Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Nago, Okinawa

For one person, living is cheaper in Nago, Okinawa: $1,231 a month against $2,853 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
Learn more

Melbourne Living Index
60

Cost of Living Index in Nago, Okinawa
Learn more

Nago, Okinawa Living Index

Jump to prices

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,853

/mo nomad

Nago, Okinawa

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,231

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Nago, Okinawa

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,853 in Melbourne versus $1,231 in Nago, Okinawa.

Melbourne $2,853
Nago, Okinawa $1,231

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,275 in Melbourne versus $1,923 in Nago, Okinawa.

Melbourne $4,275
Nago, Okinawa $1,923

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,697 in Melbourne versus $2,614 in Nago, Okinawa.

Melbourne $5,697
Nago, Okinawa $2,614

Living in Melbourne is roughly 132% more expensive than in Nago, Okinawa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 111% above, Nago, Okinawa is 9% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.20 A$24.75

$6.82 ¥1,077

152.20%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$83.1 A$120

$35.35 ¥5,586

135.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.43 A$17.88

$5.68 ¥898

118.84%

Cappuccino

$4.05 A$5.82

$3.03 ¥479

33.66%

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

$3.12 A$4.50

$1.10 ¥173

183.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.46 A$3.54

$0.76 ¥121

223.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.52 A$13.71

$2.10 ¥332

353.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.16 A$11.74

$3.05 ¥482

167.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 A$2.25

$1.52 ¥239

2.63%

White Bread (500g)

$2.90 A$4.18

$1.64 ¥259

76.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$4.67 ¥738

-43.04%

Eggs

$5.37 A$7.72

$2.28 ¥361

135.53%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.67 A$15.36

$10.13 ¥1,601

5.33%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.85 A$14.17

$6.15 ¥971

60.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.36 A$22.11

$15.49 ¥2,448

-0.84%

Apples (1kg)

$4.17 A$6.00

$5.36 ¥847

-22.20%

Banana (1kg)

$3.15 A$4.53

$2.55 ¥402

23.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.26 A$4.69

$4.13 ¥652

-21.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.76 A$6.85

$4.53 ¥716

5.08%

Potato (1kg)

$3.06 A$4.41

$3.24 ¥511

-5.56%

Onion (1kg)

$2.47 A$3.55

$2.56 ¥404

-3.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.45 A$3.52

$1.38 ¥217

77.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.88 ¥140

85.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$45.17 A$65.0

$4.26 ¥674

960.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.68 A$18.25

$6.50 ¥1,027

95.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.69 A$8.18

$1.91 ¥302

197.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.53

$2.37 ¥375

120.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.87 A$5.57

$1.58 ¥250

144.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$142 A$204

$56.0 ¥8,840

153.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.54 A$6.53

$3.43 ¥542

32.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.42 A$2.04

$2.87 ¥454

-50.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.59 A$44.01

$21.07 ¥3,329

45.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.11

$1.23 ¥194

19.51%

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

$28.9K A$41.5K

$23.5K ¥3.7M

22.84%

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

$25.9K A$37.3K

$16.9K ¥2.7M

53.75%

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

$235 A$338

$139 ¥21.9K

69.55%

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

$27.45 A$39.51

$27.18 ¥4,294

0.99%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$56.1 A$80.8

$34.51 ¥5,452

62.65%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.1 A$72.1

$57.1 ¥9,012

-12.18%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.49 A$30.93

$13.97 ¥2,207

53.83%

Cinema Ticket

$17.76 A$25.56

$13.04 ¥2,061

36.20%

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

$2,385 A$3,432

$285 ¥45.0K

737.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$29.7K A$42.7K

$13.5K ¥2.1M

119.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$79.2 A$114

$43.95 ¥6,944

80.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.49 A$71.2

$28.96 ¥4,575

70.89%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 A$170

$59.0 ¥9,328

100.58%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$132 A$190

$92.2 ¥14.6K

43.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,763 A$2,537

$461 ¥72.8K

282.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,411 A$2,031

$328 ¥51.9K

329.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,522 A$5,069

$878 ¥138.6K

301.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,525 A$3,634

$659 ¥104.1K

283.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,136 A$10.3K

$2,826 ¥446.5K

152.49%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,355 A$9,144

$1,726 ¥272.6K

268.25%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,258 A$6,128

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

1.81

225.97%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 17, 2026

Last update for Nago, Okinawa: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.5%

Nago, Okinawa

$328 26.7% 76.7% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$388 13.6%

Nago, Okinawa

$306 24.9% 21.1% $82

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$319 11.2%

Nago, Okinawa

$200 16.3% 37.1% $118

Eating Out

Melbourne

$310 10.9%

Nago, Okinawa

$132 10.7% 57.4% $178

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$171 6%

Nago, Okinawa

$101 8.2% 40.9% $70

Getting Around

Melbourne

$169 5.9%

Nago, Okinawa

$80 6.5% 52.6% $89

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$86 3%

Nago, Okinawa

$83 6.8% 2.9% $2.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,763 in Melbourne and $461 in Nago, Okinawa. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $83.0 in Melbourne vs $35.00 in Nago, Okinawa for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $388 vs $306 per month, with Nago, Okinawa cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇯🇵 Nago, Okinawa

🕒 Local time

02:18 2:18 AM

00:18 12:18 AM

2 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

63,554

💱 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 20, 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 20, 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 →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Melbourne Nago, Okinawa 7,380 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
Nago, Okinawa

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 Nago, Okinawa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Nago, Okinawa differ by about 132% in total monthly costs ($2,853 vs $1,231 including rent). Nago, Okinawa is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $4,280 in Melbourne and $1,847 in Nago, Okinawa 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: $1,763 in Melbourne versus $461 in Nago, Okinawa. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,385 in Melbourne versus $285 in Nago, Okinawa. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 27% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,231 in Nago, Okinawa versus $2,853 in Melbourne, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Nago, Okinawa but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Nago, Okinawa 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 Nago, Okinawa 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 Nago, Okinawa gentler on the wallet – expenses run 132% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.