Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Oulu

For one person, living is cheaper in Oulu: $1,878 a month against $2,849 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $11,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

137

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
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Melbourne Living Index
91

Cost of Living Index in Oulu
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Oulu Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,849

/mo nomad

Oulu

🇫🇮 Finland

$1,878

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Oulu

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,849 in Melbourne versus $1,878 in Oulu.

Melbourne $2,849
Oulu $1,878

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,274 in Melbourne versus $2,905 in Oulu.

Melbourne $4,274
Oulu $2,905

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,699 in Melbourne versus $3,932 in Oulu.

Melbourne $5,699
Oulu $3,932

Living in Melbourne is roughly 52% more expensive than in Oulu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Melbourne 109% above, Oulu 38% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.50 A$24.89

$17.48 €15.66

0.11%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.3 A$120

$90.5 €81.1

-6.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.17 A$17.31

$15.02 €13.46

-18.97%

Cappuccino

$4.07 A$5.79

$4.83 €4.33

-15.73%

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

$3.18 A$4.52

$2.95 €2.65

7.80%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 A$3.55

$2.28 €2.05

9.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.57 A$13.61

$7.68 €6.88

24.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.25 A$11.73

$7.96 €7.13

3.64%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 A$2.14

$1.19 €1.07

26.05%

White Bread (500g)

$2.97 A$4.22

$2.28 €2.05

30.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.68 A$3.82

$2.78 €2.49

-3.60%

Eggs

$5.45 A$7.76

$3.16 €2.84

72.47%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.71 A$15.24

$7.40 €6.63

44.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.05 A$14.29

$13.67 €12.25

-26.48%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.00 A$21.33

$22.93 €20.55

-34.58%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 A$5.79

$2.31 €2.07

76.19%

Banana (1kg)

$3.14 A$4.46

$1.97 €1.76

59.39%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.12 A$4.44

$2.10 €1.88

48.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.73 A$6.73

$4.20 €3.77

12.62%

Potato (1kg)

$2.98 A$4.24

$0.97 €0.87

207.22%

Onion (1kg)

$2.49 A$3.55

$1.64 €1.47

51.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.48 A$3.53

$2.69 €2.41

-7.81%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.60 A$2.28

$1.61 €1.44

-0.62%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.65 A$63.5

$13.25 €11.87

236.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.68 A$18.04

$12.35 €11.07

2.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.55 A$7.89

$3.62 €3.24

53.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.18 A$7.37

$3.09 €2.77

67.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.84 A$5.46

$2.99 €2.68

28.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$139 A$197

$63.4 €56.8

118.79%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.36 A$6.20

$9.58 €8.58

-54.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.37 A$1.94

$1.58 €1.41

-13.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.72 A$42.28

$55.5 €49.69

-46.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 A$2.11

$2.24 €2.01

-33.48%

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

$29.1K A$41.4K

$35.9K €32.2K

-19.01%

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

$25.7K A$36.5K

$37.0K €33.1K

-30.58%

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

$236 A$335

$116 €104

103.45%

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

$28.01 A$39.84

$25.74 €23.06

8.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$57.2 A$81.4

$21.15 €18.95

170.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.39 A$68.8

$37.45 €33.55

29.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.46 A$30.53

$19.34 €17.33

10.96%

Cinema Ticket

$17.67 A$25.13

$17.03 €15.26

3.76%

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

$2,461 A$3,500

$519 €465

374.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$29.7K A$42.2K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$81.2 A$116

$91.4 €81.9

-11.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.28 A$70.1

$44.05 €39.47

11.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$120 A$170

$109 €98.0

9.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 A$186

$209 €188

-37.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,703 A$2,422

$848 €760

100.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,409 A$2,004

$673 €603

109.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,496 A$4,972

$1,384 €1,240

152.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,527 A$3,594

$1,040 €932

142.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,978 A$11.3K

$3,725 €3,338

114.17%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,900 A$9,814

$1,990 €1,783

246.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,257 A$6,055

$2,504 €2,244

70.02%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

4.1

43.90%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 26, 2026

Last update for Oulu: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.4%

Oulu

$673 35.8% 52.3% $736

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$386 13.6%

Oulu

$356 19% 7.9% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$321 11.3%

Oulu

$163 8.7% 49.3% $158

Eating Out

Melbourne

$312 11%

Oulu

$318 16.9% 1.8% $5.6

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$171 6%

Oulu

$204 10.9% 19.2% $33

Getting Around

Melbourne

$165 5.8%

Oulu

$93 4.9% 43.8% $72

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$84 2.9%

Oulu

$72 3.8% 14.6% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,703 in Melbourne and $848 in Oulu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 70% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $84 in Melbourne vs $90 in Oulu. Groceries flip the comparison at $386 vs $356, with Oulu cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇫🇮 Oulu

🕒 Local time

21:18 9:18 PM

12:18 12:18 PM

9 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

214,651

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.703 USD

1 AUD = 0.63 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 November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 AUD (1 AUD = 0.703 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 AUD (1 AUD = 0.63 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Melbourne Oulu 15,130 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
Oulu

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 Oulu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,849 in Melbourne and $1,878 in Oulu, so Oulu is about 34% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 70% 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: $1,703 in Melbourne versus $848 in Oulu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,461 in Melbourne versus $519 in Oulu. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 9% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

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 Oulu are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Oulu wins on affordability, Melbourne on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.