Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kuching and Sandakan, Sabah

For one person, living costs are similar in Kuching and in Sandakan, Sabah: $972 and $968 a month, rent and utilities included.

47

Cost of Living Index in Kuching
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Kuching Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Sandakan, Sabah
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Sandakan, Sabah Living Index

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Kuching

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$972

/mo nomad

Sandakan, Sabah

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$968

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Kuching and in Sandakan, Sabah

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 Sandakan, Sabah actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $972 in Kuching versus $968 in Sandakan, Sabah.

Kuching $972
Sandakan, Sabah $968

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,521 in Kuching versus $1,470 in Sandakan, Sabah.

Kuching $1,521
Sandakan, Sabah $1,470

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,070 in Kuching versus $1,971 in Sandakan, Sabah.

Kuching $2,070
Sandakan, Sabah $1,971

Monthly costs are close between Kuching and Sandakan, Sabah; which city is cheaper depends on the spending category.

Both cities sit below the global median: Kuching 29% lower, Sandakan, Sabah 29% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.37 MYR 13.75

$3.65 MYR 14.86

-7.67%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.51 MYR 99.9

$19.26 MYR 78.5

27.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.90 MYR 19.98

$4.56 MYR 18.57

7.46%

Cappuccino

$3.19 MYR 13.01

$3.07 MYR 12.53

3.91%

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

$0.78 MYR 3.19

$0.73 MYR 2.97

6.85%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.38 MYR 1.55

$0.43 MYR 1.75

-11.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.61 MYR 18.79

$4.24 MYR 17.29

8.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.96 MYR 24.30

$3.93 MYR 16.01

51.65%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.39 MYR 9.74

$1.99 MYR 8.11

20.10%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 MYR 4.87

$1.18 MYR 4.80

0.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.19 MYR 4.85

$1.49 MYR 6.08

-20.13%

Eggs

$2.38 MYR 9.68

$2.24 MYR 9.13

6.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.99 MYR 44.77

$11.79 MYR 48.06

-6.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.34 MYR 17.67

$4.00 MYR 16.31

8.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.00 MYR 40.73

$9.55 MYR 38.90

4.71%

Apples (1kg)

$3.17 MYR 12.92

$2.84 MYR 11.55

11.62%

Banana (1kg)

$1.32 MYR 5.38

$1.63 MYR 6.63

-19.02%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.52 MYR 10.28

$2.53 MYR 10.30

-0.40%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.78 MYR 7.26

$1.56 MYR 6.37

14.10%

Potato (1kg)

$1.38 MYR 5.63

$1.39 MYR 5.66

-0.72%

Onion (1kg)

$1.19 MYR 4.84

$1.38 MYR 5.63

-13.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.61 MYR 6.57

$1.27 MYR 5.15

26.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 MYR 2.22

$0.48 MYR 1.94

14.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.76 MYR 19.37

$4.04 MYR 16.47

17.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$22.25 MYR 90.7

$21.89 MYR 89.2

1.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.13 MYR 16.81

$3.12 MYR 12.73

32.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.06 MYR 20.60

$4.29 MYR 17.46

17.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.36 MYR 1.47

$0.79 MYR 3.21

-54.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.48 MYR 30.47

$10.67 MYR 43.47

-29.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.97 MYR 3.95

$1.32 MYR 5.39

-26.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.23 MYR 5.01

$0.63 MYR 2.58

95.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.82 MYR 35.92

$8.09 MYR 32.98

9.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.94 MYR 3.83

$0.82 MYR 3.32

14.63%

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

$45.9K MYR 187.2K

$46.8K MYR 190.5K

-1.74%

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

$36.1K MYR 146.9K

$39.7K MYR 161.6K

-9.10%

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

$35.63 MYR 145

$48.86 MYR 199

-27.08%

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

$10.19 MYR 41.52

$10.09 MYR 41.11

0.99%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.50 MYR 104

$28.65 MYR 117

-10.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.85 MYR 138

$36.98 MYR 151

-8.46%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.26 MYR 49.94

$7.38 MYR 30.07

66.12%

Cinema Ticket

$4.87 MYR 19.85

$5.08 MYR 20.70

-4.13%

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

$135 MYR 551

$242 MYR 987

-44.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,150 MYR 29.1K

$7,062 MYR 28.8K

1.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.1 MYR 261

$63.1 MYR 257

1.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.52 MYR 153

$30.35 MYR 124

23.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.0 MYR 367

$91.5 MYR 373

-1.65%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$64.6 MYR 263

$77.2 MYR 315

-16.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$469 MYR 1,912

$379 MYR 1,545

23.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$334 MYR 1,361

$326 MYR 1,327

2.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$834 MYR 3,399

$631 MYR 2,569

32.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$654 MYR 2,667

$589 MYR 2,399

11.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,053 MYR 8,364

$2,010 MYR 8,190

2.12%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,534 MYR 6,248

$1,149 MYR 4,682

33.45%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$535 MYR 2,181

$1,210 MYR 4,931

-55.76%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.37

4.06

7.64%

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

Last update for Kuching: October 27, 2026

Last update for Sandakan, Sabah: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kuching

$334 34.4%

Sandakan, Sabah

$326 33.6% 2.5% $8.4

Groceries & Markets

Kuching

$272 28%

Sandakan, Sabah

$258 26.7% 5.2% $14

Eating Out

Kuching

$120 12.3%

Sandakan, Sabah

$113 11.7% 5.2% $6.2

Clothing & Footwear

Kuching

$115 11.9%

Sandakan, Sabah

$118 12.2% 2.4% $2.7

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kuching

$71 7.3%

Sandakan, Sabah

$88 9.1% 22.8% $16

Sport & Entertainment

Kuching

$44 4.5%

Sandakan, Sabah

$47 4.9% 8.1% $3.5

Getting Around

Kuching

$16 1.7%

Sandakan, Sabah

$18 1.9% 14.2% $2.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $469 in Kuching and $379 in Sandakan, Sabah. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sandakan, Sabah pays about 2.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $25 in Kuching vs $19 in Sandakan, Sabah for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $258 per month, with Sandakan, Sabah cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Kuching

🇲🇾 Sandakan, Sabah

🕒 Local time

02:50 2:50 AM

Same time as Kuching

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

349,147

439,050

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.22 EUR

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Kuching Sandakan, Sabah 980 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Kuching
Sandakan, Sabah

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 Sandakan, Sabah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

On paper, salaries run 56% lower in Kuching. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $469 in Kuching versus $379 in Sandakan, Sabah. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Kuching runs roughly 30% less than in Sandakan, Sabah. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you’re watching your budget.

Supermarket bills run roughly 5% higher in Kuching. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Sandakan, Sabah gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Kuching and Sandakan, Sabah are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.