Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Pakenham and Taipei

For one person, living is cheaper in Taipei: $1,368 a month against $2,532 in Pakenham, rent and utilities included – about $14,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

124

Cost of Living Index in Pakenham
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Pakenham Living Index
67

Cost of Living Index in Taipei
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Taipei Living Index

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Pakenham

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,532

/mo nomad

Taipei

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,368

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Pakenham and in Taipei

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Pakenham and in Taipei actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,532 in Pakenham versus $1,368 in Taipei.

Pakenham $2,532
Taipei $1,368

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,680 in Pakenham versus $2,202 in Taipei.

Pakenham $3,680
Taipei $2,202

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,828 in Pakenham versus $3,036 in Taipei.

Pakenham $4,828
Taipei $3,036

Living in Pakenham is roughly 85% more expensive than in Taipei, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Pakenham 88% above, Taipei 1% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.31 A$24.91

$4.60 NT$149

276.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$82.6 A$119

$47.13 NT$1,528

75.24%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.18 A$17.53

$5.58 NT$181

118.28%

Cappuccino

$4.08 A$5.88

$3.45 NT$112

18.26%

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

$3.04 A$4.38

$0.94 NT$30.61

223.40%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.43 A$3.50

$0.67 NT$21.73

262.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.90 A$14.25

$2.86 NT$92.7

246.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.24 A$11.86

$3.70 NT$120

122.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 A$1.71

$3.12 NT$101

-61.86%

White Bread (500g)

$2.89 A$4.15

$1.97 NT$64.0

46.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.53 A$3.64

$3.16 NT$103

-19.94%

Eggs

$5.53 A$7.95

$2.68 NT$86.9

106.34%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.47 A$12.19

$19.90 NT$645

-57.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.01 A$14.41

$9.85 NT$319

1.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.17 A$21.83

$21.51 NT$698

-29.47%

Apples (1kg)

$4.13 A$5.95

$4.85 NT$157

-14.85%

Banana (1kg)

$2.55 A$3.68

$3.25 NT$105

-21.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.12 A$4.49

$3.03 NT$98.2

2.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.62 A$6.64

$4.53 NT$147

1.99%

Potato (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.46

$2.79 NT$90.4

11.11%

Onion (1kg)

$2.55 A$3.67

$2.34 NT$75.9

8.97%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.44 A$3.51

$1.68 NT$54.5

45.24%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.56 A$2.24

$1.10 NT$35.62

41.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$25.12 A$36.14

$3.80 NT$123

561.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.46 A$17.94

$14.17 NT$460

-12.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.76 A$8.29

$1.63 NT$53.0

253.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.16 A$7.42

$2.29 NT$74.3

125.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.57 A$3.70

$0.65 NT$21.04

295.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$87.0 A$125

$37.88 NT$1,228

129.75%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.49

$2.68 NT$86.8

68.28%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.95

$0.82 NT$26.55

65.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.83 A$42.93

$9.17 NT$297

225.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.41 A$2.02

$1.02 NT$32.93

38.24%

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

$29.0K A$41.8K

$32.8K NT$1.1M

-11.55%

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

$26.1K A$37.5K

$24.5K NT$795.1K

6.40%

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

$235 A$339

$87.7 NT$2,843

168.41%

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

$27.39 A$39.41

$17.28 NT$560

58.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.6 A$80.0

$27.38 NT$888

102.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.14 A$70.7

$40.32 NT$1,308

21.88%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.99 A$25.89

$15.94 NT$517

12.86%

Cinema Ticket

$15.60 A$22.45

$9.83 NT$319

58.70%

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

$2,334 A$3,358

$663 NT$21.5K

252.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$29.4K A$42.3K

$16.6K NT$538.4K

77.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$81.6 A$117

$62.4 NT$2,025

30.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.61 A$71.4

$39.51 NT$1,281

25.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$120 A$173

$84.5 NT$2,740

42.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 A$193

$106 NT$3,424

26.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,420 A$2,044

$999 NT$32.4K

42.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,166 A$1,678

$473 NT$15.3K

146.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,832 A$2,637

$1,565 NT$50.8K

17.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,824 A$2,625

$948 NT$30.7K

92.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,126 A$7,377

$11.9K NT$385.6K

-56.89%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,496 A$7,909

$7,306 NT$236.9K

-24.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,760 NT$57.1K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

2.4

145.83%

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

Last update for Pakenham: October 11, 2026

Last update for Taipei: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Pakenham

$1.2K 46.1%

Taipei

$473 34.6% 59.4% $693

Groceries & Markets

Pakenham

$372 14.7%

Taipei

$400 29.3% 7.5% $28

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Pakenham

$318 12.6%

Taipei

$132 9.7% 58.4% $186

Eating Out

Pakenham

$312 12.3%

Taipei

$123 9% 60.5% $189

Clothing & Footwear

Pakenham

$174 6.9%

Taipei

$131 9.6% 24.3% $42

Getting Around

Pakenham

$109 4.3%

Taipei

$47 3.5% 56.5% $61

Sport & Entertainment

Pakenham

$80 3.2%

Taipei

$60 4.4% 25.3% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,420 in Pakenham and $999 in Taipei. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $83.0 in Pakenham vs $47.00 in Taipei. Groceries flip the comparison at $372 vs $400, with Pakenham cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Pakenham

🇹🇼 Taipei

🕒 Local time

07:58 7:58 AM

04:58 4:58 AM

3 h behind Pakenham

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

54,118

2,635,286 Capital

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

100 TWD = 3.08 USD

100 TWD = 2.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TWD, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 32.43 TWD (100 TWD = 3.08 USD). 1 EUR = 36.46 TWD (100 TWD = 2.74 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

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Between locations

Pakenham Taipei 7,450 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Pakenham
Taipei

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

Pakenham vs Taipei: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Taipei wins on cost – living expenses run 85% lower than in Pakenham. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Taipei the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $3,797 in Pakenham and $2,052 in Taipei to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,420 in Pakenham versus $999 in Taipei. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,334 in Pakenham versus $663 in Taipei. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Pakenham pay roughly 7% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,368 in Taipei versus $2,532 in Pakenham, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Taipei but tight or insufficient in Pakenham. The gap between the two cities makes Taipei 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, Pakenham and Taipei 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 Taipei gentler on the wallet – expenses run 85% less than in Pakenham. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.