Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Nara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nara: $1,215 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $19,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

138

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
Learn more

Melbourne Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Nara
Learn more

Nara Living Index

Jump to prices

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Nara

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,215

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Nara

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $1,215 in Nara.

Melbourne $2,821
Nara $1,215

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $1,828 in Nara.

Melbourne $4,235
Nara $1,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $2,442 in Nara.

Melbourne $5,650
Nara $2,442

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

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 109% above, Nara is 10% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$25.08

$6.40 ¥1,011

172.34%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$122

$31.96 ¥5,049

164.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.92

$5.10 ¥805

144.31%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.91

$2.48 ¥392

65.73%

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

$3.06 A$4.40

$1.30 ¥206

135.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.62

$0.75 ¥119

236.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.10

$3.10 ¥489

216.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.33

$3.06 ¥483

180.07%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.14

$1.50 ¥238

-1.33%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$1.34 ¥211

119.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$4.05 ¥640

-34.32%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.97

$2.13 ¥336

160.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.13

$9.60 ¥1,517

9.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.89

$7.01 ¥1,108

37.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.91

$17.82 ¥2,815

-14.59%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.75

$3.41 ¥539

17.01%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.34

$1.99 ¥315

51.76%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.46

$2.01 ¥317

54.23%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.93

$4.01 ¥633

20.20%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.36

$1.57 ¥248

92.99%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.52

$1.16 ¥184

110.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.54

$1.12 ¥177

119.64%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.81 ¥128

101.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.4

$3.82 ¥604

1053.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.28

$9.49 ¥1,500

33.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.97

$1.93 ¥305

187.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.52

$2.13 ¥337

145.54%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.38

$1.55 ¥245

141.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

$72.0 ¥11.4K

91.03%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.50

$3.23 ¥510

39.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.96

$2.83 ¥447

-51.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.81

$15.70 ¥2,480

93.95%

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

$21.9K ¥3.5M

32.54%

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

$26.5K A$38.1K

$14.9K ¥2.4M

77.78%

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

$234 A$336

$115 ¥18.2K

102.53%

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

$27.93 A$40.19

$24.28 ¥3,836

15.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$80.2

$30.63 ¥4,840

81.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$71.1

$82.2 ¥13.0K

-39.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

$7.44 ¥1,176

188.71%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.72

$11.85 ¥1,872

27.34%

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

$2,371 A$3,412

$511 ¥80.8K

363.83%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.5K

$12.8K ¥2.0M

135.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$48.43 ¥7,652

65.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$73.0

$30.90 ¥4,882

64.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$174

$59.5 ¥9,398

102.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$188

$88.7 ¥14.0K

47.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,531

$404 ¥63.8K

335.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$2,000

$333 ¥52.7K

316.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,027

$810 ¥128.0K

331.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,588

$544 ¥86.0K

358.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

$2,669 ¥421.6K

159.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

$1,959 ¥309.5K

229.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

$1,110 ¥175.3K

294.97%

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 10, 2026

Last update for Nara: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Nara

$333 27.4% 76% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Nara

$282 23.2% 26.6% $102

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Nara

$170 14% 46.3% $147

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Nara

$126 10.4% 59.9% $188

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Nara

$102 8.4% 40.4% $69

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Nara

$96 7.9% 41.7% $68

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Nara

$106 8.7% 33% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,759 in Melbourne and $404 in Nara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 295% 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: $85.0 in Melbourne vs $32.00 in Nara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $282 per month, with Nara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇯🇵 Nara

🕒 Local time

14:16 2:16 PM

12:16 12:16 PM

2 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

355,280

💱 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 →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Melbourne Nara 8,120 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
Nara

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 Nara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Nara differ by about 132% in total monthly costs ($2,821 vs $1,215 including rent). Nara is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 295% 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: $1,759 in Melbourne versus $404 in Nara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,371 in Melbourne versus $511 in Nara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 36% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,215 in Nara versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Nara but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Nara 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 Nara 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 Nara 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.