Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Subang Jaya

For one person, living is cheaper in Subang Jaya: $951 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $22,400 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
46

Cost of Living Index in Subang Jaya
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Subang Jaya Living Index

Jump to prices

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Subang Jaya

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$951

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Subang Jaya

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $951 in Subang Jaya.

Melbourne $2,821
Subang Jaya $951

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $1,448 in Subang Jaya.

Melbourne $4,235
Subang Jaya $1,448

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $1,945 in Subang Jaya.

Melbourne $5,650
Subang Jaya $1,945

Living in Melbourne is roughly 197% more expensive than in Subang Jaya, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 109% above, Subang Jaya is 30% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$25.08

$3.58 MYR 14.61

386.87%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$122

$19.71 MYR 80.4

328.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.92

$4.56 MYR 18.60

173.25%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.91

$3.03 MYR 12.37

35.64%

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

$3.06 A$4.40

$0.77 MYR 3.14

297.40%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.62

$0.40 MYR 1.63

530.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.10

$4.11 MYR 16.76

138.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.33

$4.53 MYR 18.47

89.18%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.14

$1.85 MYR 7.55

-20.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$1.04 MYR 4.26

182.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$1.68 MYR 6.85

58.33%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.97

$2.24 MYR 9.15

147.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.13

$13.42 MYR 54.7

-21.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.89

$4.54 MYR 18.53

112.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.91

$8.45 MYR 34.46

80.12%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.75

$3.06 MYR 12.48

30.39%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.34

$1.78 MYR 7.28

69.66%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.46

$2.27 MYR 9.24

36.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.93

$1.40 MYR 5.70

244.29%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.36

$1.11 MYR 4.52

172.97%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.52

$1.12 MYR 4.58

117.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.54

$1.09 MYR 4.46

125.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.54 MYR 2.19

201.85%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.4

$4.42 MYR 18.05

897.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.28

$18.72 MYR 76.4

-32.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.97

$3.01 MYR 12.28

84.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.52

$4.90 MYR 20.00

6.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.38

$0.84 MYR 3.42

345.24%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

$12.39 MYR 50.6

1009.93%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.50

$1.21 MYR 4.92

272.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.96

$0.40 MYR 1.64

240.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.81

$4.77 MYR 19.44

538.36%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.12

$0.88 MYR 3.57

67.05%

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

$29.0K A$41.7K

$42.4K MYR 172.8K

-31.54%

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

$26.5K A$38.1K

$34.9K MYR 142.3K

-24.11%

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

$234 A$336

$36.42 MYR 149

541.63%

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

$27.93 A$40.19

$9.61 MYR 39.20

190.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$80.2

$29.25 MYR 119

90.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$71.1

$24.81 MYR 101

99.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

$2.41 MYR 9.85

791.29%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.72

$5.04 MYR 20.56

199.40%

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

$2,371 A$3,412

$296 MYR 1,209

700.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.5K

$10.7K MYR 43.7K

181.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$59.5 MYR 243

34.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$73.0

$34.85 MYR 142

45.48%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$174

$86.0 MYR 351

40.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$188

$70.6 MYR 288

84.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,531

$566 MYR 2,308

210.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$2,000

$342 MYR 1,394

306.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,027

$714 MYR 2,914

389.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,588

$620 MYR 2,529

302.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

$2,360 MYR 9,629

193.43%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

$1,857 MYR 7,574

247.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

$918 MYR 3,747

377.21%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

4.04

46.04%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Subang Jaya: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Subang Jaya

$342 36% 75.4% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Subang Jaya

$254 26.7% 33.9% $130

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Subang Jaya

$75 7.9% 76.3% $242

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Subang Jaya

$113 11.9% 64.1% $202

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Subang Jaya

$113 11.9% 34.2% $59

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Subang Jaya

$19 2% 88.4% $145

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Subang Jaya

$35 3.7% 56.2% $45

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,759 in Melbourne and $566 in Subang Jaya. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 377% 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 $20.00 in Subang Jaya for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $254 per month, with Subang Jaya cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇲🇾 Subang Jaya

🕒 Local time

02:58 2:58 AM

23:58 11:58 PM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

902,086

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.218 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MYR, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.59 MYR (1 MYR = 0.218 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

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Melbourne Subang Jaya 6,370 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

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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 Subang Jaya: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Subang Jaya differ by about 197% in total monthly costs ($2,821 vs $951 including rent). Subang Jaya is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 377% 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 $566 in Subang Jaya. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,371 in Melbourne versus $296 in Subang Jaya. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 51% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $951 in Subang Jaya versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Subang Jaya but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Subang Jaya 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 Subang Jaya 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 Subang Jaya gentler on the wallet – expenses run 197% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.