Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Port Moresby and Kuala Lumpur

For one person, living is cheaper in Kuala Lumpur: $1,067 a month against $1,532 in Port Moresby, rent and utilities included – about $5,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Port Moresby
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Port Moresby Living Index
53

Cost of Living Index in Kuala Lumpur
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Kuala Lumpur Living Index

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Port Moresby

🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea

$1,532

/mo nomad

Kuala Lumpur

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$1,067

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Port Moresby and in Kuala Lumpur

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

A single person spends $1,532 per month in Port Moresby vs $1,067 in Kuala Lumpur, rent included.

Port Moresby $1,532
Kuala Lumpur $1,067

A couple spends around $2,418 per month in Port Moresby vs $1,662 in Kuala Lumpur, rent included.

Port Moresby $2,418
Kuala Lumpur $1,662

A family of three spends $3,305 per month in Port Moresby vs $2,257 in Kuala Lumpur, rent included.

Port Moresby $3,305
Kuala Lumpur $2,257

Port Moresby costs about 44% more than Kuala Lumpur, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Port Moresby sits 14% above the global median, while Kuala Lumpur is 20% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.76 PGK 33.99

$4.80 MYR 19.60

61.67%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.89 PGK 192

$28.82 MYR 118

52.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.38 PGK 23.59

$5.00 MYR 20.40

7.60%

Cappuccino

$2.44 PGK 10.69

$3.05 MYR 12.47

-20.00%

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

$0.77 PGK 3.38

$0.85 MYR 3.46

-9.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.67 PGK 2.95

$0.45 MYR 1.84

48.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.91 PGK 12.74

$4.51 MYR 18.41

-35.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.56 PGK 15.60

$6.00 MYR 24.50

-40.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 PGK 7.97

$2.11 MYR 8.63

-13.74%

White Bread (500g)

$1.54 PGK 6.74

$1.08 MYR 4.40

42.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.39 PGK 6.09

$2.02 MYR 8.24

-31.19%

Eggs

$3.62 PGK 15.86

$2.55 MYR 10.40

41.96%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.64 PGK 37.85

$13.85 MYR 56.6

-37.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.60 PGK 24.56

$4.39 MYR 17.91

27.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.92 PGK 43.47

$9.66 MYR 39.46

2.69%

Apples (1kg)

$4.21 PGK 18.45

$3.47 MYR 14.16

21.33%

Banana (1kg)

$3.12 PGK 13.67

$1.77 MYR 7.23

76.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$7.01 PGK 30.72

$2.25 MYR 9.21

211.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.56 PGK 28.75

$1.55 MYR 6.34

323.23%

Potato (1kg)

$3.40 PGK 14.92

$1.33 MYR 5.43

155.64%

Onion (1kg)

$2.92 PGK 12.79

$1.38 MYR 5.64

111.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.33 PGK 10.21

$1.17 MYR 4.79

99.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 PGK 5.64

$0.67 MYR 2.73

92.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.26 PGK 27.45

$4.38 MYR 17.87

42.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.73 PGK 47.05

$18.87 MYR 77.1

-43.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.54 PGK 11.11

$3.62 MYR 14.78

-29.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.51 PGK 15.39

$5.06 MYR 20.64

-30.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.42 PGK 1.86

$0.72 MYR 2.92

-41.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.95 PGK 96.2

$12.46 MYR 50.9

76.16%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.43 PGK 23.79

$1.25 MYR 5.11

334.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.25 PGK 9.87

$1.24 MYR 5.05

81.45%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.47 PGK 67.8

$4.82 MYR 19.68

220.95%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.94 PGK 4.13

$0.86 MYR 3.52

9.30%

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

$49.2K PGK 215.6K

$41.4K MYR 168.8K

18.97%

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

$17.3K PGK 75.6K

$34.6K MYR 141.1K

-50.07%

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

$117 PGK 513

$61.5 MYR 251

90.53%

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

$22.67 PGK 99.4

$8.60 MYR 35.12

163.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$91.2 PGK 400

$26.25 MYR 107

247.28%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$60.2 PGK 264

$49.06 MYR 200

22.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.04 PGK 96.6

$7.69 MYR 31.39

186.61%

Cinema Ticket

$8.74 PGK 38.31

$4.95 MYR 20.23

76.57%

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

$836 PGK 3,665

$295 MYR 1,204

183.71%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,242 PGK 27.4K

$13.2K MYR 54.0K

-52.79%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$32.86 PGK 144

$72.6 MYR 296

-54.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.67 PGK 139

$41.57 MYR 170

-23.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$136 PGK 595

$85.7 MYR 350

58.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$160 PGK 702

$95.2 MYR 389

68.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,577 PGK 6,912

$625 MYR 2,553

152.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$551 PGK 2,414

$378 MYR 1,545

45.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,049 PGK 13.4K

$1,177 MYR 4,806

159.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,129 PGK 4,946

$639 MYR 2,608

76.71%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,035 PGK 8,918

$4,112 MYR 16.8K

-50.52%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,755 PGK 16.5K

$1,504 MYR 6,141

149.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$429 PGK 1,882

$1,491 MYR 6,088

-71.21%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.17

4.18

191.15%

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

Last update for Port Moresby: October 6, 2026

Last update for Kuala Lumpur: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Port Moresby

$551 36.3%

Kuala Lumpur

$378 34.7% 31.3% $173

Groceries & Markets

Port Moresby

$320 21.1%

Kuala Lumpur

$273 25% 14.7% $47

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Port Moresby

$231 15.2%

Kuala Lumpur

$96 8.8% 58.3% $135

Clothing & Footwear

Port Moresby

$162 10.7%

Kuala Lumpur

$133 12.2% 18.1% $29

Eating Out

Port Moresby

$135 8.9%

Kuala Lumpur

$130 11.9% 3.8% $5.1

Sport & Entertainment

Port Moresby

$78 5.1%

Kuala Lumpur

$59 5.4% 24.1% $19

Getting Around

Port Moresby

$40 2.7%

Kuala Lumpur

$23 2.1% 43.6% $18

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,577 in Port Moresby versus $625 in Kuala Lumpur. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 247% higher in Kuala Lumpur, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44.00 in Port Moresby versus $29.00 in Kuala Lumpur. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $320 vs $273 – making Kuala Lumpur the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇬 Port Moresby

🇲🇾 Kuala Lumpur

🕒 Local time

13:01 1:01 PM

11:01 11:01 AM

2 h behind Port Moresby

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

364,145 Capital

1,982,112 Capital

💱 Currency

Papua New Guinean Kina PGK K

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

1 PGK = 0.228 USD

1 PGK = 0.203 EUR

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.218 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 = 4.92 PGK (1 PGK = 0.203 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 = 0.218 EUR).

USD to PGK in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Port Moresby Kuala Lumpur 5,230 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Port Moresby
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

Port Moresby vs Kuala Lumpur: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Port Moresby is pricier by about 44%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in utilities.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,298 per month in Port Moresby and $1,600 in Kuala Lumpur. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Kuala Lumpur, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Groceries cost about 17% more in Port Moresby, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44.00 in Port Moresby and $29.00 in Kuala Lumpur. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Kuala Lumpur, where all-in costs run around $1,067, than in Port Moresby at $1,532. In Kuala Lumpur it covers expenses comfortably, while in Port Moresby it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Kuala Lumpur. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Port Moresby makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.