Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Kyoto

For one person, living is cheaper in Kyoto: $1,229 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $19,100 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
60

Cost of Living Index in Kyoto
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Kyoto Living Index

Jump to prices

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Kyoto

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,229

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Kyoto

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

A single person spends $2,821 per month in Melbourne vs $1,229 in Kyoto, rent included.

Melbourne $2,821
Kyoto $1,229

A couple spends around $4,235 per month in Melbourne vs $1,987 in Kyoto, rent included.

Melbourne $4,235
Kyoto $1,987

A family of three spends $5,650 per month in Melbourne vs $2,745 in Kyoto, rent included.

Melbourne $5,650
Kyoto $2,745

Melbourne costs about 129% more than Kyoto, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Melbourne sits 109% above the global median, while Kyoto is 9% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$25.08

$9.52 ¥1,504

83.09%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$122

$31.84 ¥5,031

165.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.92

$5.00 ¥791

149.20%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.91

$3.35 ¥529

22.69%

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

$3.06 A$4.40

$0.83 ¥132

268.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.62

$0.73 ¥115

245.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.10

$3.18 ¥503

208.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.33

$5.51 ¥870

55.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.14

$1.55 ¥244

-4.52%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$1.63 ¥258

80.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$5.74 ¥907

-53.66%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.97

$2.12 ¥335

161.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.13

$8.57 ¥1,353

22.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.89

$7.58 ¥1,197

27.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.91

$10.70 ¥1,690

42.24%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.75

$5.16 ¥815

-22.67%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.34

$2.27 ¥359

33.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.46

$4.94 ¥781

-37.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.93

$3.51 ¥555

37.32%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.36

$1.94 ¥307

56.19%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.52

$1.66 ¥262

46.99%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.54

$1.18 ¥187

108.47%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.99 ¥156

64.65%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.4

$3.86 ¥610

1041.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.28

$7.52 ¥1,189

68.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.97

$1.56 ¥247

255.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.52

$3.27 ¥517

59.94%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.38

$1.48 ¥234

152.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

$63.5 ¥10.0K

116.74%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.50

$3.25 ¥513

38.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.96

$3.77 ¥596

-63.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.81

$28.62 ¥4,521

6.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.12

$1.06 ¥167

38.68%

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

$29.0K A$41.7K

$21.8K ¥3.4M

33.15%

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

$26.5K A$38.1K

$15.1K ¥2.4M

75.07%

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

$234 A$336

$102 ¥16.1K

129.86%

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

$27.93 A$40.19

$23.50 ¥3,712

18.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$80.2

$31.15 ¥4,921

78.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$71.1

$52.3 ¥8,265

-5.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

$19.00 ¥3,001

13.05%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.72

$12.06 ¥1,905

25.12%

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

$2,371 A$3,412

$642 ¥101.5K

269.27%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.5K

$6,412 ¥1.0M

370.97%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$56.8 ¥8,980

40.69%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$73.0

$45.66 ¥7,214

11.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$174

$69.4 ¥11.0K

73.89%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$188

$105 ¥16.5K

24.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,531

$552 ¥87.1K

218.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$2,000

$325 ¥51.4K

327.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,027

$1,743 ¥275.4K

100.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,588

$766 ¥121.0K

225.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

$2,241 ¥354.0K

209.07%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

$1,270 ¥200.7K

407.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

$1,889 ¥298.5K

131.97%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

2.23

164.57%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Kyoto: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Kyoto

$325 26.5% 76.6% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Kyoto

$291 23.7% 24.3% $93

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Kyoto

$156 12.7% 50.7% $161

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Kyoto

$165 13.4% 47.7% $150

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Kyoto

$124 10.1% 27.6% $47

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Kyoto

$91 7.4% 44.2% $72

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Kyoto

$76 6.2% 4% $3.2

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,759 in Melbourne versus $552 in Kyoto. 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 132% 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 $32.00 in Kyoto. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $384 vs $291 – making Kyoto the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇯🇵 Kyoto

🕒 Local time

17:40 5:40 PM

15:40 3:40 PM

2 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

1,475,183

💱 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 18, 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 18, 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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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 Kyoto: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne, $1,229 in Kyoto – roughly 129% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,231 per month in Melbourne and $1,844 in Kyoto. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Groceries cost about 32% more in Melbourne, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $85.0 in Melbourne and $32.00 in Kyoto. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Kyoto, where all-in costs run around $1,229, than in Melbourne at $2,821. In Kyoto it covers expenses comfortably, while in Melbourne it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Kyoto has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,229 in Kyoto to $2,821 in Melbourne. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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 Kyoto. 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.