Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Hirakata

For one person, living is cheaper in Hirakata: $1,220 a month against $2,853 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $19,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

138

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
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Melbourne Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Hirakata
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Hirakata Living Index

Jump to prices

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,853

/mo nomad

Hirakata

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,220

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Hirakata

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 Hirakata actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,853 in Melbourne versus $1,220 in Hirakata.

Melbourne $2,853
Hirakata $1,220

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,275 in Melbourne versus $1,929 in Hirakata.

Melbourne $4,275
Hirakata $1,929

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,697 in Melbourne versus $2,638 in Hirakata.

Melbourne $5,697
Hirakata $2,638

Living in Melbourne is roughly 134% more expensive than in Hirakata, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 111% above, Hirakata is 10% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.20 A$24.75

$8.59 ¥1,356

100.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$83.1 A$120

$31.38 ¥4,958

164.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.43 A$17.88

$4.97 ¥786

150.10%

Cappuccino

$4.05 A$5.82

$2.90 ¥458

39.66%

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

$3.12 A$4.50

$1.29 ¥204

141.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.46 A$3.54

$0.72 ¥114

241.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.52 A$13.71

$3.07 ¥486

210.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.16 A$11.74

$3.87 ¥611

110.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 A$2.25

$1.44 ¥228

8.33%

White Bread (500g)

$2.90 A$4.18

$1.31 ¥206

121.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$5.49 ¥867

-51.55%

Eggs

$5.37 A$7.72

$2.05 ¥324

161.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.67 A$15.36

$9.33 ¥1,474

14.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.85 A$14.17

$6.93 ¥1,095

42.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.36 A$22.11

$17.25 ¥2,725

-10.96%

Apples (1kg)

$4.17 A$6.00

$3.39 ¥536

23.01%

Banana (1kg)

$3.15 A$4.53

$1.94 ¥307

62.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.26 A$4.69

$3.10 ¥489

5.16%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.76 A$6.85

$4.13 ¥652

15.25%

Potato (1kg)

$3.06 A$4.41

$4.03 ¥637

-24.07%

Onion (1kg)

$2.47 A$3.55

$3.82 ¥603

-35.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.45 A$3.52

$1.36 ¥216

80.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.88 ¥138

85.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$45.17 A$65.0

$3.94 ¥623

1046.45%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.68 A$18.25

$9.69 ¥1,531

30.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.69 A$8.18

$2.61 ¥412

118.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.53

$3.13 ¥495

67.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.87 A$5.57

$1.49 ¥236

159.73%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$142 A$204

$52.9 ¥8,365

168.15%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.54 A$6.53

$3.24 ¥512

40.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.42 A$2.04

$3.23 ¥510

-56.04%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.59 A$44.01

$15.59 ¥2,462

96.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.11

$1.06 ¥168

38.68%

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

$28.9K A$41.5K

$22.0K ¥3.5M

31.32%

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

$25.9K A$37.3K

$15.3K ¥2.4M

69.01%

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

$235 A$338

$114 ¥18.1K

105.39%

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

$27.45 A$39.51

$23.50 ¥3,713

16.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$56.1 A$80.8

$30.41 ¥4,805

84.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.1 A$72.1

$52.5 ¥8,291

-4.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.49 A$30.93

$6.47 ¥1,022

232.15%

Cinema Ticket

$17.76 A$25.56

$11.43 ¥1,806

55.38%

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

$2,385 A$3,432

$513 ¥81.1K

364.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$29.7K A$42.7K

$13.0K ¥2.1M

127.70%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$79.2 A$114

$48.40 ¥7,646

63.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.49 A$71.2

$30.44 ¥4,810

62.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 A$170

$61.5 ¥9,710

92.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$132 A$190

$90.8 ¥14.3K

45.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,763 A$2,537

$525 ¥83.0K

235.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,411 A$2,031

$336 ¥53.1K

320.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,522 A$5,069

$1,121 ¥177.1K

214.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,525 A$3,634

$729 ¥115.2K

246.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,136 A$10.3K

$4,201 ¥663.7K

69.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,355 A$9,144

$1,730 ¥273.3K

267.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,258 A$6,128

$1,904 ¥300.9K

123.59%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

2.02

192.08%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 17, 2026

Last update for Hirakata: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.5%

Hirakata

$336 27.5% 76.2% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$388 13.6%

Hirakata

$308 25.3% 20.7% $80

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$319 11.2%

Hirakata

$168 13.8% 47.2% $150

Eating Out

Melbourne

$310 10.9%

Hirakata

$150 12.3% 51.7% $160

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$171 6%

Hirakata

$104 8.5% 39.1% $67

Getting Around

Melbourne

$169 5.9%

Hirakata

$78 6.4% 53.7% $91

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$86 3%

Hirakata

$75 6.2% 12% $10

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,763 in Melbourne and $525 in Hirakata. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 124% 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: $83.0 in Melbourne vs $31.00 in Hirakata for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $388 vs $308 per month, with Hirakata cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇯🇵 Hirakata

🕒 Local time

15:05 3:05 PM

13:05 1:05 PM

2 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

402,495

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

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Melbourne Hirakata 8,130 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

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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 Hirakata: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Hirakata differ by about 134% in total monthly costs ($2,853 vs $1,220 including rent). Hirakata is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 124% higher in Melbourne, 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: $1,763 in Melbourne versus $525 in Hirakata. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Hirakata runs roughly 168% less than in Melbourne. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $2,385 in Melbourne versus $513 in Hirakata. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,220 in Hirakata versus $2,853 in Melbourne, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Hirakata but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Hirakata the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Melbourne and Hirakata 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 Hirakata gentler on the wallet – expenses run 134% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.