Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Putrajaya and Al Hillah

For one person, living is cheaper in Al Hillah: $693 a month against $813 in Putrajaya, rent and utilities included – about $1,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

39

Cost of Living Index in Putrajaya
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Putrajaya Living Index
34

Cost of Living Index in Al Hillah
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Al Hillah Living Index

Jump to prices

Putrajaya

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$813

/mo nomad

Al Hillah

🇮🇶 Iraq

$693

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Putrajaya and in Al Hillah

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

A single person spends $813 per month in Putrajaya vs $693 in Al Hillah, rent included.

Putrajaya $813
Al Hillah $693

A couple spends around $1,227 per month in Putrajaya vs $1,067 in Al Hillah, rent included.

Putrajaya $1,227
Al Hillah $1,067

A family of three spends $1,640 per month in Putrajaya vs $1,442 in Al Hillah, rent included.

Putrajaya $1,640
Al Hillah $1,442

Putrajaya costs about 17% more than Al Hillah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Putrajaya and Al Hillah are more affordable than the global median – Putrajaya 40% lower, Al Hillah 49% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.58 MYR 14.51

$4.69 IQD 7,083

-23.67%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.03 MYR 73.1

$26.52 IQD 40.1K

-32.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.48 MYR 18.16

$5.51 IQD 8,326

-18.69%

Cappuccino

$2.89 MYR 11.70

$2.69 IQD 4,068

7.43%

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

$0.82 MYR 3.34

$0.34 IQD 519

141.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.39 MYR 1.59

$0.20 IQD 309

95.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.69 MYR 14.95

$2.73 IQD 4,121

35.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.73 MYR 19.18

$3.35 IQD 5,063

41.19%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.75 MYR 7.08

$0.97 IQD 1,463

80.41%

White Bread (500g)

$1.09 MYR 4.44

$0.64 IQD 963

70.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.43 MYR 5.81

$1.38 IQD 2,080

3.62%

Eggs

$1.71 MYR 6.94

$1.54 IQD 2,330

11.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.72 MYR 31.30

$3.36 IQD 5,083

129.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.70 MYR 19.06

$4.01 IQD 6,065

17.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.58 MYR 38.83

$12.29 IQD 18.6K

-22.05%

Apples (1kg)

$2.46 MYR 9.99

$0.96 IQD 1,450

156.25%

Banana (1kg)

$1.49 MYR 6.03

$0.95 IQD 1,443

56.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.22 MYR 8.99

$0.90 IQD 1,367

146.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.63 MYR 6.61

$0.68 IQD 1,032

139.71%

Potato (1kg)

$1.39 MYR 5.63

$0.58 IQD 883

139.66%

Onion (1kg)

$1.43 MYR 5.80

$0.60 IQD 912

138.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.37 MYR 5.55

$0.52 IQD 786

163.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 MYR 2.10

$0.52 IQD 780

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MYR 17.42

$1.66 IQD 2,515

159.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.35 MYR 54.1

$11.71 IQD 17.7K

14.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.98 MYR 12.09

$1.90 IQD 2,876

56.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.01 MYR 12.19

$1.96 IQD 2,966

53.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.69 MYR 2.82

$0.34 IQD 518

102.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.13 MYR 49.16

$55.0 IQD 83.1K

-77.95%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.94 MYR 3.81

$1.96 IQD 2,968

-52.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 MYR 1.93

$1.28 IQD 1,939

-63.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.75 MYR 39.53

$2.98 IQD 4,506

227.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.69 MYR 2.80

$0.50 IQD 757

38.00%

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

$42.8K MYR 173.4K

$14.8K IQD 22.4M

188.31%

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

$34.4K MYR 139.3K

$16.6K IQD 25.1M

106.98%

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

$52.5 MYR 213

$65.1 IQD 98.3K

-19.33%

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

$11.02 MYR 44.69

$13.34 IQD 20.2K

-17.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.68 MYR 91.9

$33.35 IQD 50.4K

-31.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.81 MYR 145

$19.62 IQD 29.7K

82.52%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.28 MYR 37.62

$16.36 IQD 24.7K

-43.28%

Cinema Ticket

$5.03 MYR 20.39

$6.44 IQD 9,724

-21.89%

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

$243 MYR 983

$81.2 IQD 122.6K

198.83%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,555 MYR 18.5K

$664 IQD 1.0M

585.97%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.4 MYR 220

$18.98 IQD 28.7K

186.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$16.78 MYR 68.0

$21.34 IQD 32.2K

-21.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.2 MYR 325

$57.8 IQD 87.4K

38.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$87.0 MYR 353

$42.36 IQD 64.0K

105.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$345 MYR 1,397

$245 IQD 369.5K

40.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$225 MYR 913

$151 IQD 228.6K

48.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$633 MYR 2,568

$436 IQD 659.1K

45.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$370 MYR 1,500

$258 IQD 389.8K

43.46%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,682 MYR 10.9K

$1,477 IQD 2.2M

81.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,783 MYR 7,230

$483 IQD 729.4K

269.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,029 MYR 4,173

$436 IQD 659.3K

135.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.06

4.12

-1.46%

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

Last update for Putrajaya: October 26, 2026

Last update for Al Hillah: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Putrajaya

$225 27.7%

Al Hillah

$151 21.8% 32.8% $74

Groceries & Markets

Putrajaya

$221 27.2%

Al Hillah

$160 23.2% 27.4% $61

Eating Out

Putrajaya

$109 13.5%

Al Hillah

$109 15.7% 0.5% $0.6

Clothing & Footwear

Putrajaya

$107 13.2%

Al Hillah

$63 9.1% 41% $44

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Putrajaya

$86 10.6%

Al Hillah

$112 16.1% 29.7% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Putrajaya

$46 5.6%

Al Hillah

$32 4.7% 29.2% $13

Getting Around

Putrajaya

$18 2.2%

Al Hillah

$65 9.4% 255% $47

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $345 in Putrajaya versus $245 in Al Hillah. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Putrajaya are about 2.4 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $18 in Putrajaya versus $27 in Al Hillah. Groceries tell a different story – $221 in Putrajaya vs $160 in Al Hillah – so Al Hillah wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Putrajaya

🇮🇶 Al Hillah

🕒 Local time

12:08 12:08 PM

07:08 7:08 AM

5 h behind Putrajaya

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

109,202

1,729,666

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.247 USD

1 MYR = 0.221 EUR

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.93 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IQD, USD, EUR to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 4.05 MYR (1 MYR = 0.247 USD). 1 EUR = 4.53 MYR (1 MYR = 0.221 EUR).

Iraqi Dinar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1,511 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,687 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.93 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Putrajaya Al Hillah 6,800 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Putrajaya
Al Hillah

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

Putrajaya vs Al Hillah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Putrajaya is pricier by about 17%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,220 per month in Putrajaya and $1,039 in Al Hillah. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Al Hillah, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $245 there versus $345 in Putrajaya.

Public transport costs about 78% less in Putrajaya. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $243 per month in Putrajaya and $81 in Al Hillah. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $813 in Putrajaya and $693 in Al Hillah, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

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

If budget matters most, go with Al Hillah. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Putrajaya makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.