Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Tsukuba

For one person, living is cheaper in Tsukuba: $1,104 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $20,600 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
54

Cost of Living Index in Tsukuba
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Tsukuba Living Index

Jump to prices

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Tsukuba

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,104

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Tsukuba

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $1,104 in Tsukuba.

Melbourne $2,821
Tsukuba $1,104

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $1,754 in Tsukuba.

Melbourne $4,235
Tsukuba $1,754

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $2,404 in Tsukuba.

Melbourne $5,650
Tsukuba $2,404

Living in Melbourne is roughly 155% more expensive than in Tsukuba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 109% above, Tsukuba is 18% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$25.08

$6.48 ¥1,024

168.98%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$122

$33.35 ¥5,269

153.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.92

$5.01 ¥791

148.70%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.91

$2.74 ¥433

50.00%

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

$3.06 A$4.40

$1.03 ¥162

197.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.62

$0.74 ¥118

240.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.10

$2.19 ¥347

347.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.33

$3.21 ¥506

166.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.14

$1.45 ¥229

2.07%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$1.67 ¥264

76.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$3.09 ¥488

-13.92%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.97

$2.09 ¥330

165.07%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.13

$10.21 ¥1,614

2.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.89

$6.03 ¥952

60.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.91

$14.35 ¥2,267

6.06%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.75

$5.83 ¥921

-31.56%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.34

$2.82 ¥445

7.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.46

$2.80 ¥443

10.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.93

$4.12 ¥650

16.99%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.36

$2.63 ¥416

15.21%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.52

$2.56 ¥405

-4.69%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.54

$0.85 ¥134

189.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.81 ¥128

101.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.4

$3.76 ¥594

1072.07%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.28

$6.16 ¥973

106.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.97

$1.80 ¥284

207.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.52

$2.11 ¥333

147.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.38

$1.45 ¥230

157.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

$52.8 ¥8,337

160.60%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.50

$3.18 ¥502

41.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.96

$2.70 ¥426

-49.63%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.81

$20.78 ¥3,282

46.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.12

$1.05 ¥166

40.00%

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

$29.0K A$41.7K

$21.6K ¥3.4M

34.04%

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

$26.5K A$38.1K

$18.5K ¥2.9M

43.23%

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

$234 A$336

$129 ¥20.4K

80.53%

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

$27.93 A$40.19

$24.48 ¥3,868

14.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$80.2

$32.65 ¥5,158

70.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$71.1

$53.6 ¥8,472

-7.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.72

$12.38 ¥1,955

21.89%

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

$2,371 A$3,412

$94.2 ¥14.9K

2418.59%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.5K

$14.8K ¥2.3M

104.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$46.72 ¥7,382

71.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$73.0

$37.27 ¥5,888

36.03%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$174

$38.06 ¥6,013

216.89%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$188

$41.11 ¥6,495

217.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,531

$466 ¥73.6K

277.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$2,000

$281 ¥44.4K

394.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,027

$1,081 ¥170.7K

223.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,588

$629 ¥99.4K

296.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

$4,648 ¥734.4K

49.01%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

$1,980 ¥312.8K

225.49%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

$1,449 ¥228.8K

202.56%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

195.00%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Tsukuba: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Tsukuba

$281 25.4% 79.8% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Tsukuba

$285 25.8% 25.7% $99

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Tsukuba

$187 16.9% 41.2% $131

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Tsukuba

$124 11.3% 60.5% $190

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Tsukuba

$73 6.7% 57.2% $98

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Tsukuba

$75 6.8% 54.1% $89

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Tsukuba

$78 7.1% 1.5% $1.2

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,759 in Melbourne and $466 in Tsukuba. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 203% 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 $33.00 in Tsukuba for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $285 per month, with Tsukuba cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇯🇵 Tsukuba

🕒 Local time

02:54 2:54 AM

00:54 12:54 AM

2 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

230,398

💱 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 18, 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 18, 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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Melbourne Tsukuba 8,230 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

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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 Tsukuba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Tsukuba differ by about 155% in total monthly costs ($2,821 vs $1,104 including rent). Tsukuba is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 203% 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 $466 in Tsukuba. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,371 in Melbourne versus $94.2 in Tsukuba. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 35% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,104 in Tsukuba versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Tsukuba but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Tsukuba 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 Tsukuba 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 Tsukuba gentler on the wallet – expenses run 155% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.