Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Papua New Guinea and Kuala Lumpur

For one person, living is cheaper in Kuala Lumpur: $1,067 a month against $1,325 in Papua New Guinea, rent and utilities included – about $3,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

65

Cost of Living Index in Papua New Guinea
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Papua New Guinea Living Index
53

Cost of Living Index in Kuala Lumpur
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Kuala Lumpur Living Index

Jump to prices

🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea

$1,325

/mo nomad

Kuala Lumpur

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$1,067

/mo nomad

😐 Solo nomad: Papua New Guinea is 24.9% more expensive than Kuala Lumpur without rent, and 24.2% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Papua New Guinea is 22.5% more expensive than Kuala Lumpur without rent, and 34.2% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.14 PGK 31.29

$4.80 MYR 19.60

48.75%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.69 PGK 196

$28.82 MYR 118

55.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 PGK 24.32

$5.00 MYR 20.40

11.00%

Cappuccino

$2.34 PGK 10.24

$3.05 MYR 12.47

-23.28%

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

$0.76 PGK 3.33

$0.85 MYR 3.46

-10.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.65 PGK 2.86

$0.45 MYR 1.84

44.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.62 PGK 11.47

$4.51 MYR 18.41

-41.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.86 PGK 16.90

$6.00 MYR 24.50

-35.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 PGK 8.43

$2.11 MYR 8.63

-9.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.53 PGK 6.73

$1.08 MYR 4.40

41.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.36 PGK 5.96

$2.02 MYR 8.24

-32.67%

Eggs

$3.81 PGK 16.69

$2.55 MYR 10.40

49.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.27 PGK 27.49

$13.85 MYR 56.6

-54.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.00 PGK 26.29

$4.39 MYR 17.91

36.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.33 PGK 40.88

$9.66 MYR 39.46

-3.42%

Apples (1kg)

$4.01 PGK 17.56

$3.47 MYR 14.16

15.56%

Banana (1kg)

$3.35 PGK 14.69

$1.77 MYR 7.23

89.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.17 PGK 27.05

$2.25 MYR 9.21

174.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.13 PGK 22.47

$1.55 MYR 6.34

230.97%

Potato (1kg)

$3.65 PGK 16.00

$1.33 MYR 5.43

174.44%

Onion (1kg)

$2.74 PGK 12.03

$1.38 MYR 5.64

98.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.00 PGK 8.77

$1.17 MYR 4.79

70.94%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 PGK 4.97

$0.67 MYR 2.73

70.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.37 PGK 27.94

$4.38 MYR 17.87

45.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.54 PGK 46.21

$18.87 MYR 77.1

-44.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.58 PGK 11.29

$3.62 MYR 14.78

-28.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 PGK 16.03

$5.06 MYR 20.64

-27.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.43 PGK 1.87

$0.72 MYR 2.92

-40.28%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.43 PGK 111

$12.46 MYR 50.9

104.09%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.95 PGK 21.70

$1.25 MYR 5.11

296.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.23 PGK 9.78

$1.24 MYR 5.05

79.84%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$14.19 PGK 62.2

$4.82 MYR 19.68

194.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.95 PGK 4.15

$0.86 MYR 3.52

10.47%

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

$28.7K PGK 125.6K

$41.4K MYR 168.8K

-30.67%

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

$22.7K PGK 99.6K

$34.6K MYR 141.1K

-34.26%

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

$93.1 PGK 408

$61.5 MYR 251

51.42%

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

$27.52 PGK 121

$8.60 MYR 35.12

220.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$116 PGK 506

$26.25 MYR 107

340.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.5 PGK 278

$49.06 MYR 200

29.43%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.15 PGK 106

$7.69 MYR 31.39

214.04%

Cinema Ticket

$8.99 PGK 39.42

$4.95 MYR 20.23

81.62%

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

$526 PGK 2,307

$295 MYR 1,204

78.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,532 PGK 24.2K

$13.2K MYR 54.0K

-58.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$35.26 PGK 155

$72.6 MYR 296

-51.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.74 PGK 135

$41.57 MYR 170

-26.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$69.0 PGK 302

$85.7 MYR 350

-19.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$92.3 PGK 404

$95.2 MYR 389

-3.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,597 PGK 6,998

$625 MYR 2,553

155.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$444 PGK 1,946

$378 MYR 1,545

17.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,846 PGK 12.5K

$1,177 MYR 4,806

141.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 PGK 4,525

$639 MYR 2,608

61.67%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,005 PGK 8,789

$4,112 MYR 16.8K

-51.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,785 PGK 16.6K

$1,504 MYR 6,141

151.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$418 PGK 1,833

$1,491 MYR 6,088

-71.95%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.67

4.18

227.03%

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

Last update for Papua New Guinea: October 3, 2026

Last update for Kuala Lumpur: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Papua New Guinea

$444 33.2%

Kuala Lumpur

$378 34.7% 14.8% $66

Groceries & Markets

Papua New Guinea

$302 22.6%

Kuala Lumpur

$273 25% 9.6% $29

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Papua New Guinea

$236 17.7%

Kuala Lumpur

$96 8.8% 59.2% $140

Eating Out

Papua New Guinea

$128 9.6%

Kuala Lumpur

$130 11.9% 1.2% $1.5

Clothing & Footwear

Papua New Guinea

$102 7.7%

Kuala Lumpur

$133 12.2% 29.8% $31

Sport & Entertainment

Papua New Guinea

$81 6.1%

Kuala Lumpur

$59 5.4% 27.6% $23

Getting Around

Papua New Guinea

$43 3.2%

Kuala Lumpur

$23 2.1% 47.4% $20

Good to know

🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea

🇲🇾 Kuala Lumpur

🕒 Local time

22:07 10:07 PM

20:07 8:07 PM

2 h behind Papua New Guinea

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,935,000

1,982,112 Capital

💱 Currency

Papua New Guinean Kina PGK K

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

1 PGK = 0.228 USD

1 PGK = 0.204 EUR

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.219 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MYR, USD, EUR to PGK – Papua New Guinean Kina Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇬 Papua New Guinean Kina (K)

Papua New Guinean Kina exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.38 PGK (1 PGK = 0.228 USD). 1 EUR = 4.91 PGK (1 PGK = 0.204 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.58 MYR (1 MYR = 0.219 EUR).

USD to PGK in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Papua New Guinea Kuala Lumpur 5,230 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Papua New Guinea
Kuala Lumpur

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

Papua New Guinea vs other spots: cost of living compared

Cost of Living Comparison Between Papua New Guinea and Kuala Lumpur

MYR, USD, EUR to PGK – Papua New Guinean Kina Converter

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

Papua New Guinea

Kuala Lumpur

Papua New Guinea

Kuala Lumpur

Papua New Guinea vs other spots: cost of living compared

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