Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kuala Lumpur and Windhoek

For one person, living is cheaper in Kuala Lumpur: $1,074 a month against $1,182 in Windhoek, rent and utilities included – about $1,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

52

Cost of Living Index in Kuala Lumpur
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Kuala Lumpur Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Windhoek
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Windhoek Living Index

Jump to prices

Kuala Lumpur

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$1,074

/mo nomad

Windhoek

🇳🇦 Namibia

$1,182

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Kuala Lumpur and in Windhoek

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

A single person spends $1,074 per month in Kuala Lumpur vs $1,182 in Windhoek, rent included.

Kuala Lumpur $1,074
Windhoek $1,182

A couple spends around $1,622 per month in Kuala Lumpur vs $2,028 in Windhoek, rent included.

Kuala Lumpur $1,622
Windhoek $2,028

A family of three spends $2,170 per month in Kuala Lumpur vs $2,875 in Windhoek, rent included.

Kuala Lumpur $2,170
Windhoek $2,875

Kuala Lumpur is about 9% cheaper than Windhoek, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both Kuala Lumpur and Windhoek are more affordable than the global median – Kuala Lumpur 21% lower, Windhoek 13% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.98 MYR 20.28

$11.47 NAD 191

-56.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.03 MYR 118

$64.4 NAD 1,073

-54.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.85 MYR 19.78

$6.05 NAD 101

-19.83%

Cappuccino

$3.02 MYR 12.30

$2.28 NAD 37.99

32.46%

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

$0.79 MYR 3.21

$0.86 NAD 14.38

-8.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.45 MYR 1.85

$0.92 NAD 15.38

-51.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.48 MYR 18.24

$1.92 NAD 32.05

133.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.16 MYR 25.11

$2.09 NAD 34.79

194.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.11 MYR 8.60

$1.57 NAD 26.23

34.39%

White Bread (500g)

$1.12 MYR 4.56

$0.88 NAD 14.69

27.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.93 MYR 7.86

$1.96 NAD 32.59

-1.53%

Eggs

$2.46 MYR 10.01

$3.14 NAD 52.3

-21.66%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.24 MYR 58.0

$9.44 NAD 157

50.85%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.37 MYR 17.80

$6.87 NAD 115

-36.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.86 MYR 40.19

$7.66 NAD 128

28.72%

Apples (1kg)

$3.46 MYR 14.09

$2.14 NAD 35.71

61.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.78 MYR 7.25

$1.98 NAD 32.97

-10.10%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.27 MYR 9.24

$1.79 NAD 29.80

26.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.51 MYR 6.16

$1.99 NAD 33.10

-24.12%

Potato (1kg)

$1.23 MYR 5.01

$1.94 NAD 32.30

-36.60%

Onion (1kg)

$1.30 MYR 5.31

$1.80 NAD 29.93

-27.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MYR 4.64

$1.96 NAD 32.69

-41.84%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.71 MYR 2.88

$1.07 NAD 17.76

-33.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.29 MYR 17.46

$3.35 NAD 55.8

28.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.77 MYR 80.5

$6.48 NAD 108

205.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.36 MYR 13.71

$1.43 NAD 23.85

134.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.02 MYR 20.45

$1.38 NAD 23.07

263.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.70 MYR 2.86

$0.80 NAD 13.26

-12.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.44 MYR 50.7

$48.86 NAD 814

-74.54%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.20 MYR 4.87

$0.75 NAD 12.55

60.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.25 MYR 5.07

$0.94 NAD 15.68

32.98%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.98 MYR 20.30

$15.38 NAD 256

-67.62%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.89 MYR 3.62

$1.40 NAD 23.31

-36.43%

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

$44.5K MYR 181.5K

$24.6K NAD 409.1K

81.42%

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

$34.6K MYR 141.1K

$31.7K NAD 527.8K

9.29%

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

$63.5 MYR 259

$138 NAD 2,307

-54.17%

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

$8.62 MYR 35.13

$26.65 NAD 444

-67.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.24 MYR 107

$49.49 NAD 825

-46.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.20 MYR 200

$36.77 NAD 613

33.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.32 MYR 29.84

$10.40 NAD 173

-29.62%

Cinema Ticket

$4.97 MYR 20.27

$5.29 NAD 88.1

-6.05%

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

$472 MYR 1,921

$210 NAD 3,507

124.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.2K MYR 53.8K

$5,340 NAD 89.0K

147.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.2 MYR 294

$54.2 NAD 903

33.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.48 MYR 169

$34.80 NAD 580

19.20%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$83.9 MYR 342

$88.4 NAD 1,473

-5.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$94.3 MYR 384

$94.4 NAD 1,573

-0.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$685 MYR 2,792

$502 NAD 8,362

36.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$358 MYR 1,459

$358 NAD 5,970

-0.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,212 MYR 4,938

$1,456 NAD 24.3K

-16.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$593 MYR 2,417

$974 NAD 16.2K

-39.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,760 MYR 15.3K

$1,617 NAD 26.9K

132.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,565 MYR 6,375

$608 NAD 10.1K

157.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,458 MYR 5,939

$997 NAD 16.6K

46.21%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.17

11.42

-63.49%

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

Last update for Kuala Lumpur: October 26, 2026

Last update for Windhoek: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kuala Lumpur

$358 33.3%

Windhoek

$358 30.3% 0.1% $0.3

Groceries & Markets

Kuala Lumpur

$274 25.5%

Windhoek

$223 18.9% 18.6% $51

Clothing & Footwear

Kuala Lumpur

$131 12.2%

Windhoek

$122 10.4% 6.9% $9

Eating Out

Kuala Lumpur

$130 12.1%

Windhoek

$158 13.4% 21.4% $28

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kuala Lumpur

$98 9.2%

Windhoek

$215 18.2% 118% $116

Sport & Entertainment

Kuala Lumpur

$59 5.5%

Windhoek

$47 4% 20% $12

Getting Around

Kuala Lumpur

$23 2.1%

Windhoek

$58 4.9% 154% $35

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $685 in Kuala Lumpur versus $502 in Windhoek. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 46% higher in Kuala Lumpur, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $29 in Kuala Lumpur versus $64 in Windhoek. Groceries tell a different story – $274 in Kuala Lumpur vs $223 in Windhoek – so Windhoek wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Kuala Lumpur

🇳🇦 Windhoek

🕒 Local time

23:50 11:50 PM

17:50 5:50 PM

6 h behind Kuala Lumpur

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,982,112 Capital

322,500 Capital

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

Namibian Dollar NAD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.221 EUR

100 NAD = 6 USD

100 NAD = 5.39 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NAD, 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).

Namibian Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 16.66 NAD (100 NAD = 6 USD). 1 EUR = 18.54 NAD (100 NAD = 5.39 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Kuala Lumpur Windhoek 9,590 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Kuala Lumpur
Windhoek

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

Kuala Lumpur vs Windhoek: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Windhoek is pricier by about 10%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in utilities.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,611 per month in Kuala Lumpur and $1,772 in Windhoek. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Windhoek, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $502 there versus $685 in Kuala Lumpur.

Interestingly, groceries are about 19% cheaper in Windhoek – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $29 in Kuala Lumpur and $64 in Windhoek. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

$1,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,074 in Kuala Lumpur and $1,182 in Windhoek, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Kuala Lumpur has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,074 in Kuala Lumpur to $1,182 in Windhoek. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.