Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Maebashi and Melbourne

For one person, living is cheaper in Maebashi: $1,216 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $19,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Maebashi
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Maebashi Living Index
138

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
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Melbourne Living Index

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Maebashi

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,216

/mo nomad

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,216 per month in Maebashi vs $2,821 in Melbourne, rent included.

Maebashi $1,216
Melbourne $2,821

A couple spends around $1,956 per month in Maebashi vs $4,235 in Melbourne, rent included.

Maebashi $1,956
Melbourne $4,235

A family of three spends $2,696 per month in Maebashi vs $5,650 in Melbourne, rent included.

Maebashi $2,696
Melbourne $5,650

Maebashi is about 57% cheaper than Melbourne, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Maebashi sits 10% below the global median, while Melbourne is 109% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.39 ¥694

$17.43 A$25.08

-74.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.47 ¥4,972

$84.6 A$122

-62.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.16 ¥815

$12.46 A$17.92

-58.59%

Cappuccino

$2.48 ¥392

$4.11 A$5.91

-39.66%

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

$0.77 ¥122

$3.06 A$4.40

-74.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.61 ¥96.7

$2.52 A$3.62

-75.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.25 ¥355

$9.80 A$14.10

-77.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.23 ¥510

$8.57 A$12.33

-62.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.22 ¥192

$1.48 A$2.14

-17.57%

White Bread (500g)

$1.53 ¥241

$2.94 A$4.23

-47.96%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 ¥213

$2.66 A$3.82

-49.25%

Eggs

$1.63 ¥258

$5.54 A$7.97

-70.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.66 ¥2,473

$10.51 A$15.13

49.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.42 ¥698

$9.65 A$13.89

-54.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.95 ¥2,679

$15.22 A$21.91

11.37%

Apples (1kg)

$8.15 ¥1,288

$3.99 A$5.75

104.26%

Banana (1kg)

$3.03 ¥478

$3.02 A$4.34

0.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.91 ¥776

$3.10 A$4.46

58.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$7.65 ¥1,208

$4.82 A$6.93

58.71%

Potato (1kg)

$3.96 ¥626

$3.03 A$4.36

30.69%

Onion (1kg)

$4.75 ¥751

$2.44 A$3.52

94.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 ¥184

$2.46 A$3.54

-52.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ¥77.8

$1.63 A$2.34

-69.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.94 ¥623

$44.07 A$63.4

-91.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.35 ¥1,477

$12.70 A$18.28

-26.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.50 ¥395

$5.54 A$7.97

-54.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 ¥327

$5.23 A$7.52

-60.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.51 ¥238

$3.74 A$5.38

-59.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$52.8 ¥8,335

$138 A$198

-61.63%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.18 ¥502

$4.51 A$6.50

-29.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.83 ¥447

$1.36 A$1.96

108.09%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$31.19 ¥4,927

$30.45 A$43.81

2.43%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.07 ¥169

$1.47 A$2.12

-27.21%

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

$21.3K ¥3.4M

$29.0K A$41.7K

-26.48%

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

$15.3K ¥2.4M

$26.5K A$38.1K

-42.08%

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

$118 ¥18.6K

$234 A$336

-49.61%

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

$23.00 ¥3,633

$27.93 A$40.19

-17.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.59 ¥4,992

$55.7 A$80.2

-43.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 ¥8,141

$49.40 A$71.1

4.31%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$31.51 ¥4,978

$21.48 A$30.91

46.69%

Cinema Ticket

$11.16 ¥1,764

$15.09 A$21.72

-26.04%

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

$575 ¥90.8K

$2,371 A$3,412

-75.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.4K ¥2.3M

$30.2K A$43.5K

-52.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.39 ¥7,803

$80.0 A$115

-38.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.13 ¥5,550

$50.7 A$73.0

-30.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$60.7 ¥9,586

$121 A$174

-49.69%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.9 ¥15.6K

$130 A$188

-24.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$529 ¥83.6K

$1,759 A$2,531

-69.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$337 ¥53.3K

$1,390 A$2,000

-75.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,091 ¥172.3K

$3,494 A$5,027

-68.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$743 ¥117.4K

$2,493 A$3,588

-70.20%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,756 ¥593.4K

$6,926 A$9,967

-45.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,859 ¥293.6K

$6,445 A$9,274

-71.16%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,696 ¥267.9K

$4,383 A$6,307

-61.30%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.02

5.9

-65.76%

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

Last update for Maebashi: October 10, 2026

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Maebashi

$343 28.2%

Melbourne

$384 13.6% 11.8% $41

Accommodation & Living

Maebashi

$337 27.7%

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3% 312% $1.1K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Maebashi

$172 14.2%

Melbourne

$317 11.3% 84.1% $145

Clothing & Footwear

Maebashi

$110 9%

Melbourne

$172 6.1% 56.4% $62

Eating Out

Maebashi

$104 8.5%

Melbourne

$315 11.2% 204% $211

Getting Around

Maebashi

$76 6.3%

Melbourne

$164 5.8% 115% $88

Sport & Entertainment

Maebashi

$74 6.1%

Melbourne

$80 2.8% 7.8% $5.7

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $529 in Maebashi 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 158% 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 $31.00 in Maebashi versus $85.0 in Melbourne. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $343 vs $384 – making Maebashi the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Maebashi

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🕒 Local time

16:59 4:59 PM

18:59 6:59 PM

2 h ahead of Maebashi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

324,644

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 19, 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 19, 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 →

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Between locations

Maebashi Melbourne 8,270 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Maebashi
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

Maebashi vs Melbourne: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Melbourne is pricier by about 132%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,824 per month in Maebashi 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 Maebashi, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $31.00 in Maebashi and $85.0 in Melbourne. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,216 in Maebashi and $2,821 in Melbourne. That's a gap of about 132%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Maebashi, where all-in costs run around $1,216, than in Melbourne at $2,821. In Maebashi it covers expenses comfortably, while in Melbourne it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Maebashi – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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 Maebashi. 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.