133 ৳16.4K

203.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$303 MYR 1,235

$65.1 ৳8,041

365.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$668 MYR 2,726

$377 ৳46.6K

77.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$482 MYR 1,967

$192 ৳23.8K

150.53%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,997 MYR 8,147

$1,621 ৳200.3K

23.18%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,073 MYR 4,378

$760 ৳93.9K

41.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$644 MYR 2,628

$246 ৳30.4K

161.75%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.06

10.48

-61.26%

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

Last update for Kepong: October 11, 2026

Last update for Dhaka: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kepong

$303 33.3%

Dhaka

$65 16% 78.5% $238

Groceries & Markets

Kepong

$228 25.1%

Dhaka

$124 30.5% 45.8% $105

Eating Out

Kepong

$115 12.6%

Dhaka

$59 14.6% 48.3% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Kepong

$111 12.2%

Dhaka

$57 14.1% 48.5% $54

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kepong

$85 9.4%

Dhaka

$51 12.7% 39.6% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Kepong

$49 5.4%

Dhaka

$22 5.4% 55.1% $27

Getting Around

Kepong

$18 2%

Dhaka

$27 6.7% 49.6% $9.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $404 in Kepong and $133 in Dhaka. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Kepong pays 162% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $25.00 in Kepong vs $12.00 in Dhaka for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $228 vs $124 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Kepong

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🕒 Local time

13:57 1:57 PM

11:57 11:57 AM

2 h behind Kepong

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

85,960

21,741,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

Bangladeshi Taka BDT ৳

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.218 EUR

1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD

1,000 BDT = 7.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BDT, USD, EUR to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.59 MYR (1 MYR = 0.218 EUR).

Bangladeshi Taka exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 124 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD). 1 EUR = 139 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.2 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Kepong Dhaka 2,580 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Kepong
Dhaka

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

Kepong vs Dhaka: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 124% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 162% higher in Kepong, 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: $404 in Kepong versus $133 in Dhaka. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $909 per month in Kepong versus $406 in Dhaka – a 124% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Dhaka runs roughly 86% less than in Kepong. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Dhaka 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, Kepong and Dhaka are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Dhaka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 124% less than in Kepong. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.