Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Petaling Jaya and Kemaman

For one person, living is cheaper in Kemaman: $897 a month against $1,056 in Petaling Jaya, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

50

Cost of Living Index in Petaling Jaya
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Petaling Jaya Living Index
43

Cost of Living Index in Kemaman
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Kemaman Living Index

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Petaling Jaya

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$1,056

/mo nomad

Kemaman

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$897

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,056 per month in Petaling Jaya vs $897 in Kemaman, rent included.

Petaling Jaya $1,056
Kemaman $897

A couple spends around $1,569 per month in Petaling Jaya vs $1,369 in Kemaman, rent included.

Petaling Jaya $1,569
Kemaman $1,369

A family of three spends $2,082 per month in Petaling Jaya vs $1,841 in Kemaman, rent included.

Petaling Jaya $2,082
Kemaman $1,841

Petaling Jaya costs about 18% more than Kemaman, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Petaling Jaya and Kemaman are more affordable than the global median – Petaling Jaya 22% lower, Kemaman 34% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.57 MYR 14.53

$2.62 MYR 10.65

36.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.39 MYR 99.3

$14.92 MYR 60.7

63.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.85 MYR 19.74

$4.40 MYR 17.90

10.23%

Cappuccino

$3.08 MYR 12.52

$3.09 MYR 12.57

-0.32%

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

$0.85 MYR 3.46

$0.48 MYR 1.93

77.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.41 MYR 1.66

$0.36 MYR 1.46

13.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 MYR 13.37

$3.28 MYR 13.34

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.69 MYR 23.17

$5.76 MYR 23.45

-1.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.93 MYR 7.86

$1.88 MYR 7.66

2.66%

White Bread (500g)

$1.03 MYR 4.21

$1.04 MYR 4.24

-0.96%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.44 MYR 5.86

$1.01 MYR 4.13

42.57%

Eggs

$1.77 MYR 7.20

$1.15 MYR 4.70

53.91%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.71 MYR 39.52

$9.61 MYR 39.11

1.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.28 MYR 13.35

$3.19 MYR 13.00

2.82%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.73 MYR 39.62

$9.30 MYR 37.84

4.62%

Apples (1kg)

$3.51 MYR 14.28

$3.59 MYR 14.63

-2.23%

Banana (1kg)

$1.86 MYR 7.56

$1.87 MYR 7.62

-0.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.73 MYR 11.12

$2.62 MYR 10.66

4.20%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.83 MYR 7.43

$1.82 MYR 7.40

0.55%

Potato (1kg)

$2.15 MYR 8.74

$2.17 MYR 8.83

-0.92%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 MYR 8.22

$2.04 MYR 8.30

-0.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 MYR 5.90

$1.47 MYR 5.98

-1.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 MYR 2.13

$0.51 MYR 2.08

1.96%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.56 MYR 18.58

$4.57 MYR 18.60

-0.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.38 MYR 78.9

$19.42 MYR 79.1

-0.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.64 MYR 10.74

$2.72 MYR 11.09

-2.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 MYR 18.22

$4.44 MYR 18.07

0.90%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.25 MYR 5.10

$0.76 MYR 3.11

64.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.45 MYR 50.7

$10.79 MYR 43.94

15.38%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.19 MYR 4.84

$1.20 MYR 4.88

-0.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.35 MYR 1.44

$0.36 MYR 1.46

-2.78%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.75 MYR 35.62

$8.90 MYR 36.24

-1.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.87 MYR 3.54

$0.48 MYR 1.94

81.25%

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

$45.9K MYR 186.7K

$46.4K MYR 188.7K

-1.05%

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

$35.3K MYR 143.8K

$36.1K MYR 146.8K

-2.09%

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

$49.61 MYR 202

$49.04 MYR 200

1.16%

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

$8.18 MYR 33.30

$8.25 MYR 33.58

-0.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.36 MYR 111

$27.11 MYR 110

0.92%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.42 MYR 165

$41.78 MYR 170

-3.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.03 MYR 12.33

$6.29 MYR 25.62

-51.83%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MYR 20.36

$4.79 MYR 19.49

4.38%

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

$273 MYR 1,110

$123 MYR 500

121.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.5K MYR 42.8K

$10.3K MYR 42.1K

1.79%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.6 MYR 210

$52.0 MYR 211

-0.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.45 MYR 120

$30.15 MYR 123

-2.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.0 MYR 318

$78.6 MYR 320

-0.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$87.2 MYR 355

$86.0 MYR 350

1.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$511 MYR 2,082

$434 MYR 1,767

17.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$426 MYR 1,736

$288 MYR 1,171

48.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$961 MYR 3,910

$636 MYR 2,589

51.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$699 MYR 2,846

$546 MYR 2,223

28.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,144 MYR 12.8K

$2,062 MYR 8,395

52.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$976 MYR 3,974

$1,069 MYR 4,351

-8.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,746 MYR 7,108

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.51

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

Last update for Petaling Jaya: October 25, 2026

Last update for Kemaman: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Petaling Jaya

$426 40.4%

Kemaman

$288 32.1% 32.5% $139

Groceries & Markets

Petaling Jaya

$249 23.6%

Kemaman

$243 27.1% 2.5% $6.1

Eating Out

Petaling Jaya

$113 10.7%

Kemaman

$102 11.4% 9.2% $10

Clothing & Footwear

Petaling Jaya

$111 10.5%

Kemaman

$111 12.4% 0.2% $0.2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Petaling Jaya

$85 8.1%

Kemaman

$84 9.4% 0.9% $0.7

Sport & Entertainment

Petaling Jaya

$50 4.8%

Kemaman

$51 5.7% 1.9% $0.9

Getting Around

Petaling Jaya

$20 1.9%

Kemaman

$17 1.9% 17.5% $3.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $511 in Petaling Jaya versus $434 in Kemaman. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $24 in Petaling Jaya versus $15 in Kemaman. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $249 vs $243 – making Kemaman the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Petaling Jaya

🇲🇾 Kemaman

🕒 Local time

02:24 2:24 AM

Same time as Petaling Jaya

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

771,687

215,582

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.246 USD

1 MYR = 0.22 EUR

1 MYR = 0.246 USD

1 MYR = 0.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Petaling Jaya Kemaman 230 km

From you

Petaling Jaya
Kemaman

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 Kemaman: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Petaling Jaya is pricier by about 18%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,583 per month in Petaling Jaya and $1,346 in Kemaman. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Kemaman, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $434 there versus $511 in Petaling Jaya.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,056 in Petaling Jaya and $897 in Kemaman. That makes Kemaman about 15% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $273 per month in Petaling Jaya and $123 in Kemaman. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Kemaman, where all-in costs run around $897, than in Petaling Jaya at $1,056. In Kemaman it covers expenses comfortably, while in Petaling Jaya it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Kemaman – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.