Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Matsuyama and Melbourne

For one person, living is cheaper in Matsuyama: $1,324 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $18,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Matsuyama
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Matsuyama Living Index
138

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
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Melbourne Living Index

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Matsuyama

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,324

/mo nomad

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,324 per month in Matsuyama vs $2,821 in Melbourne, rent included.

Matsuyama $1,324
Melbourne $2,821

A couple spends around $2,006 per month in Matsuyama vs $4,235 in Melbourne, rent included.

Matsuyama $2,006
Melbourne $4,235

A family of three spends $2,689 per month in Matsuyama vs $5,650 in Melbourne, rent included.

Matsuyama $2,689
Melbourne $5,650

Matsuyama is about 53% cheaper than Melbourne, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Matsuyama sits 2% below the global median, while Melbourne is 109% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.39 ¥1,010

$17.43 A$25.08

-63.34%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.11 ¥4,915

$84.6 A$122

-63.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.96 ¥784

$12.46 A$17.92

-60.19%

Cappuccino

$2.32 ¥367

$4.11 A$5.91

-43.55%

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

$1.17 ¥185

$3.06 A$4.40

-61.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.61 ¥97.0

$2.52 A$3.62

-75.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.00 ¥316

$9.80 A$14.10

-79.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 ¥361

$8.57 A$12.33

-73.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.55 ¥245

$1.48 A$2.14

4.73%

White Bread (500g)

$1.27 ¥201

$2.94 A$4.23

-56.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$5.49 ¥868

$2.66 A$3.82

106.39%

Eggs

$2.08 ¥329

$5.54 A$7.97

-62.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.39 ¥1,957

$10.51 A$15.13

17.89%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.30 ¥1,470

$9.65 A$13.89

-3.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$31.67 ¥5,003

$15.22 A$21.91

108.08%

Apples (1kg)

$3.65 ¥576

$3.99 A$5.75

-8.52%

Banana (1kg)

$2.35 ¥371

$3.02 A$4.34

-22.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.48 ¥1,024

$3.10 A$4.46

109.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.23 ¥668

$4.82 A$6.93

-12.24%

Potato (1kg)

$3.86 ¥610

$3.03 A$4.36

27.39%

Onion (1kg)

$3.39 ¥536

$2.44 A$3.52

38.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 ¥197

$2.46 A$3.54

-49.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 ¥152

$1.63 A$2.34

-41.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.51 ¥555

$44.07 A$63.4

-92.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.33 ¥1,317

$12.70 A$18.28

-34.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.95 ¥309

$5.54 A$7.97

-64.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.52 ¥239

$5.23 A$7.52

-70.94%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.70 ¥268

$3.74 A$5.38

-54.55%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$49.46 ¥7,815

$138 A$198

-64.03%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 ¥486

$4.51 A$6.50

-31.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.08 ¥487

$1.36 A$1.96

126.47%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.94 ¥4,257

$30.45 A$43.81

-11.53%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.05 ¥167

$1.47 A$2.12

-28.57%

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

$19.8K ¥3.1M

$29.0K A$41.7K

-31.62%

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

$16.6K ¥2.6M

$26.5K A$38.1K

-37.17%

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

$143 ¥22.5K

$234 A$336

-38.94%

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

$24.10 ¥3,808

$27.93 A$40.19

-13.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.52 ¥6,876

$55.7 A$80.2

-21.92%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.8 ¥9,293

$49.40 A$71.1

19.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

Cinema Ticket

$12.60 ¥1,990

$15.09 A$21.72

-16.50%

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

$327 ¥51.7K

$2,371 A$3,412

-86.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,187 ¥977.5K

$30.2K A$43.5K

-79.51%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.97 ¥7,737

$80.0 A$115

-38.76%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.93 ¥3,938

$50.7 A$73.0

-50.83%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$46.50 ¥7,347

$121 A$174

-61.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$66.1 ¥10.4K

$130 A$188

-49.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$534 ¥84.4K

$1,759 A$2,531

-69.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$374 ¥59.1K

$1,390 A$2,000

-73.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,186 ¥187.3K

$3,494 A$5,027

-66.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$654 ¥103.3K

$2,493 A$3,588

-73.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,764 ¥752.6K

$6,926 A$9,967

-31.22%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,942 ¥306.8K

$6,445 A$9,274

-69.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.28

5.9

-61.36%

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

Last update for Matsuyama: 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

Matsuyama

$381 28.8%

Melbourne

$384 13.6% 0.8% $3

Accommodation & Living

Matsuyama

$374 28.3%

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3% 272% $1K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Matsuyama

$210 15.9%

Melbourne

$317 11.3% 50.9% $107

Eating Out

Matsuyama

$116 8.7%

Melbourne

$315 11.2% 172% $199

Sport & Entertainment

Matsuyama

$84 6.4%

Melbourne

$80 2.8% 5.3% $4.4

Clothing & Footwear

Matsuyama

$84 6.3%

Melbourne

$172 6.1% 105% $88

Getting Around

Matsuyama

$75 5.7%

Melbourne

$164 5.8% 119% $89

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $534 in Matsuyama 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $31.00 in Matsuyama versus $85.0 in Melbourne. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $381 vs $384 – making Matsuyama the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Matsuyama

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🕒 Local time

23:28 11:28 PM

01:28 1:28 AM

2 h ahead of Matsuyama

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

511,192

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 →

On the map

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Between locations

Matsuyama Melbourne 8,070 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Matsuyama
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

Matsuyama vs Melbourne: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,324 in Matsuyama, $2,821 in Melbourne – roughly 113% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,985 per month in Matsuyama 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 Matsuyama, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 178% less in Matsuyama. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $327 per month in Matsuyama and $2,371 in Melbourne. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Matsuyama, where all-in costs run around $1,324, than in Melbourne at $2,821. In Matsuyama it covers expenses comfortably, while in Melbourne it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Matsuyama – 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 Matsuyama. 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.