Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Malmo and Lulea

For one person, living is cheaper in Lulea: $1,820 a month against $2,031 in Malmo, rent and utilities included – about $2,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

99

Cost of Living Index in Malmo
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Malmo Living Index
88

Cost of Living Index in Lulea
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Lulea Living Index

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Malmo

🇸🇪 Sweden

$2,031

/mo nomad

Lulea

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,820

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Malmo and in Lulea

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,031 in Malmo versus $1,820 in Lulea.

Malmo $2,031
Lulea $1,820

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,108 in Malmo versus $2,946 in Lulea.

Malmo $3,108
Lulea $2,946

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,185 in Malmo versus $4,073 in Lulea.

Malmo $4,185
Lulea $4,073

Living in Malmo is roughly 12% more expensive than in Lulea, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Malmo 50% above, Lulea 35% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.01 SEK 149

$11.71 SEK 116

28.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$74.8 SEK 741

$96.1 SEK 952

-22.12%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.13 SEK 120

$11.04 SEK 109

9.87%

Cappuccino

$4.98 SEK 49.36

$4.38 SEK 43.41

13.70%

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

$3.44 SEK 34.07

$2.45 SEK 24.24

40.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.65 SEK 26.24

$1.94 SEK 19.20

36.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.49 SEK 84.1

$8.56 SEK 84.8

-0.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.01 SEK 89.3

$9.41 SEK 93.2

-4.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 SEK 16.38

$1.82 SEK 17.99

-9.34%

White Bread (500g)

$2.80 SEK 27.74

$3.42 SEK 33.84

-18.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.44 SEK 34.08

$4.75 SEK 47.11

-27.58%

Eggs

$3.98 SEK 39.43

$4.67 SEK 46.31

-14.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.86 SEK 127

$12.48 SEK 124

3.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.07 SEK 120

$13.11 SEK 130

-7.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.13 SEK 209

$26.07 SEK 258

-18.95%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 SEK 29.53

$2.44 SEK 24.16

22.13%

Banana (1kg)

$2.59 SEK 25.63

$2.66 SEK 26.36

-2.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.98 SEK 29.50

$2.36 SEK 23.36

26.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.29 SEK 42.46

$4.16 SEK 41.21

3.12%

Potato (1kg)

$1.63 SEK 16.12

$2.09 SEK 20.69

-22.01%

Onion (1kg)

$1.52 SEK 15.03

$1.50 SEK 14.82

1.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.44 SEK 24.20

$3.30 SEK 32.69

-26.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.17 SEK 11.56

$1.27 SEK 12.59

-7.87%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.83 SEK 77.6

$7.06 SEK 70.0

10.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.49 SEK 114

$12.04 SEK 119

-4.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.94 SEK 19.21

$1.78 SEK 17.63

8.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 SEK 23.04

$1.77 SEK 17.53

31.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.12 SEK 30.89

$3.23 SEK 31.99

-3.41%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$64.3 SEK 637

$56.5 SEK 560

13.82%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.36 SEK 63.1

$8.73 SEK 86.5

-27.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.47 SEK 24.48

$2.05 SEK 20.33

20.49%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$49.15 SEK 487

$70.8 SEK 702

-30.59%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.78 SEK 17.68

$1.74 SEK 17.24

2.30%

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

$32.7K SEK 323.9K

$31.9K SEK 316.5K

2.32%

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

$33.3K SEK 330.1K

$33.3K SEK 329.9K

0.05%

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

$139 SEK 1,377

$161 SEK 1,595

-13.70%

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

$25.01 SEK 248

$31.36 SEK 311

-20.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$38.88 SEK 385

$26.51 SEK 263

46.66%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.60 SEK 402

$45.47 SEK 450

-10.71%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.04 SEK 288

$35.02 SEK 347

-17.08%

Cinema Ticket

$16.99 SEK 168

$12.85 SEK 127

32.22%

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

$168 SEK 1,667

$150 SEK 1,490

11.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,337 SEK 33.1K

$5,570 SEK 55.2K

-40.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$97.8 SEK 969

$120 SEK 1,189

-18.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.17 SEK 438

$32.64 SEK 323

35.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 SEK 1,097

$120 SEK 1,188

-7.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$151 SEK 1,493

$161 SEK 1,593

-6.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,059 SEK 10.5K

$783 SEK 7,763

35.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$806 SEK 7,989

$584 SEK 5,786

38.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,720 SEK 17.0K

$1,449 SEK 14.4K

18.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,354 SEK 13.4K

$1,104 SEK 10.9K

22.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,083 SEK 40.5K

$3,072 SEK 30.4K

32.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,100 SEK 30.7K

$2,194 SEK 21.7K

41.31%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,978 SEK 29.5K

$2,498 SEK 24.8K

19.23%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.05

3.85

-20.78%

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

Last update for Malmo: October 12, 2026

Last update for Lulea: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Malmo

$806 39.7%

Lulea

$584 32.1% 27.6% $222

Groceries & Markets

Malmo

$369 18.2%

Lulea

$404 22.2% 9.4% $35

Eating Out

Malmo

$301 14.8%

Lulea

$259 14.2% 14.1% $43

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Malmo

$203 10%

Lulea

$219 12% 7.9% $16

Clothing & Footwear

Malmo

$181 8.9%

Lulea

$195 10.7% 7.4% $14

Getting Around

Malmo

$96 4.7%

Lulea

$88 4.9% 7.4% $7.1

Sport & Entertainment

Malmo

$75 3.7%

Lulea

$71 3.9% 4.6% $3.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,059 in Malmo and $783 in Lulea. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Malmo pays 19% 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: $75.0 in Malmo vs $96.0 in Lulea for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $369 vs $404 per month, with Malmo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇪 Malmo

🇸🇪 Lulea

🕒 Local time

17:15 5:15 PM

Same time as Malmo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

316,588

73,864

💱 Currency

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 SEK = 10.09 USD

100 SEK = 8.98 EUR

100 SEK = 10.09 USD

100 SEK = 8.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Malmo Lulea 1,210 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Malmo
Lulea

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

Malmo vs Lulea: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lulea wins on cost – living expenses run 12% lower than in Malmo. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Lulea the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 19% higher in Malmo, 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: $1,059 in Malmo versus $783 in Lulea. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Malmo pay roughly 9% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Dining out is cheaper in Lulea – a meal for two runs $96.0 versus $75.0 in Malmo. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,820 in Lulea versus $2,031 in Malmo, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lulea but tight or insufficient in Malmo. The gap between the two cities makes Lulea the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Lulea delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,820 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Lulea hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Malmo and Lulea 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 Lulea gentler on the wallet – expenses run 12% less than in Malmo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.