Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Bandar Seri Begawan

For one person, living is cheaper in Bandar Seri Begawan: $1,193 a month against $2,852 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $19,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

137

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
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Melbourne Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Bandar Seri Begawan
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Bandar Seri Begawan Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,852

/mo nomad

Bandar Seri Begawan

🇧🇳 Brunei

$1,193

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Bandar Seri Begawan

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

A single person spends $2,852 per month in Melbourne vs $1,193 in Bandar Seri Begawan, rent included.

Melbourne $2,852
Bandar Seri Begawan $1,193

A couple spends around $4,297 per month in Melbourne vs $1,725 in Bandar Seri Begawan, rent included.

Melbourne $4,297
Bandar Seri Begawan $1,725

A family of three spends $5,742 per month in Melbourne vs $2,257 in Bandar Seri Begawan, rent included.

Melbourne $5,742
Bandar Seri Begawan $2,257

Melbourne costs about 139% more than Bandar Seri Begawan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Melbourne sits 113% above the global median, while Bandar Seri Begawan is 11% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.75 A$25.40

$3.84 BND 4.91

362.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.8 A$121

$27.17 BND 34.78

212.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.16 A$17.40

$6.13 BND 7.84

98.37%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.90 BND 2.44

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.31 BND 2.96

Cappuccino

$3.93 A$5.62

$3.88 BND 4.97

1.29%

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

$3.14 A$4.49

$0.95 BND 1.22

230.53%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.43 A$3.47

$0.53 BND 0.68

358.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.90 A$14.17

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.29 A$11.86

Milk (1 liter)

$1.55 A$2.21

$1.84 BND 2.36

-15.76%

White Bread (500g)

$3.01 A$4.31

$1.70 BND 2.18

77.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.88 A$4.12

$1.24 BND 1.58

132.26%

Eggs

$5.44 A$7.79

$2.01 BND 2.58

170.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.59 A$15.16

$9.26 BND 11.85

14.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.61 A$13.76

$4.39 BND 5.63

118.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.99 A$21.46

$10.63 BND 13.61

41.02%

Apples (1kg)

$4.15 A$5.94

$3.19 BND 4.09

30.09%

Banana (1kg)

$3.05 A$4.37

$2.18 BND 2.79

39.91%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.30 A$4.72

$2.86 BND 3.66

15.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.76 A$6.81

$2.59 BND 3.31

83.78%

Potato (1kg)

$3.04 A$4.34

$1.75 BND 2.24

73.71%

Onion (1kg)

$2.55 A$3.65

$2.08 BND 2.67

22.60%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.48 A$3.55

$3.61 BND 4.62

-31.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.33

$0.93 BND 1.19

75.27%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$23.07 BND 29.54

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.39 BND 4.35

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.1

$15.45 BND 19.78

185.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.43 A$17.79

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.33 A$7.63

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.16 A$7.38

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.84 A$5.50

$0.82 BND 1.05

368.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$142 A$203

$0.82 BND 1.05

17156.10%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.40 A$6.29

$3.82 BND 4.89

15.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.40 A$2.01

$3.42 BND 4.38

-59.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.83 A$42.69

$11.89 BND 15.22

150.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.46 A$2.09

$0.39 BND 0.50

274.36%

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

$28.1K A$40.3K

$43.7K BND 56.0K

-35.65%

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

$25.9K A$37.1K

$36.2K BND 46.3K

-28.28%

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

$233 A$333

$60.7 BND 77.7

283.59%

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

$27.28 A$39.04

$21.58 BND 27.63

26.41%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$57.0 A$81.6

$65.4 BND 83.8

-12.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.7 A$75.4

$45.10 BND 57.7

16.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.62 A$32.37

$6.96 BND 8.91

225.00%

Cinema Ticket

$17.10 A$24.48

$5.34 BND 6.84

220.22%

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

$2,373 A$3,397

$214 BND 273

1011.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.5K A$43.6K

$9,857 BND 12.6K

209.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.2 A$112

$75.2 BND 96.3

4.00%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.5 A$72.2

$92.5 BND 118

-45.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$172

$104 BND 133

16.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 A$191

$73.3 BND 93.8

81.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,713 A$2,451

$734 BND 939

133.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,402 A$2,006

$469 BND 601

198.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,339 A$4,778

$1,125 BND 1,440

196.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,529 A$3,619

$692 BND 885

265.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,018 A$10.0K

$3,106 BND 3,977

125.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,767 A$9,685

$2,298 BND 2,942

194.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,228 A$6,051

$1,755 BND 2,247

140.88%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

3.88

52.06%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 6, 2026

Last update for Bandar Seri Begawan: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Bandar Seri Begawan

$469 40% 66.5% $932

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$385 13.5%

Bandar Seri Begawan

$218 18.6% 43.3% $167

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.1%

Bandar Seri Begawan

$148 12.6% 53.4% $169

Eating Out

Melbourne

$314 11%

Bandar Seri Begawan

$102 8.7% 67.6% $212

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Bandar Seri Begawan

$155 13.2% 9.9% $17

Getting Around

Melbourne

$168 5.9%

Bandar Seri Begawan

$25 2.1% 85.1% $143

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$87 3.1%

Bandar Seri Begawan

$56 4.8% 35.8% $31

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,713 in Melbourne versus $734 in Bandar Seri Begawan. 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 141% 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 $85.0 in Melbourne versus $27.00 in Bandar Seri Begawan. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $385 vs $218 – making Bandar Seri Begawan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇧🇳 Bandar Seri Begawan

🕒 Local time

22:42 10:42 PM

19:42 7:42 PM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

50,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Brunei Dollar BND $

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.699 USD

1 AUD = 0.624 EUR

1 BND = 0.781 USD

1 BND = 0.697 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BND, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.699 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.624 EUR).

Brunei Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.28 BND (1 BND = 0.781 USD). 1 EUR = 1.43 BND (1 BND = 0.697 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Melbourne Bandar Seri Begawan 5,670 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
Bandar Seri Begawan

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

Melbourne vs Bandar Seri Begawan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Melbourne is pricier by about 139%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,277 per month in Melbourne and $1,789 in Bandar Seri Begawan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Bandar Seri Begawan, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,852 in Melbourne and $1,193 in Bandar Seri Begawan. That's a gap of about 139%.

Public transport costs about 17156% less in Bandar Seri Begawan. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Bandar Seri Begawan, where all-in costs run around $1,193, than in Melbourne at $2,852. In Bandar Seri Begawan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Melbourne it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Bandar Seri Begawan – 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 Bandar Seri Begawan. 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.