Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Langkawi and Dhaka

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $406 a month against $537 in Langkawi, rent and utilities included – about $1,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Langkawi outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

40

Cost of Living Index in Langkawi
Learn more

Langkawi Living Index
20

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
Learn more

Dhaka Living Index

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Langkawi

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$537

/mo nomad

Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$406

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $537 in Langkawi versus $406 in Dhaka.

Langkawi $537
Dhaka $406

Estimated couple costs with rent: $770 in Langkawi versus $687 in Dhaka.

Langkawi $770
Dhaka $687

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,003 in Langkawi versus $969 in Dhaka.

Langkawi $1,003
Dhaka $969

Living in Langkawi is roughly 32% more expensive than in Dhaka, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Langkawi 60% lower, Dhaka 70% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.27 MYR 13.33

$2.28 ৳282

43.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.71 MYR 80.4

$12.33 ৳1,523

59.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.38 MYR 26.04

$3.95 ৳488

61.52%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.48 ৳554

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.13 ৳510

Cappuccino

$1.65 MYR 6.72

$2.28 ৳281

-27.63%

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

$0.82 MYR 3.36

$0.33 ৳40.88

148.48%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 MYR 2.18

$0.16 ৳19.86

231.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.72 MYR 7.03

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 MYR 9.22

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 MYR 7.10

$0.85 ৳104

104.71%

White Bread (500g)

$1.31 MYR 5.36

$0.60 ৳74.5

118.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.69 ৳85.4

Eggs

$1.79 MYR 7.30

$1.23 ৳152

45.53%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.48 MYR 71.3

$8.80 ৳1,087

98.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.33 ৳412

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.63 ৳819

Apples (1kg)

$2.02 MYR 8.23

$2.85 ৳352

-29.12%

Banana (1kg)

$0.99 MYR 4.05

$0.90 ৳111

10.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.68 MYR 6.86

$2.34 ৳289

-28.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.67 MYR 6.83

$0.63 ৳78.4

165.08%

Potato (1kg)

$0.24 ৳29.59

Onion (1kg)

$0.76 MYR 3.09

$0.46 ৳57.3

65.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.35 ৳42.79

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.28 ৳34.24

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$12.11 ৳1,496

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.31 ৳656

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.42 ৳794

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.69 MYR 15.04

$3.28 ৳405

12.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.82 MYR 36.00

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 MYR 3.82

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.19 MYR 4.87

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.42 ৳52.3

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.43 ৳2,772

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.19 ৳147

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.39 ৳48.71

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.28 ৳406

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.88 MYR 3.57

$1.10 ৳136

-20.00%

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

$24.4K MYR 99.6K

$29.4K ৳3.6M

-17.05%

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

$32.2K ৳4.0M

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

$36.65 MYR 150

$38.28 ৳4,729

-4.26%

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

$4.09 ৳506

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.02 ৳1,114

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$24.82 MYR 101

$13.66 ৳1,688

81.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.21 ৳1,261

Cinema Ticket

$4.11 ৳508

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

$90.7 ৳11.2K

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,591 ৳320.2K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.06 ৳2,108

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$21.38 ৳2,641

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$51.4 ৳6,355

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$36.78 ৳4,545

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$308 MYR 1,255

$133 ৳16.4K

131.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$244 MYR 997

$65.1 ৳8,041

275.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$374 MYR 1,528

$377 ৳46.6K

-0.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$320 MYR 1,304

$192 ৳23.8K

66.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,168 MYR 4,765

$1,621 ৳200.3K

-27.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$760 ৳93.9K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,240 MYR 5,060

$246 ৳30.4K

404.02%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.48

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

Last update for Langkawi: October 11, 2026

Last update for Dhaka: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Langkawi

$244 45.5%

Dhaka

$65 16% 73.4% $179

Groceries & Markets

Langkawi

$148 * 27.5%

Dhaka

$124 30.5% 16.2% $24

Eating Out

Langkawi

$84 15.6%

Dhaka

$59 14.6% 29% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Langkawi

$37 * 6.8%

Dhaka

$51 12.7% 40.2% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Langkawi

$25 * 4.6%

Dhaka

$22 5.4% 11.8% $2.9

Getting Around

Langkawi

- * 0%

Dhaka

$27 6.7%

Clothing & Footwear

Langkawi

- * 0%

Dhaka

$57 14.1%

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $308 in Langkawi and $133 in Dhaka. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Langkawi pays 404% 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: $20.00 in Langkawi vs $12.00 in Dhaka for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $148 vs $124 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Langkawi

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🕒 Local time

09:07 9:07 AM

07:07 7:07 AM

2 h behind Langkawi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

30,212

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 = 8.09 USD

1,000 BDT = 7.2 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 18, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.59 MYR (1 MYR = 0.218 EUR).

Bangladeshi Taka exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 124 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD). 1 EUR = 139 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.2 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Langkawi Dhaka 2,180 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Langkawi
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

Langkawi vs Dhaka: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. The 32% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 404% higher in Langkawi, 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: $308 in Langkawi versus $133 in Dhaka. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 19% higher in Langkawi. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Dhaka – a meal for two runs $12.00 versus $20.00 in Langkawi. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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.

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, Langkawi 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 32% less than in Langkawi. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.