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

🙂 Solo nomad: Kota Kinabalu is 19.8% cheaper than Phuket without rent, and 30.9% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Kota Kinabalu is 6.5% cheaper than Phuket without rent, and 43.4% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.47 MYR 14.62

$4.68 ฿151

-25.85%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.14 MYR 80.7

$46.4 ฿1,502

-58.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.79 MYR 20.2

$8.65 ฿280

-44.62%

Cappuccino

$2.64 MYR 11.14

$3.09 ฿100

-14.56%

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

$0.64 MYR 2.72

$0.73 ฿23.53

-12.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.37 MYR 1.56

$0.37 ฿11.95

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.3 MYR 9.71

$2.39 ฿77.4

-3.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.45 MYR 14.55

$3.62 ฿117

-4.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.73 MYR 7.29

$2.24 ฿72.5

-22.77%

White Bread (500g)

$1.18 MYR 5

$1.8 ฿58.2

-34.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.73 MYR 7.28

$2.24 ฿72.3

-22.77%

Eggs

$2.89 MYR 12.18

$2.23 ฿72.1

29.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$26.25 MYR 111

$19.31 ฿625

35.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.51 MYR 14.82

$3.77 ฿122

-6.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.11 MYR 29.99

$13.05 ฿422

-45.52%

Apples (1kg)

$2.55 MYR 10.75

$3.28 ฿106

-22.26%

Banana (1kg)

$1.14 MYR 4.79

$1.63 ฿52.6

-30.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.3 MYR 13.91

$2.4 ฿77.7

37.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.01 MYR 8.5

$1.99 ฿64.3

1.01%

Potato (1kg)

$1.47 MYR 6.18

$1.53 ฿49.62

-3.92%

Onion (1kg)

$1.77 MYR 7.45

$1.49 ฿48.11

18.79%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.11 MYR 4.7

$1.02 ฿32.87

8.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.47 MYR 1.98

$0.48 ฿15.61

-2.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.04 MYR 17.04

$4.32 ฿140

-6.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.72 MYR 79

$21.68 ฿702

-13.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.84 MYR 7.77

$1.77 ฿57.3

3.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.61 MYR 6.78

$2.79 ฿90.4

-42.29%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.49 MYR 6.27

$1.35 ฿43.74

10.37%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.22 MYR 170

$11.76 ฿380

242.01%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.92 MYR 8.09

$3.15 ฿102

-39.05%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 MYR 1.82

$1 ฿32.3

-57.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.79 MYR 24.43

$13.64 ฿442

-57.55%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.46 MYR 1.93

$1.3 ฿42.2

-64.62%

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

$29.6K MYR 124.7K

$27.4K ฿885.2K

8.12%

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

$27.7K MYR 116.9K

$33.9K ฿1.1M

-18.26%

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

$51.2 MYR 216

$123 ฿3,970

-58.29%

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

$8.97 MYR 37.84

$13.93 ฿451

-35.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.43 MYR 141

$18.24 ฿590

83.28%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.94 MYR 185

$60.8 ฿1,966

-27.67%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$2.98 MYR 12.57

$17.11 ฿554

-82.58%

Cinema Ticket

$4.58 MYR 19.33

$9.07 ฿294

-49.50%

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

$129 MYR 544

$694 ฿22.5K

-81.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,457 MYR 18.8K

$15.9K ฿514.4K

-71.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$60.6 MYR 255

$57.5 ฿1,861

5.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.48 MYR 94.8

$34.51 ฿1,117

-34.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71.1 MYR 300

$115 ฿3,727

-38.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$94 MYR 396

$84.8 ฿2,743

10.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$379 MYR 1,598

$611 ฿19.8K

-37.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$168 MYR 709

$442 ฿14.3K

-61.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$648 MYR 2,735

$2,014 ฿65.2K

-67.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$366 MYR 1,544

$1,460 ฿47.2K

-74.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,364 MYR 5,754

$4,244 ฿137.3K

-67.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,139 MYR 4,804

$2,886 ฿93.4K

-60.53%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$551 MYR 2,325

$697 ฿22.5K

-20.85%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.8

5.33

-28.71%

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

Last update for Kota Kinabalu: October 27, 2025

Last update for Phuket: October 29, 2025

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