Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Tsu

For one person, living is cheaper in Tsu: $1,269 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $18,600 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
62

Cost of Living Index in Tsu
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Tsu Living Index

Jump to prices

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Tsu

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,269

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Tsu

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $1,269 in Tsu.

Melbourne $2,821
Tsu $1,269

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $1,979 in Tsu.

Melbourne $4,235
Tsu $1,979

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $2,688 in Tsu.

Melbourne $5,650
Tsu $2,688

Living in Melbourne is roughly 122% more expensive than in Tsu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 109% above, Tsu is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$25.08

$6.48 ¥1,023

168.98%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$122

$17.81 ¥2,814

374.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.92

$3.84 ¥606

224.48%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.91

$2.34 ¥370

75.64%

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

$3.06 A$4.40

$1.19 ¥188

157.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.62

$0.63 ¥98.8

300.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.10

$2.00 ¥317

390.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.33

$2.34 ¥369

266.24%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.14

$1.51 ¥238

-1.99%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$1.26 ¥199

133.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$5.42 ¥856

-50.92%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.97

$1.99 ¥315

178.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.13

$12.71 ¥2,008

-17.31%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.89

$9.73 ¥1,537

-0.82%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.91

$32.13 ¥5,076

-52.63%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.75

$3.78 ¥596

5.56%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.34

$2.28 ¥361

32.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.46

$6.23 ¥985

-50.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.93

$4.19 ¥661

15.04%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.36

$3.86 ¥610

-21.50%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.52

$3.53 ¥558

-30.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.54

$1.28 ¥202

92.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$1.01 ¥159

61.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.4

$3.52 ¥557

1151.99%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.28

$8.02 ¥1,266

58.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.97

$2.03 ¥321

172.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.52

$1.45 ¥230

260.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.38

$1.50 ¥236

149.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

$52.4 ¥8,283

162.29%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.50

$3.17 ¥502

42.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.96

$3.08 ¥486

-55.84%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.81

$26.27 ¥4,151

15.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.12

$1.07 ¥169

37.38%

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

$29.0K A$41.7K

$19.0K ¥3.0M

52.86%

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

$26.5K A$38.1K

$16.3K ¥2.6M

62.39%

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

$234 A$336

$147 ¥23.3K

58.55%

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

$27.93 A$40.19

$24.31 ¥3,840

14.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$80.2

$43.93 ¥6,940

26.88%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$71.1

$51.9 ¥8,195

-4.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

$12.83 ¥2,028

67.42%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.72

$8.17 ¥1,290

84.70%

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

$2,371 A$3,412

$318 ¥50.3K

645.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.5K

$6,203 ¥980.0K

386.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$49.88 ¥7,880

60.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$73.0

$24.95 ¥3,941

103.21%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$174

$44.99 ¥7,108

168.08%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$188

$66.1 ¥10.4K

97.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,531

$521 ¥82.4K

237.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$2,000

$327 ¥51.7K

324.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,027

$1,113 ¥175.9K

213.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,588

$726 ¥114.7K

243.52%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

$4,165 ¥658.0K

66.30%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

$1,745 ¥275.8K

269.23%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

$1,509 ¥238.4K

190.45%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

1.9

210.53%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Tsu: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Tsu

$327 25.8% 76.5% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Tsu

$384 30.2% 0% $0.1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Tsu

$216 17% 32.1% $102

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Tsu

$113 8.9% 64% $201

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Tsu

$84 6.6% 51.3% $88

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Tsu

$77 6.1% 53% $87

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Tsu

$68 5.4% 14.3% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,759 in Melbourne and $521 in Tsu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 190% 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 $18.00 in Tsu. Groceries flip the comparison at $384 vs $384, with Melbourne cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇯🇵 Tsu

🕒 Local time

19:25 7:25 PM

17:25 5:25 PM

2 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

279,241

💱 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

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Between locations

Melbourne Tsu 8,110 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
Tsu

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 Tsu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Tsu differ by about 122% in total monthly costs ($2,821 vs $1,269 including rent). Tsu is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 190% 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 $521 in Tsu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,371 in Melbourne versus $318 in Tsu. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 0% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,269 in Tsu versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Tsu but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Tsu 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 Tsu 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 Tsu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 122% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.