Cost of Living Comparison Between Kota Kinabalu and Bangkok Cost of Living Comparison Between Kota Kinabalu and Bangkok

😐 Solo nomad: Kota Kinabalu is 9% more expensive than Bangkok without rent, and 20.5% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Kota Kinabalu is 19.3% cheaper than Bangkok without rent, and 24.3% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.51 MYR 14.49

$3.07 ฿98.1

14.33%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.15 MYR 79

$31.02 ฿993

-38.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.84 MYR 19.99

$5.98 ฿191

-19.06%

Cappuccino

$2.68 MYR 11.05

$2.59 ฿82.7

3.47%

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

$0.64 MYR 2.65

$0.67 ฿21.4

-4.48%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.36 MYR 1.5

$0.29 ฿9.33

24.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.42 MYR 9.98

$2.53 ฿80.9

-4.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.44 MYR 14.19

$3.97 ฿127

-13.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.69 MYR 6.98

$1.85 ฿59.3

-8.65%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 MYR 4.99

$1.4 ฿44.9

-13.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.73 MYR 7.12

$1.42 ฿45.48

21.83%

Eggs

$2.78 MYR 11.46

$2.18 ฿69.7

27.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$26.18 MYR 108

$18.25 ฿584

43.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.43 MYR 14.14

$2.94 ฿94.1

16.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.36 MYR 30.36

$9.12 ฿292

-19.30%

Apples (1kg)

$2.65 MYR 10.94

$3.41 ฿109

-22.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.18 MYR 4.86

$1.71 ฿54.9

-30.99%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.31 MYR 13.65

$2.23 ฿71.4

48.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.97 MYR 8.14

$1.86 ฿59.4

5.91%

Potato (1kg)

$1.53 MYR 6.33

$1.59 ฿50.9

-3.77%

Onion (1kg)

$1.76 MYR 7.25

$1.49 ฿47.7

18.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 MYR 4.61

$1.34 ฿42.99

-16.42%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.47 MYR 1.93

$0.49 ฿15.7

-4.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.06 MYR 16.74

$4.46 ฿143

-8.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.24 MYR 79.4

$15.8 ฿506

21.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.91 MYR 7.9

$1.87 ฿59.7

2.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.7 MYR 7.01

$3.34 ฿107

-49.10%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.49 MYR 6.14

$1.22 ฿38.91

22.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.75 MYR 168

$37.29 ฿1,193

9.28%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.86 MYR 7.67

$1.11 ฿35.44

67.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.44 MYR 1.8

$1.14 ฿36.52

-61.40%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.95 MYR 24.54

$6.25 ฿200

-4.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.5 MYR 2.07

$1.23 ฿39.37

-59.35%

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

$28.9K MYR 119.2K

$37K ฿1.2M

-21.87%

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

$27.2K MYR 112.3K

$28.5K ฿913.4K

-4.66%

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

$51 MYR 211

$91.9 ฿2,940

-44.48%

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

$8.92 MYR 36.8

$12.92 ฿413

-30.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.57 MYR 134

$17.46 ฿559

86.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.57 MYR 176

$52.3 ฿1,674

-18.62%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$2.91 MYR 12.02

$10.55 ฿338

-72.42%

Cinema Ticket

$4.77 MYR 19.67

$7.82 ฿250

-39.00%

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

$132 MYR 545

$607 ฿19.4K

-78.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,549 MYR 18.8K

$13.5K ฿432.4K

-66.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.7 MYR 246

$57.1 ฿1,827

4.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.92 MYR 94.6

$39.54 ฿1,265

-42.03%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71.2 MYR 294

$104 ฿3,318

-31.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.1 MYR 397

$94.2 ฿3,015

2.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$371 MYR 1,529

$669 ฿21.4K

-44.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$168 MYR 694

$327 ฿10.5K

-48.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$634 MYR 2,615

$1,882 ฿60.2K

-66.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$372 MYR 1,536

$847 ฿27.1K

-56.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,805 MYR 7,451

$6,058 ฿193.9K

-70.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,072 MYR 4,425

$2,766 ฿88.5K

-61.24%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$562 MYR 2,320

$824 ฿26.4K

-31.74%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.8

5.84

-34.93%

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

Last update for Kota Kinabalu: November 30, 2025

Last update for Bangkok: December 1, 2025

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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