Cost of Living Comparison Between Sandakan, Sabah and Penang Cost of Living Comparison Between Sandakan, Sabah and Penang

🙂 Solo nomad: Sandakan, Sabah is 12.3% cheaper than Penang without rent, and 4.1% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Sandakan, Sabah is 21.7% cheaper than Penang without rent, and 6.9% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.42 MYR 9.81

$3.11 MYR 12.61

-22.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.94 MYR 76.9

$21.15 MYR 85.9

-10.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.59 MYR 18.65

$4.33 MYR 17.57

6.00%

Cappuccino

$2.64 MYR 10.73

$2.86 MYR 11.63

-7.69%

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

$0.65 MYR 2.65

$0.73 MYR 2.96

-10.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.25 MYR 1.02

$0.36 MYR 1.48

-30.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.41 MYR 9.78

$4.29 MYR 17.41

-43.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.56 MYR 14.45

$4.37 MYR 17.73

-18.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.68 MYR 6.82

$1.88 MYR 7.63

-10.64%

White Bread (500g)

$1.24 MYR 5.05

$1.00 MYR 4.06

24.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.21 MYR 4.90

$1.99 MYR 8.07

-39.20%

Eggs

$2.75 MYR 11.16

$2.05 MYR 8.33

34.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.29 MYR 62.1

$16.99 MYR 69.0

-10.01%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.59 MYR 14.57

$5.18 MYR 21.02

-30.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.19 MYR 29.19

$14.97 MYR 60.8

-51.97%

Apples (1kg)

$2.54 MYR 10.29

$2.77 MYR 11.26

-8.30%

Banana (1kg)

$1.16 MYR 4.71

$1.44 MYR 5.87

-19.44%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.17 MYR 12.86

$2.70 MYR 10.96

17.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.92 MYR 7.79

$2.09 MYR 8.47

-8.13%

Potato (1kg)

$1.19 MYR 4.84

$1.13 MYR 4.60

5.31%

Onion (1kg)

$1.31 MYR 5.32

$1.22 MYR 4.97

7.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.09 MYR 4.41

$0.95 MYR 3.84

14.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 MYR 2.07

$0.45 MYR 1.82

13.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.15 MYR 16.85

$4.22 MYR 17.12

-1.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.00 MYR 73.1

$19.31 MYR 78.4

-6.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.90 MYR 7.72

$2.62 MYR 10.63

-27.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 MYR 6.87

$3.50 MYR 14.21

-51.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 MYR 2.75

$0.46 MYR 1.85

47.83%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.80 MYR 47.90

$17.42 MYR 70.7

-32.26%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 MYR 4.72

$0.70 MYR 2.83

65.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.98 MYR 4.00

$0.50 MYR 2.03

96.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.99 MYR 24.33

$7.23 MYR 29.33

-17.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.46 MYR 1.87

$0.46 MYR 1.88

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

$29.6K MYR 120.0K

$33.9K MYR 137.6K

-12.74%

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

$27.2K MYR 110.5K

$27.7K MYR 112.3K

-1.62%

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

$46.59 MYR 189

$38.60 MYR 157

20.70%

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

$3.64 MYR 14.78

$10.03 MYR 40.71

-63.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.74 MYR 96.4

$30.91 MYR 125

-23.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.54 MYR 148

$32.64 MYR 133

11.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.77 MYR 23.41

$5.52 MYR 22.40

4.53%

Cinema Ticket

$2.88 MYR 11.70

$4.90 MYR 19.88

-41.22%

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

$95.3 MYR 387

$238 MYR 968

-60.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,547 MYR 18.5K

$6,150 MYR 25.0K

-26.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.0 MYR 240

$55.6 MYR 226

6.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.74 MYR 92.3

$29.29 MYR 119

-22.36%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71.1 MYR 289

$60.4 MYR 245

17.73%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.7 MYR 380

$52.8 MYR 214

77.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$384 MYR 1,560

$380 MYR 1,543

1.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$274 MYR 1,114

$227 MYR 920

21.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$654 MYR 2,657

$649 MYR 2,636

0.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$468 MYR 1,899

$520 MYR 2,113

-10.11%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,451 MYR 5,893

$2,235 MYR 9,072

-35.05%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$903 MYR 3,667

$1,156 MYR 4,693

-21.86%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$752 MYR 3,052

$988 MYR 4,012

-23.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.16

-27.88%

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

Last update for Sandakan, Sabah: January 10, 2026

Last update for Penang: January 13, 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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