Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Sapporo

For one person, living is cheaper in Sapporo: $1,404 a month against $2,853 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $17,400 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
68

Cost of Living Index in Sapporo
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Sapporo Living Index

Jump to prices

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,853

/mo nomad

Sapporo

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,404

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Sapporo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,853 in Melbourne versus $1,404 in Sapporo.

Melbourne $2,853
Sapporo $1,404

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,275 in Melbourne versus $2,097 in Sapporo.

Melbourne $4,275
Sapporo $2,097

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,697 in Melbourne versus $2,791 in Sapporo.

Melbourne $5,697
Sapporo $2,791

Living in Melbourne is roughly 103% more expensive than in Sapporo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Melbourne 111% above, Sapporo 4% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.20 A$24.75

$6.20 ¥980

177.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$83.1 A$120

$28.04 ¥4,430

196.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.43 A$17.88

$5.30 ¥837

134.53%

Cappuccino

$4.05 A$5.82

$4.85 ¥767

-16.49%

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

$3.12 A$4.50

$1.65 ¥261

89.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.46 A$3.54

$0.88 ¥139

179.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.52 A$13.71

$4.38 ¥693

117.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.16 A$11.74

$5.62 ¥889

45.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 A$2.25

$1.55 ¥244

0.65%

White Bread (500g)

$2.90 A$4.18

$1.35 ¥213

114.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$3.91 ¥618

-31.97%

Eggs

$5.37 A$7.72

$1.76 ¥279

205.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.67 A$15.36

$9.42 ¥1,489

13.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.85 A$14.17

$6.76 ¥1,068

45.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.36 A$22.11

$25.61 ¥4,046

-40.02%

Apples (1kg)

$4.17 A$6.00

$3.19 ¥504

30.72%

Banana (1kg)

$3.15 A$4.53

$3.12 ¥494

0.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.26 A$4.69

$3.20 ¥506

1.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.76 A$6.85

$4.19 ¥663

13.60%

Potato (1kg)

$3.06 A$4.41

$2.09 ¥331

46.41%

Onion (1kg)

$2.47 A$3.55

$1.74 ¥275

41.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.45 A$3.52

$1.49 ¥235

64.43%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.45 ¥70.8

262.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$45.17 A$65.0

$4.00 ¥633

1029.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.68 A$18.25

$8.19 ¥1,293

54.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.69 A$8.18

$1.92 ¥303

196.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.53

$3.17 ¥501

64.98%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.87 A$5.57

$1.60 ¥253

141.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$142 A$204

$48.16 ¥7,609

194.77%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.54 A$6.53

$4.02 ¥635

12.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.42 A$2.04

$1.63 ¥257

-12.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.59 A$44.01

$16.05 ¥2,536

90.59%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.11

$1.11 ¥175

32.43%

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

$28.9K A$41.5K

$21.8K ¥3.4M

32.62%

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

$25.9K A$37.3K

$14.5K ¥2.3M

78.99%

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

$235 A$338

$336 ¥53.0K

-29.98%

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

$27.45 A$39.51

$25.59 ¥4,042

7.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$56.1 A$80.8

$47.75 ¥7,544

17.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.1 A$72.1

$48.58 ¥7,674

3.13%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.49 A$30.93

$3.22 ¥509

567.39%

Cinema Ticket

$17.76 A$25.56

$12.12 ¥1,915

46.53%

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

$2,385 A$3,432

$319 ¥50.4K

648.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$29.7K A$42.7K

$9,987 ¥1.6M

196.98%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$79.2 A$114

$37.38 ¥5,905

111.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.49 A$71.2

$25.18 ¥3,978

96.54%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 A$170

$47.33 ¥7,478

150.20%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$132 A$190

$114 ¥18.0K

15.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,763 A$2,537

$453 ¥71.6K

289.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,411 A$2,031

$275 ¥43.4K

413.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,522 A$5,069

$824 ¥130.2K

327.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,525 A$3,634

$641 ¥101.3K

293.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,136 A$10.3K

$2,168 ¥342.5K

229.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,355 A$9,144

$1,559 ¥246.4K

307.48%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,258 A$6,128

$2,233 ¥352.9K

90.66%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

2.57

129.57%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 17, 2026

Last update for Sapporo: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.5%

Sapporo

$275 19.6% 80.5% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$388 13.6%

Sapporo

$312 22.3% 19.6% $76

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$319 11.2%

Sapporo

$409 29.2% 28.4% $90

Eating Out

Melbourne

$310 10.9%

Sapporo

$167 11.9% 46.1% $143

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$171 6%

Sapporo

$101 7.2% 41% $70

Getting Around

Melbourne

$169 5.9%

Sapporo

$67 4.8% 60.5% $102

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$86 3%

Sapporo

$73 5.2% 15% $13

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,763 in Melbourne and $453 in Sapporo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 91% 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: $83.0 in Melbourne vs $28.00 in Sapporo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $388 vs $312 per month, with Sapporo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇯🇵 Sapporo

🕒 Local time

05:26 5:26 AM

03:26 3:26 AM

2 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

1,973,395

💱 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 →

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Between locations

Melbourne Sapporo 9,000 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
Sapporo

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 Sapporo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Sapporo differ by about 103% in total monthly costs ($2,853 vs $1,404 including rent). Sapporo is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 91% 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: $1,763 in Melbourne versus $453 in Sapporo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,385 in Melbourne versus $319 in Sapporo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 24% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,404 in Sapporo versus $2,853 in Melbourne, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Sapporo but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Sapporo 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 Sapporo 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 Sapporo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 103% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.