Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kyoto and Melbourne

For one person, living is cheaper in Kyoto: $1,229 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $19,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

60

Cost of Living Index in Kyoto
Learn more

Kyoto Living Index
138

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
Learn more

Melbourne Living Index

Jump to prices

Kyoto

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,229

/mo nomad

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Kyoto and in Melbourne

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

A single person spends $1,229 per month in Kyoto vs $2,821 in Melbourne, rent included.

Kyoto $1,229
Melbourne $2,821

A couple spends around $1,987 per month in Kyoto vs $4,235 in Melbourne, rent included.

Kyoto $1,987
Melbourne $4,235

A family of three spends $2,745 per month in Kyoto vs $5,650 in Melbourne, rent included.

Kyoto $2,745
Melbourne $5,650

Kyoto is about 56% cheaper than Melbourne, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Kyoto sits 9% below the global median, while Melbourne is 109% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.52 ¥1,504

$17.43 A$25.08

-45.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.84 ¥5,031

$84.6 A$122

-62.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.00 ¥791

$12.46 A$17.92

-59.87%

Cappuccino

$3.35 ¥529

$4.11 A$5.91

-18.49%

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

$0.83 ¥132

$3.06 A$4.40

-72.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.73 ¥115

$2.52 A$3.62

-71.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 ¥503

$9.80 A$14.10

-67.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.51 ¥870

$8.57 A$12.33

-35.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.55 ¥244

$1.48 A$2.14

4.73%

White Bread (500g)

$1.63 ¥258

$2.94 A$4.23

-44.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$5.74 ¥907

$2.66 A$3.82

115.79%

Eggs

$2.12 ¥335

$5.54 A$7.97

-61.73%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.57 ¥1,353

$10.51 A$15.13

-18.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.58 ¥1,197

$9.65 A$13.89

-21.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.70 ¥1,690

$15.22 A$21.91

-29.70%

Apples (1kg)

$5.16 ¥815

$3.99 A$5.75

29.32%

Banana (1kg)

$2.27 ¥359

$3.02 A$4.34

-24.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.94 ¥781

$3.10 A$4.46

59.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.51 ¥555

$4.82 A$6.93

-27.18%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 ¥307

$3.03 A$4.36

-35.97%

Onion (1kg)

$1.66 ¥262

$2.44 A$3.52

-31.97%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 ¥187

$2.46 A$3.54

-52.03%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 ¥156

$1.63 A$2.34

-39.26%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.86 ¥610

$44.07 A$63.4

-91.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.52 ¥1,189

$12.70 A$18.28

-40.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.56 ¥247

$5.54 A$7.97

-71.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.27 ¥517

$5.23 A$7.52

-37.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.48 ¥234

$3.74 A$5.38

-60.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$63.5 ¥10.0K

$138 A$198

-53.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.25 ¥513

$4.51 A$6.50

-27.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.77 ¥596

$1.36 A$1.96

177.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.62 ¥4,521

$30.45 A$43.81

-6.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 ¥167

$1.47 A$2.12

-27.89%

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

$21.8K ¥3.4M

$29.0K A$41.7K

-24.90%

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

$15.1K ¥2.4M

$26.5K A$38.1K

-42.88%

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

$102 ¥16.1K

$234 A$336

-56.50%

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

$23.50 ¥3,712

$27.93 A$40.19

-15.86%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.15 ¥4,921

$55.7 A$80.2

-44.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.3 ¥8,265

$49.40 A$71.1

5.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.00 ¥3,001

$21.48 A$30.91

-11.55%

Cinema Ticket

$12.06 ¥1,905

$15.09 A$21.72

-20.08%

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

$642 ¥101.5K

$2,371 A$3,412

-72.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,412 ¥1.0M

$30.2K A$43.5K

-78.77%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.8 ¥8,980

$80.0 A$115

-28.92%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.66 ¥7,214

$50.7 A$73.0

-9.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$69.4 ¥11.0K

$121 A$174

-42.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$105 ¥16.5K

$130 A$188

-19.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$552 ¥87.1K

$1,759 A$2,531

-68.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$325 ¥51.4K

$1,390 A$2,000

-76.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,743 ¥275.4K

$3,494 A$5,027

-50.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$766 ¥121.0K

$2,493 A$3,588

-69.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,241 ¥354.0K

$6,926 A$9,967

-67.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,270 ¥200.7K

$6,445 A$9,274

-80.29%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,889 ¥298.5K

$4,383 A$6,307

-56.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.23

5.9

-62.20%

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

Last update for Kyoto: October 10, 2026

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kyoto

$325 26.5%

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3% 327% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Kyoto

$291 23.7%

Melbourne

$384 13.6% 32% $93

Eating Out

Kyoto

$165 13.4%

Melbourne

$315 11.2% 91.1% $150

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kyoto

$156 12.7%

Melbourne

$317 11.3% 103% $161

Clothing & Footwear

Kyoto

$124 10.1%

Melbourne

$172 6.1% 38% $47

Getting Around

Kyoto

$91 7.4%

Melbourne

$164 5.8% 79.1% $72

Sport & Entertainment

Kyoto

$76 6.2%

Melbourne

$80 2.8% 4.1% $3.2

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $552 in Kyoto versus $1,759 in Melbourne. 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 132% higher in Melbourne, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32.00 in Kyoto versus $85.0 in Melbourne. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $291 vs $384 – making Kyoto the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Kyoto

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🕒 Local time

14:47 2:47 PM

16:47 4:47 PM

2 h ahead of Kyoto

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,475,183

5,031,195

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

USD to JPY in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Kyoto Melbourne 8,150 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Kyoto
Melbourne

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

Kyoto vs Melbourne: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,229 in Kyoto, $2,821 in Melbourne – roughly 129% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,844 per month in Kyoto and $4,231 in Melbourne. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Kyoto, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Groceries cost about 32% more in Melbourne, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32.00 in Kyoto and $85.0 in Melbourne. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Kyoto, where all-in costs run around $1,229, than in Melbourne at $2,821. In Kyoto it covers expenses comfortably, while in Melbourne it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Kyoto has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,229 in Kyoto to $2,821 in Melbourne. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Kyoto. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Melbourne makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.