Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kinmen and Melbourne

For one person, living is cheaper in Kinmen: $1,103 a month against $2,852 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $21,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

53

Cost of Living Index in Kinmen
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Kinmen Living Index
137

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
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Melbourne Living Index

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Kinmen

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,103

/mo nomad

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,852

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Kinmen and in Melbourne

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

A single person spends $1,103 per month in Kinmen vs $2,852 in Melbourne, rent included.

Kinmen $1,103
Melbourne $2,852

A couple spends around $1,846 per month in Kinmen vs $4,297 in Melbourne, rent included.

Kinmen $1,846
Melbourne $4,297

A family of three spends $2,588 per month in Kinmen vs $5,742 in Melbourne, rent included.

Kinmen $2,588
Melbourne $5,742

Kinmen is about 61% cheaper than Melbourne, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Kinmen sits 18% below the global median, while Melbourne is 113% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.63 NT$148

$17.75 A$25.40

-73.92%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$30.89 NT$986

$84.8 A$121

-63.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.62 NT$147

$12.16 A$17.40

-62.01%

Cappuccino

$2.93 NT$93.4

$3.93 A$5.62

-25.45%

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

$0.91 NT$29.15

$3.14 A$4.49

-71.02%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.64 NT$20.42

$2.43 A$3.47

-73.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.55 NT$49.41

$9.90 A$14.17

-84.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 NT$81.0

$8.29 A$11.86

-69.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.03 NT$96.5

$1.55 A$2.21

95.48%

White Bread (500g)

$1.90 NT$60.8

$3.01 A$4.31

-36.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.28 NT$105

$2.88 A$4.12

13.89%

Eggs

$2.66 NT$84.9

$5.44 A$7.79

-51.10%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.16 NT$548

$10.59 A$15.16

62.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.93 NT$253

$9.61 A$13.76

-17.48%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.08 NT$705

$14.99 A$21.46

47.30%

Apples (1kg)

$4.20 NT$134

$4.15 A$5.94

1.20%

Banana (1kg)

$2.13 NT$68.0

$3.05 A$4.37

-30.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.02 NT$96.4

$3.30 A$4.72

-8.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.39 NT$108

$4.76 A$6.81

-28.78%

Potato (1kg)

$2.82 NT$90.1

$3.04 A$4.34

-7.24%

Onion (1kg)

$2.20 NT$70.2

$2.55 A$3.65

-13.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.09 NT$66.6

$2.48 A$3.55

-15.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.04 NT$33.16

$1.63 A$2.33

-36.20%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.38 NT$108

$44.07 A$63.1

-92.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.50 NT$399

$12.43 A$17.79

0.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 NT$52.2

$5.33 A$7.63

-69.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 NT$73.4

$5.16 A$7.38

-55.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.71 NT$22.54

$3.84 A$5.50

-81.51%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$32.25 NT$1,029

$142 A$203

-77.21%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.61 NT$83.3

$4.40 A$6.29

-40.68%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 NT$28.74

$1.40 A$2.01

-35.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.69 NT$309

$29.83 A$42.69

-67.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.07 NT$34.15

$1.46 A$2.09

-26.71%

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

$36.4K NT$1.2M

$28.1K A$40.3K

29.41%

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

$25.8K NT$823.9K

$25.9K A$37.1K

-0.49%

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

$87.2 NT$2,783

$233 A$333

-62.51%

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

$16.22 NT$518

$27.28 A$39.04

-40.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.12 NT$706

$57.0 A$81.6

-61.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.94 NT$1,306

$52.7 A$75.4

-22.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.62 A$32.37

Cinema Ticket

$8.63 NT$275

$17.10 A$24.48

-49.53%

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

$585 NT$18.7K

$2,373 A$3,397

-75.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.0K NT$510.0K

$30.5K A$43.6K

-47.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.2 NT$2,305

$78.2 A$112

-7.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.56 NT$880

$50.5 A$72.2

-45.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.1 NT$2,908

$121 A$172

-24.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.4 NT$2,852

$133 A$191

-32.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$409 NT$13.1K

$1,713 A$2,451

-76.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$254 NT$8,118

$1,402 A$2,006

-81.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$986 NT$31.5K

$3,339 A$4,778

-70.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$743 NT$23.7K

$2,529 A$3,619

-70.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,945 NT$253.5K

$7,018 A$10.0K

13.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,645 NT$148.2K

$6,767 A$9,685

-31.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,228 A$6,051

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.38

5.9

-59.66%

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

Last update for Kinmen: October 4, 2026

Last update for Melbourne: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Kinmen

$365 33.9%

Melbourne

$385 13.5% 5.6% $21

Accommodation & Living

Kinmen

$254 23.6%

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3% 451% $1.1K

Clothing & Footwear

Kinmen

$126 11.7%

Melbourne

$172 6.1% 36.4% $46

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kinmen

$126 11.7%

Melbourne

$317 11.1% 152% $191

Eating Out

Kinmen

$105 9.8%

Melbourne

$314 11% 199% $209

Sport & Entertainment

Kinmen

$58 5.4%

Melbourne

$87 3.1% 49.3% $29

Getting Around

Kinmen

$42 3.9%

Melbourne

$168 5.9% 299% $126

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $409 in Kinmen versus $1,713 in Melbourne. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $31.00 in Kinmen versus $85.0 in Melbourne. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $365 vs $385 – making Kinmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇼 Kinmen

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🕒 Local time

11:31 11:31 AM

14:31 2:31 PM

3 h ahead of Kinmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

12,568

5,031,195

💱 Currency

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 TWD = 3.13 USD

100 TWD = 2.79 EUR

1 AUD = 0.699 USD

1 AUD = 0.623 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to TWD – New Taiwan Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇼 New Taiwan Dollar (NT$)

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 31.91 TWD (100 TWD = 3.13 USD). 1 EUR = 35.79 TWD (100 TWD = 2.79 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.699 USD). 1 EUR = 1.61 AUD (1 AUD = 0.623 EUR).

USD to TWD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Kinmen Melbourne 7,460 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Kinmen
Melbourne

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

Kinmen vs Melbourne: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Melbourne is pricier by about 159%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,654 per month in Kinmen and $4,277 in Melbourne. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Kinmen, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $585 per month in Kinmen and $2,373 in Melbourne. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 6% more in Melbourne, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Kinmen, where all-in costs run around $1,103, than in Melbourne at $2,852. In Kinmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Melbourne it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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