Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Ostend

For one person, living is cheaper in Ostend: $1,810 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $12,100 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
88

Cost of Living Index in Ostend
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Ostend Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Ostend

🇧🇪 Belgium

$1,810

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Ostend

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $1,810 in Ostend.

Melbourne $2,821
Ostend $1,810

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $2,702 in Ostend.

Melbourne $4,235
Ostend $2,702

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $3,595 in Ostend.

Melbourne $5,650
Ostend $3,595

Living in Melbourne is roughly 56% more expensive than in Ostend, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Melbourne 109% above, Ostend 34% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$25.08

$22.10 €19.65

-21.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$122

$79.1 €70.3

6.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.92

$11.18 €9.94

11.45%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.91

$4.09 €3.64

0.49%

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

$3.06 A$4.40

$3.00 €2.67

2.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.62

$2.52 €2.24

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.10

$4.40 €3.91

122.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.33

$4.48 €3.99

91.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.14

$1.21 €1.08

22.31%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$2.69 €2.40

9.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$2.08 €1.85

27.88%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.97

$3.73 €3.32

48.53%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.13

$11.69 €10.40

-10.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.89

$11.77 €10.47

-18.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.91

$13.46 €11.97

13.08%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.75

$2.83 €2.51

40.99%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.34

$2.14 €1.90

41.12%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.46

$2.15 €1.91

44.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.93

$2.32 €2.06

107.76%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.36

$1.84 €1.64

64.67%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.52

$1.71 €1.52

42.69%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.54

$1.22 €1.08

101.64%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.92 €0.82

77.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.4

$10.12 €9.01

335.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.28

$6.86 €6.10

85.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.97

$2.10 €1.87

163.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.52

$1.84 €1.64

184.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.38

$3.39 €3.01

10.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

$38.31 €34.07

258.97%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.50

$3.38 €3.00

33.43%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.96

$2.29 €2.04

-40.61%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.81

$25.03 €22.26

21.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.12

$1.95 €1.73

-24.62%

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

$29.0K A$41.7K

$34.6K €30.7K

-16.06%

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

$26.5K A$38.1K

$30.6K €27.2K

-13.41%

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

$234 A$336

$176 €156

33.10%

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

$27.93 A$40.19

$18.08 €16.08

54.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$80.2

$53.1 €47.23

4.97%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$71.1

$36.39 €32.36

35.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

$11.02 €9.80

94.92%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.72

$14.36 €12.77

5.08%

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

$2,371 A$3,412

$391 €348

505.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.5K

$16.0K €14.2K

88.54%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$99.4 €88.4

-19.51%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$73.0

$26.26 €23.36

93.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$174

$87.8 €78.1

37.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$188

$120 €107

8.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,531

$792 €704

122.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$2,000

$673 €598

106.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,027

$1,245 €1,108

180.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,588

$987 €878

152.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

$3,674 €3,268

88.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

$1,918 €1,706

235.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

$3,097 €2,755

41.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

3.33

77.18%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Ostend: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Ostend

$673 37.1% 51.6% $717

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Ostend

$297 16.4% 22.8% $87

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Ostend

$247 13.6% 22.2% $71

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Ostend

$312 17.3% 0.7% $2.1

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Ostend

$150 8.3% 12.6% $22

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Ostend

$67 3.7% 59.3% $97

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Ostend

$65 3.6% 18.2% $14

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,759 in Melbourne and $792 in Ostend. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 42% 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 $79.0 in Ostend for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $297 per month, with Ostend cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇧🇪 Ostend

🕒 Local time

16:00 4:00 PM

07:00 7:00 AM

9 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

70,600

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD 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).

Euro exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Melbourne Ostend 16,710 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
Ostend

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 Ostend: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Ostend differ by about 56% in total monthly costs ($2,821 vs $1,810 including rent). Ostend is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 42% 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 $792 in Ostend. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,371 in Melbourne versus $391 in Ostend. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 29% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,810 in Ostend versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Ostend but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Ostend 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 Ostend 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 Ostend gentler on the wallet – expenses run 56% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.