Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kuching and Dhaka

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $426 a month against $887 in Kuching, rent and utilities included – about $5,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

43

Cost of Living Index in Kuching
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Kuching Living Index
21

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
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Dhaka Living Index

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Kuching

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$887

/mo nomad

Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$426

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Kuching 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 Kuching and in Dhaka actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $887 in Kuching versus $426 in Dhaka.

Kuching $887
Dhaka $426

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,389 in Kuching versus $735 in Dhaka.

Kuching $1,389
Dhaka $735

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,892 in Kuching versus $1,043 in Dhaka.

Kuching $1,892
Dhaka $1,043

Living in Kuching is roughly 108% more expensive than in Dhaka, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Kuching 34% lower, Dhaka 68% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.33 MYR 13.60

$2.49 ৳305

33.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.53 MYR 100

$13.06 ৳1,604

87.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.87 MYR 19.89

$4.83 ৳594

0.83%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.93 ৳606

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.10 ৳504

Cappuccino

$3.17 MYR 12.93

$2.34 ৳287

35.47%

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

$0.74 MYR 3.04

$0.30 ৳37.38

146.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.36 MYR 1.47

$0.16 ৳19.96

125.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.51 MYR 18.43

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.16 MYR 25.15

Milk (1 liter)

$2.31 MYR 9.42

$0.80 ৳98.1

188.75%

White Bread (500g)

$1.26 MYR 5.16

$0.65 ৳79.3

93.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.15 MYR 4.68

$0.71 ৳87.2

61.97%

Eggs

$2.46 MYR 10.03

$1.21 ৳149

103.31%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.95 MYR 44.72

$8.67 ৳1,065

26.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.45 MYR 18.17

$3.21 ৳395

38.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.90 MYR 40.42

$6.70 ৳823

47.76%

Apples (1kg)

$3.17 MYR 12.93

$2.73 ৳335

16.12%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MYR 5.59

$0.88 ৳108

55.68%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.40 MYR 9.80

$2.37 ৳291

1.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.82 MYR 7.42

$0.65 ৳79.5

180.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.41 MYR 5.75

$0.24 ৳29.19

487.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.19 MYR 4.86

$0.49 ৳60.6

142.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.56 MYR 6.35

$0.32 ৳38.87

387.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 MYR 2.22

$0.30 ৳37.30

80.00%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$12.07 ৳1,483

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.51 ৳677

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.66 ৳818

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.51 MYR 18.41

$3.23 ৳396

39.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$21.59 MYR 88.2

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.06 MYR 16.58

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.19 MYR 21.19

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.58 MYR 2.37

$0.42 ৳52.1

38.10%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.36 MYR 50.5

$22.54 ৳2,769

-45.16%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.00 MYR 4.09

$1.19 ৳147

-15.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.24 MYR 5.06

$0.40 ৳48.58

210.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.32 MYR 33.99

$3.35 ৳411

148.36%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.90 MYR 3.68

$1.15 ৳141

-21.74%

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

$40.9K MYR 167.2K

$30.3K ৳3.7M

35.18%

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

$36.1K MYR 147.4K

$33.0K ৳4.1M

9.31%

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

$35.18 MYR 144

$46.32 ৳5,690

-24.05%

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

$9.95 MYR 40.63

$4.33 ৳531

129.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.26 MYR 103

$10.63 ৳1,306

137.63%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.24 MYR 123

$16.37 ৳2,011

84.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.38 MYR 50.6

$16.14 ৳1,982

-23.30%

Cinema Ticket

$4.83 MYR 19.72

$4.13 ৳508

16.95%

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

$135 MYR 551

$90.7 ৳11.1K

48.77%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,000 MYR 28.6K

$2,649 ৳325.4K

164.26%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.3 MYR 258

$16.48 ৳2,024

283.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.67 MYR 154

$21.00 ৳2,579

79.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.2 MYR 368

$50.3 ৳6,173

79.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$65.8 MYR 269

$36.46 ৳4,478

80.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$360 MYR 1,471

$152 ৳18.6K

137.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$245 MYR 1,001

$73.6 ৳9,041

233.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$647 MYR 2,642

$436 ৳53.5K

48.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$478 MYR 1,953

$214 ৳26.3K

123.70%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,073 MYR 8,464

$1,622 ৳199.2K

27.84%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,508 MYR 6,157

$761 ৳93.5K

98.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$530 MYR 2,165

$249 ৳30.6K

112.96%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.37

10.48

-58.30%

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

Last update for Kuching: October 5, 2026

Last update for Dhaka: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Kuching

$271 30.7%

Dhaka

$123 28.5% 54.7% $148

Accommodation & Living

Kuching

$245 27.8%

Dhaka

$74 17.1% 70% $172

Eating Out

Kuching

$119 13.4%

Dhaka

$64 15% 45.8% $54

Clothing & Footwear

Kuching

$116 13.1%

Dhaka

$56 13% 51.7% $60

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kuching

$70 8%

Dhaka

$61 14.3% 12.9% $9.1

Sport & Entertainment

Kuching

$40 4.5%

Dhaka

$25 5.7% 38.2% $15

Getting Around

Kuching

$22 2.5%

Dhaka

$27 6.4% 25.3% $5.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $360 in Kuching and $152 in Dhaka. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Kuching pays 113% 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 Kuching vs $13.00 in Dhaka for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $271 vs $123 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Kuching

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🕒 Local time

13:48 1:48 PM

11:48 11:48 AM

2 h behind Kuching

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

349,147

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 = 8.14 USD

1,000 BDT = 7.26 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.58 MYR (1 MYR = 0.218 EUR).

Bangladeshi Taka exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 123 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.14 USD). 1 EUR = 138 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.26 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Kuching Dhaka 3,270 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Kuching
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

Kuching vs Dhaka: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 108% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 113% higher in Kuching, 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: $360 in Kuching versus $152 in Dhaka. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $887 per month in Kuching versus $426 in Dhaka – a 108% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Dhaka runs roughly 82% less than in Kuching. 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.

For families, Dhaka is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Kuching, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Kuching 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 108% less than in Kuching. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.