Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Ulan Ude

For one person, living is cheaper in Ulan Ude: $1,098 a month against $2,852 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $21,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

137

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
Learn more

Melbourne Living Index
53

Cost of Living Index in Ulan Ude
Learn more

Ulan Ude Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,852

/mo nomad

Ulan Ude

🇷🇺 Russia

$1,098

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Ulan Ude

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,852 in Melbourne versus $1,098 in Ulan Ude.

Melbourne $2,852
Ulan Ude $1,098

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,297 in Melbourne versus $1,685 in Ulan Ude.

Melbourne $4,297
Ulan Ude $1,685

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,742 in Melbourne versus $2,272 in Ulan Ude.

Melbourne $5,742
Ulan Ude $2,272

Living in Melbourne is roughly 160% more expensive than in Ulan Ude, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 113% above, Ulan Ude is 18% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.75 A$25.40

$6.81 ₽579

160.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.8 A$121

$46.65 ₽3,969

81.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.16 A$17.40

$6.95 ₽591

74.96%

Cappuccino

$3.93 A$5.62

$3.47 ₽296

13.26%

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

$3.14 A$4.49

$1.80 ₽154

74.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.43 A$3.47

$1.73 ₽147

40.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.90 A$14.17

$3.65 ₽310

171.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.29 A$11.86

$5.74 ₽488

44.43%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.55 A$2.21

$1.26 ₽107

23.02%

White Bread (500g)

$3.01 A$4.31

$0.84 ₽71.7

258.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.88 A$4.12

$0.45 ₽38.68

540.00%

Eggs

$5.44 A$7.79

$1.88 ₽160

189.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.59 A$15.16

$11.60 ₽987

-8.71%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.61 A$13.76

$5.90 ₽502

62.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.99 A$21.46

$10.40 ₽885

44.13%

Apples (1kg)

$4.15 A$5.94

$1.21 ₽103

242.98%

Banana (1kg)

$3.05 A$4.37

$1.79 ₽152

70.39%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.30 A$4.72

$1.17 ₽99.3

182.05%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.76 A$6.81

$2.32 ₽198

105.17%

Potato (1kg)

$3.04 A$4.34

$0.58 ₽48.94

424.14%

Onion (1kg)

$2.55 A$3.65

$0.84 ₽71.5

203.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.48 A$3.55

$3.47 ₽295

-28.53%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.33

$0.73 ₽62.0

123.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.1

$2.85 ₽243

1446.32%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.43 A$17.79

$8.17 ₽695

52.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.33 A$7.63

$0.58 ₽49.24

818.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.16 A$7.38

$1.19 ₽101

333.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.84 A$5.50

$0.46 ₽38.80

734.78%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$142 A$203

$23.18 ₽1,972

510.44%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.40 A$6.29

$1.21 ₽103

263.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.40 A$2.01

$0.17 ₽14.61

723.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.83 A$42.69

$7.10 ₽605

320.14%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.46 A$2.09

$0.78 ₽66.1

87.18%

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

$28.1K A$40.3K

$47.6K ₽4.0M

-40.86%

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

$25.9K A$37.1K

$35.1K ₽3.0M

-26.03%

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

$233 A$333

$118 ₽10.1K

96.58%

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

$27.28 A$39.04

$3.50 ₽298

679.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$57.0 A$81.6

$8.20 ₽698

595.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.7 A$75.4

$23.55 ₽2,004

123.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.62 A$32.37

$48.08 ₽4,091

-52.95%

Cinema Ticket

$17.10 A$24.48

$6.87 ₽585

148.91%

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

$2,373 A$3,397

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.5K A$43.6K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.2 A$112

$70.4 ₽5,992

11.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.5 A$72.2

$29.41 ₽2,503

71.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$172

$117 ₽9,919

3.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 A$191

$119 ₽10.1K

11.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,713 A$2,451

$501 ₽42.6K

242.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,402 A$2,006

$371 ₽31.5K

278.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,339 A$4,778

$773 ₽65.7K

332.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,529 A$3,619

$580 ₽49.3K

336.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,018 A$10.0K

$1,977 ₽168.2K

254.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,767 A$9,685

$1,538 ₽130.9K

340.06%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,228 A$6,051

$884 ₽75.2K

378.36%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

21.67

-72.77%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 6, 2026

Last update for Ulan Ude: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Ulan Ude

$371 34.2% 73.5% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$385 13.5%

Ulan Ude

$207 19.1% 46.4% $179

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.1%

Ulan Ude

$130 12% 59% $187

Eating Out

Melbourne

$314 11%

Ulan Ude

$161 14.8% 48.8% $153

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Ulan Ude

$151 13.9% 12.3% $21

Getting Around

Melbourne

$168 5.9%

Ulan Ude

$27 2.5% 83.9% $141

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$87 3.1%

Ulan Ude

$37 3.4% 57.1% $50

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,713 in Melbourne and $501 in Ulan Ude. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 378% 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 $47.00 in Ulan Ude for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $385 vs $207 per month, with Ulan Ude cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇷🇺 Ulan Ude

🕒 Local time

16:48 4:48 PM

13:48 1:48 PM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

436,138

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Russian Ruble RUB ₽

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.699 USD

1 AUD = 0.623 EUR

100 RUB = 1.18 USD

100 RUB = 1.05 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RUB, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.699 USD). 1 EUR = 1.61 AUD (1 AUD = 0.623 EUR).

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 85.09 RUB (100 RUB = 1.18 USD). 1 EUR = 95.44 RUB (100 RUB = 1.05 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Melbourne Ulan Ude 10,610 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
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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 Ulan Ude: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Ulan Ude differ by about 160% in total monthly costs ($2,852 vs $1,098 including rent). Ulan Ude is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 378% 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: $1,713 in Melbourne versus $501 in Ulan Ude. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 86% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,852 per month in Melbourne versus $1,098 in Ulan Ude – a 160% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,098 in Ulan Ude versus $2,852 in Melbourne, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Ulan Ude but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Ulan Ude 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 Ulan Ude 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 Ulan Ude gentler on the wallet – expenses run 160% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.