Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Malacca and East London

For one person, living is cheaper in Malacca: $609 a month against $992 in East London, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

29

Cost of Living Index in Malacca
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Malacca Living Index
48

Cost of Living Index in East London
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East London Living Index

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Malacca

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$609

/mo nomad

East London

🇿🇦 South Africa

$992

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Malacca and in East London

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

A single person spends $609 per month in Malacca vs $992 in East London, rent included.

Malacca $609
East London $992

A couple spends around $970 per month in Malacca vs $1,611 in East London, rent included.

Malacca $970
East London $1,611

A family of three spends $1,330 per month in Malacca vs $2,230 in East London, rent included.

Malacca $1,330
East London $2,230

Malacca is about 39% cheaper than East London, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Malacca and East London are more affordable than the global median – Malacca 55% lower, East London 27% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.23 MYR 13.12

$9.10 R 151

-64.51%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.02 MYR 73.1

$38.23 R 636

-52.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.80 MYR 19.48

$5.57 R 92.7

-13.82%

Cappuccino

$2.89 MYR 11.73

$2.05 R 34.08

40.98%

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

$0.79 MYR 3.19

$1.04 R 17.33

-24.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.55 MYR 2.21

$0.76 R 12.70

-27.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.93 MYR 7.83

$2.69 R 44.71

-28.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.90 MYR 11.78

$3.21 R 53.4

-9.66%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 MYR 6.75

$1.18 R 19.70

40.68%

White Bread (500g)

$1.05 MYR 4.27

$0.87 R 14.54

20.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 MYR 5.99

$1.44 R 23.98

2.78%

Eggs

$1.68 MYR 6.81

$2.27 R 37.82

-25.99%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.08 MYR 73.4

$8.37 R 139

116.01%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.63 MYR 18.80

$5.49 R 91.4

-15.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.55 MYR 42.80

$6.71 R 112

57.23%

Apples (1kg)

$3.29 MYR 13.37

$1.46 R 24.31

125.34%

Banana (1kg)

$1.68 MYR 6.82

$1.53 R 25.44

9.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.39 MYR 9.69

$1.63 R 27.17

46.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.69 MYR 6.88

$1.43 R 23.86

18.18%

Potato (1kg)

$1.41 MYR 5.71

$1.68 R 27.89

-16.07%

Onion (1kg)

$1.66 MYR 6.73

$1.43 R 23.74

16.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.37 MYR 5.58

$1.17 R 19.49

17.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 MYR 2.25

$0.95 R 15.82

-42.11%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.18 MYR 16.98

$2.89 R 48.08

44.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.21 MYR 57.6

$4.70 R 78.2

202.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.14 MYR 8.69

$1.19 R 19.80

79.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.13 MYR 12.72

$0.98 R 16.38

219.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.48 MYR 1.93

$1.47 R 24.53

-67.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.40 MYR 50.3

$46.85 R 779

-73.53%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.02 MYR 4.13

$1.22 R 20.31

-16.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 MYR 2.87

$0.46 R 7.59

54.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.09 MYR 49.06

$8.38 R 139

44.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.51 MYR 2.08

$1.35 R 22.45

-62.22%

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

$44.4K MYR 180.3K

$34.7K R 576.8K

28.18%

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

$36.0K MYR 146.0K

$29.3K R 487.2K

22.86%

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

$52.4 MYR 213

$122 R 2,034

-57.16%

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

$11.33 MYR 45.97

$32.64 R 543

-65.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.13 MYR 114

$44.35 R 738

-36.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$21.87 MYR 88.7

$39.51 R 657

-44.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.78 MYR 47.78

Cinema Ticket

$4.92 MYR 19.96

$4.54 R 75.6

8.37%

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

$237 MYR 962

$177 R 2,947

33.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,388 MYR 17.8K

$5,438 R 90.5K

-19.30%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.1 MYR 220

$56.8 R 946

-4.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$16.83 MYR 68.3

$32.80 R 546

-48.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$81.9 MYR 332

$73.1 R 1,216

12.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.7 MYR 393

$95.2 R 1,583

1.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$193 MYR 783

$290 R 4,831

-33.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$251 R 4,169

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$543 R 9,028

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 R 10.5K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,179 MYR 4,784

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$794 MYR 3,221

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$416 MYR 1,688

$1,664 R 27.7K

-75.00%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.06

-63.09%

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

Last update for Malacca: October 25, 2026

Last update for East London: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Malacca

$258 42.4%

East London

$180 18.1% 30.5% $79

Clothing & Footwear

Malacca

$112 18.5%

East London

$116 11.7% 3.3% $3.7

Eating Out

Malacca

$96 15.7%

East London

$141 14.2% 47.4% $45

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Malacca

$92 15.1%

East London

$199 20.1% 117% $107

Sport & Entertainment

Malacca

$32 5.2%

East London

$49 4.9% 53.2% $17

Getting Around

Malacca

$19 3.1%

East London

$56 5.7% 198% $37

Accommodation & Living

Malacca

- * 0%

East London

$251 25.3%

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $193 in Malacca versus $290 in East London. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in East London are about 4 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $18 in Malacca versus $38 in East London. Groceries tell a different story – $258 in Malacca vs $180 in East London – so East London wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Malacca

🇿🇦 East London

🕒 Local time

11:50 11:50 AM

05:50 5:50 AM

6 h behind Malacca

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

579,000

267,007

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.246 USD

1 MYR = 0.221 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.01 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 30, 2026: 1 USD = 4.06 MYR (1 MYR = 0.246 USD). 1 EUR = 4.52 MYR (1 MYR = 0.221 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 30, 2026: 1 USD = 16.64 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.01 USD). 1 EUR = 18.54 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Malacca East London 8,690 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Malacca
East London

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

Malacca vs East London: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $609 in Malacca, $992 in East London – Malacca comes out roughly 39% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $913 per month in Malacca and $1,487 in East London. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Malacca, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $193 there versus $290 in East London.

Kindergarten costs $237 per month in Malacca and $177 in East London. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 31% cheaper in East London – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$1,200 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $609 in Malacca and $992 in East London, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. East London has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $609 in Malacca to $992 in East London. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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