Cost of Living Comparison Between Petaling Jaya and Kota Kinabalu Cost of Living Comparison Between Petaling Jaya and Kota Kinabalu

🙂 Solo nomad: Petaling Jaya is 14.1% cheaper than Kota Kinabalu without rent, and 2.2% more expensive with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Petaling Jaya is 8.8% cheaper than Kota Kinabalu without rent, and 3.3% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.65 MYR 14.33

$3.51 MYR 13.81

3.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.95 MYR 74.5

$18.61 MYR 73.1

1.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.74 MYR 18.61

$4.70 MYR 18.47

0.85%

Cappuccino

$2.81 MYR 11.06

$2.61 MYR 10.27

7.66%

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

$0.73 MYR 2.87

$0.64 MYR 2.53

14.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.40 MYR 1.57

$0.36 MYR 1.43

11.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.58 MYR 14.07

$2.33 MYR 9.14

53.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.97 MYR 19.52

$3.56 MYR 13.97

39.61%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.94 MYR 7.64

$1.68 MYR 6.60

15.48%

White Bread (500g)

$0.94 MYR 3.71

$1.24 MYR 4.89

-24.19%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.78 MYR 7.00

$1.67 MYR 6.55

6.59%

Eggs

$2.25 MYR 8.84

$2.93 MYR 11.51

-23.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.55 MYR 41.45

$26.42 MYR 104

-60.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.55 MYR 13.96

$3.45 MYR 13.56

2.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.89 MYR 31.02

$7.14 MYR 28.08

10.50%

Apples (1kg)

$2.79 MYR 10.95

$2.66 MYR 10.44

4.89%

Banana (1kg)

$1.67 MYR 6.57

$1.13 MYR 4.43

47.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.45 MYR 9.61

$3.20 MYR 12.57

-23.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.20 MYR 4.72

$1.98 MYR 7.80

-39.39%

Potato (1kg)

$1.18 MYR 4.63

$1.47 MYR 5.76

-19.73%

Onion (1kg)

$1.33 MYR 5.22

$1.75 MYR 6.87

-24.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.95 MYR 3.75

$1.12 MYR 4.40

-15.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 MYR 2.30

$0.48 MYR 1.87

20.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 MYR 16.75

$4.15 MYR 16.32

2.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.10 MYR 79.0

$27.15 MYR 107

-25.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 MYR 10.47

$1.91 MYR 7.49

39.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.92 MYR 15.39

$1.63 MYR 6.39

140.49%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.77 MYR 3.01

$1.54 MYR 6.06

-50.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.59 MYR 45.55

$40.82 MYR 160

-71.61%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.03 MYR 4.03

$1.86 MYR 7.30

-44.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.35 MYR 1.39

$0.46 MYR 1.82

-23.91%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.50 MYR 37.32

$5.79 MYR 22.77

64.08%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.46 MYR 1.82

$0.49 MYR 1.94

-6.12%

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

$31.5K MYR 123.9K

$29.8K MYR 117.2K

5.76%

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

$28.4K MYR 111.5K

$27.9K MYR 109.6K

1.76%

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

$40.92 MYR 161

$51.8 MYR 203

-20.97%

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

$9.19 MYR 36.10

$9.14 MYR 35.90

0.55%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.78 MYR 89.5

$33.16 MYR 130

-31.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.50 MYR 143

$42.77 MYR 168

-14.66%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.22 MYR 28.36

$2.96 MYR 11.63

143.92%

Cinema Ticket

$4.93 MYR 19.39

$4.57 MYR 17.96

7.88%

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

$211 MYR 828

$132 MYR 517

60.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,077 MYR 31.7K

$4,466 MYR 17.5K

80.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.40 MYR 194

$59.8 MYR 235

-17.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.58 MYR 136

$22.69 MYR 89.2

52.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$53.3 MYR 209

$70.6 MYR 277

-24.58%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$48.25 MYR 190

$92.5 MYR 364

-47.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$465 MYR 1,826

$382 MYR 1,503

21.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$339 MYR 1,331

$166 MYR 650

104.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$829 MYR 3,258

$656 MYR 2,578

26.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$545 MYR 2,143

$367 MYR 1,442

48.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,253 MYR 12.8K

$1,910 MYR 7,505

70.33%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$803 MYR 3,156

$1,123 MYR 4,415

-28.52%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,811 MYR 7,115

$609 MYR 2,395

197.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.49

3.8

18.16%

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

Last update for Petaling Jaya: March 1, 2026

Last update for Kota Kinabalu: March 1, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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