Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Mito

For one person, living is cheaper in Mito: $1,195 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $19,500 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
58

Cost of Living Index in Mito
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Mito Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Mito

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,195

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Mito

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $1,195 in Mito.

Melbourne $2,821
Mito $1,195

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $1,927 in Mito.

Melbourne $4,235
Mito $1,927

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $2,660 in Mito.

Melbourne $5,650
Mito $2,660

Living in Melbourne is roughly 136% more expensive than in Mito, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 109% above, Mito is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$25.08

$6.19 ¥979

181.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$122

$40.41 ¥6,384

109.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.92

$5.00 ¥790

149.20%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.91

$3.40 ¥538

20.88%

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

$3.06 A$4.40

$1.08 ¥171

183.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.62

$0.80 ¥126

215.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.10

$2.56 ¥404

282.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.33

$3.18 ¥503

169.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.14

$1.40 ¥221

5.71%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$1.66 ¥262

77.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$3.55 ¥561

-25.07%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.97

$2.01 ¥317

175.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.13

$10.23 ¥1,617

2.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.89

$5.96 ¥942

61.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.91

$14.60 ¥2,307

4.25%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.75

$5.51 ¥871

-27.59%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.34

$2.73 ¥431

10.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.46

$2.82 ¥446

9.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.93

$4.27 ¥675

12.88%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.36

$2.53 ¥399

19.76%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.52

$2.67 ¥423

-8.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.54

$1.28 ¥201

92.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.76 ¥121

114.47%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.4

$3.71 ¥586

1087.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.28

$6.21 ¥980

104.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.97

$1.81 ¥286

206.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.52

$2.07 ¥327

152.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.38

$1.62 ¥256

130.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

$50.8 ¥8,021

170.87%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.50

$3.07 ¥486

46.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.96

$2.72 ¥430

-50.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.81

$20.41 ¥3,225

49.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.12

$1.11 ¥175

32.43%

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

$29.0K A$41.7K

$21.0K ¥3.3M

38.10%

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

$26.5K A$38.1K

$18.3K ¥2.9M

44.38%

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

$234 A$336

$132 ¥20.8K

77.42%

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

$27.93 A$40.19

$23.76 ¥3,754

17.55%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$80.2

$31.72 ¥5,011

75.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$71.1

$59.7 ¥9,432

-17.25%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.72

$12.37 ¥1,954

21.99%

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

$2,371 A$3,412

$622 ¥98.2K

281.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.5K

$14.8K ¥2.3M

103.44%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$61.1 ¥9,648

30.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$73.0

$36.44 ¥5,757

39.13%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$174

$62.0 ¥9,793

94.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$188

$103 ¥16.3K

26.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,531

$522 ¥82.4K

237.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$2,000

$313 ¥49.4K

344.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,027

$1,107 ¥174.9K

215.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,588

$727 ¥114.8K

243.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

$3,615 ¥571.2K

91.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

$1,962 ¥309.9K

228.56%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

2.64

123.48%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Mito: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Mito

$313 26.2% 77.5% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Mito

$286 24% 25.4% $98

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Mito

$187 15.7% 41% $130

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Mito

$132 11.1% 58% $182

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Mito

$118 9.9% 31.3% $54

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Mito

$74 6.2% 54.8% $90

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Mito

$84 7.1% 6.1% $4.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,759 in Melbourne and $522 in Mito. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $85.0 in Melbourne vs $40.00 in Mito for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $286 per month, with Mito cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇯🇵 Mito

🕒 Local time

19:45 7:45 PM

17:45 5:45 PM

2 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

271,047

💱 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 19, 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 19, 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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Between locations

Melbourne Mito 8,260 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
Mito

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 Mito: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Mito differ by about 136% in total monthly costs ($2,821 vs $1,195 including rent). Mito is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $4,231 in Melbourne and $1,792 in Mito to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,759 in Melbourne versus $522 in Mito. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,371 in Melbourne versus $622 in Mito. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 34% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,195 in Mito versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Mito but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Mito 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 Mito 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 Mito gentler on the wallet – expenses run 136% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.