Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Petaling Jaya and Kedah

For one person, living is cheaper in Kedah: $917 a month against $1,094 in Petaling Jaya, rent and utilities included – about $2,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

52

Cost of Living Index in Petaling Jaya
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Petaling Jaya Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Kedah
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Kedah Living Index

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Petaling Jaya

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$1,094

/mo nomad

Kedah

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$917

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Petaling Jaya and in Kedah

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,094 in Petaling Jaya versus $917 in Kedah.

Petaling Jaya $1,094
Kedah $917

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,589 in Petaling Jaya versus $1,398 in Kedah.

Petaling Jaya $1,589
Kedah $1,398

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,083 in Petaling Jaya versus $1,878 in Kedah.

Petaling Jaya $2,083
Kedah $1,878

Living in Petaling Jaya is roughly 19% more expensive than in Kedah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities sit below the global median: Petaling Jaya 19% lower, Kedah 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.64 MYR 14.72

$3.58 MYR 14.50

1.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.78 MYR 100

$12.05 MYR 48.75

105.64%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.00 MYR 20.21

$4.55 MYR 18.38

9.89%

Cappuccino

$3.02 MYR 12.22

$3.02 MYR 12.21

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

$0.85 MYR 3.44

$0.77 MYR 3.11

10.39%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.45 MYR 1.80

$0.37 MYR 1.48

21.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 MYR 13.25

$4.22 MYR 17.08

-22.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.71 MYR 23.11

$4.47 MYR 18.07

27.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 MYR 7.89

$1.86 MYR 7.50

4.84%

White Bread (500g)

$1.07 MYR 4.35

$1.05 MYR 4.24

1.90%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.43 MYR 5.77

$1.69 MYR 6.82

-15.38%

Eggs

$1.85 MYR 7.47

$2.26 MYR 9.13

-18.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.87 MYR 39.90

$13.81 MYR 55.9

-28.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.33 MYR 13.47

$4.28 MYR 17.33

-22.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.80 MYR 39.64

$8.53 MYR 34.49

14.89%

Apples (1kg)

$3.59 MYR 14.52

$2.92 MYR 11.80

22.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.91 MYR 7.73

$1.70 MYR 6.87

12.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.63 MYR 10.65

$2.73 MYR 11.03

-3.66%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.74 MYR 7.04

$1.39 MYR 5.63

25.18%

Potato (1kg)

$2.14 MYR 8.67

$1.10 MYR 4.43

94.55%

Onion (1kg)

$2.04 MYR 8.27

$1.08 MYR 4.35

88.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 MYR 5.82

$1.14 MYR 4.62

26.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 MYR 2.13

$0.57 MYR 2.31

-7.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.50 MYR 18.20

$4.46 MYR 18.04

0.90%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.01 MYR 80.9

$19.31 MYR 78.1

3.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.67 MYR 10.80

$2.92 MYR 11.82

-8.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.49 MYR 18.17

$5.14 MYR 20.80

-12.65%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.22 MYR 4.91

$0.74 MYR 3.00

64.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.31 MYR 49.79

$12.42 MYR 50.2

-0.89%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.02 MYR 4.13

$1.70 MYR 6.86

-40.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.35 MYR 1.43

$0.38 MYR 1.54

-7.89%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.04 MYR 36.55

$7.49 MYR 30.27

20.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.82 MYR 3.33

$0.59 MYR 2.39

38.98%

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

$45.1K MYR 182.4K

$45.5K MYR 183.9K

-0.81%

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

$35.0K MYR 141.7K

$35.7K MYR 144.4K

-1.89%

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

$50.3 MYR 203

$37.03 MYR 150

35.70%

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

$7.57 MYR 30.63

$9.66 MYR 39.05

-21.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.54 MYR 107

$28.92 MYR 117

-8.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$47.38 MYR 192

$36.68 MYR 148

29.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.12 MYR 12.62

$6.47 MYR 26.17

-51.78%

Cinema Ticket

$4.84 MYR 19.56

$5.01 MYR 20.25

-3.39%

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

$280 MYR 1,132

$402 MYR 1,625

-30.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$20.6K MYR 83.3K

$10.9K MYR 44.0K

89.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.6 MYR 213

$60.7 MYR 246

-13.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.69 MYR 120

$34.82 MYR 141

-14.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.6 MYR 310

$82.1 MYR 332

-6.71%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$87.3 MYR 353

$68.7 MYR 278

27.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$519 MYR 2,099

$418 MYR 1,691

24.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$456 MYR 1,843

$296 MYR 1,196

54.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$931 MYR 3,766

$710 MYR 2,873

31.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$680 MYR 2,751

$563 MYR 2,276

20.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,129 MYR 12.7K

$1,963 MYR 7,940

59.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$972 MYR 3,932

$1,206 MYR 4,875

-19.35%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,746 MYR 7,060

$1,310 MYR 5,299

33.22%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.51

4.04

11.63%

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

Last update for Petaling Jaya: November 1, 2026

Last update for Kedah: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Petaling Jaya

$456 41.7%

Kedah

$296 32.2% 35.1% $160

Groceries & Markets

Petaling Jaya

$253 23.1%

Kedah

$256 27.9% 1.4% $3.6

Eating Out

Petaling Jaya

$113 10.4%

Kedah

$113 12.3% 0.2% $0.2

Clothing & Footwear

Petaling Jaya

$111 10.1%

Kedah

$111 12.1% 0.1% $0.1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Petaling Jaya

$84 7.7%

Kedah

$76 8.2% 10.4% $8.8

Sport & Entertainment

Petaling Jaya

$57 5.2%

Kedah

$47 5.1% 18.2% $10

Getting Around

Petaling Jaya

$20 1.8%

Kedah

$19 2.1% 5% $1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $519 in Petaling Jaya and $418 in Kedah. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Petaling Jaya pays 33% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $25 in Petaling Jaya vs $12 in Kedah. Groceries flip the comparison at $253 vs $256, with Petaling Jaya cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Petaling Jaya

🇲🇾 Kedah

🕒 Local time

23:45 11:45 PM

Same time as Petaling Jaya

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

771,687

417,800

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.247 USD

1 MYR = 0.22 EUR

1 MYR = 0.247 USD

1 MYR = 0.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Petaling Jaya Kedah 370 km

From you

Petaling Jaya
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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

Petaling Jaya vs Kedah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,094 in Petaling Jaya and $917 in Kedah, so Kedah is about 16% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 33% higher in Petaling Jaya, 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: $519 in Petaling Jaya versus $418 in Kedah. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $280 in Petaling Jaya versus $402 in Kedah. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

All in, you’ll spend $1,094 per month in Petaling Jaya versus $917 in Kedah – Kedah is about 16% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

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, Petaling Jaya and Kedah are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Kedah wins on affordability, Petaling Jaya on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.