Cost of Living Comparison Between Sandakan, Sabah and Petaling Jaya Cost of Living Comparison Between Sandakan, Sabah and Petaling Jaya

🙂 Solo nomad: Sandakan, Sabah is 3.5% cheaper than Petaling Jaya without rent, and 7.1% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Sandakan, Sabah is 10.2% cheaper than Petaling Jaya without rent, and 1% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.42 MYR 9.81

$3.48 MYR 14.12

-30.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.94 MYR 76.9

$18.63 MYR 75.6

1.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.59 MYR 18.65

$4.67 MYR 18.97

-1.71%

Cappuccino

$2.64 MYR 10.73

$2.82 MYR 11.44

-6.38%

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

$0.65 MYR 2.65

$0.73 MYR 2.98

-10.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.25 MYR 1.02

$0.37 MYR 1.49

-32.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.41 MYR 9.78

$3.46 MYR 14.04

-30.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.56 MYR 14.45

$5.19 MYR 21.08

-31.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.68 MYR 6.82

$1.91 MYR 7.76

-12.04%

White Bread (500g)

$1.24 MYR 5.05

$1.01 MYR 4.11

22.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.21 MYR 4.90

$1.75 MYR 7.09

-30.86%

Eggs

$2.75 MYR 11.16

$2.27 MYR 9.22

21.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.29 MYR 62.1

$10.56 MYR 42.88

44.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.59 MYR 14.57

$3.44 MYR 13.95

4.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.19 MYR 29.19

$8.23 MYR 33.41

-12.64%

Apples (1kg)

$2.54 MYR 10.29

$2.69 MYR 10.90

-5.58%

Banana (1kg)

$1.16 MYR 4.71

$1.74 MYR 7.06

-33.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.17 MYR 12.86

$2.48 MYR 10.09

27.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.92 MYR 7.79

$1.19 MYR 4.85

61.34%

Potato (1kg)

$1.19 MYR 4.84

$1.19 MYR 4.82

Onion (1kg)

$1.31 MYR 5.32

$1.38 MYR 5.60

-5.07%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.09 MYR 4.41

$0.90 MYR 3.63

21.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 MYR 2.07

$0.59 MYR 2.41

-13.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.15 MYR 16.85

$4.33 MYR 17.59

-4.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.00 MYR 73.1

$19.00 MYR 77.2

-5.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.90 MYR 7.72

$2.69 MYR 10.91

-29.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 MYR 6.87

$3.83 MYR 15.54

-55.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 MYR 2.75

$0.75 MYR 3.03

-9.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.80 MYR 47.90

$11.71 MYR 47.54

0.77%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 MYR 4.72

$1.02 MYR 4.14

13.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.98 MYR 4.00

$0.35 MYR 1.44

180.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.99 MYR 24.33

$9.01 MYR 36.59

-33.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.46 MYR 1.87

$0.50 MYR 2.02

-8.00%

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

$29.6K MYR 120.0K

$31.9K MYR 129.5K

-7.28%

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

$27.2K MYR 110.5K

$27.5K MYR 111.6K

-1.02%

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

$46.59 MYR 189

$41.33 MYR 168

12.73%

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

$3.64 MYR 14.78

$9.31 MYR 37.82

-60.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.74 MYR 96.4

$23.39 MYR 95.0

1.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.54 MYR 148

$37.06 MYR 150

-1.40%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.77 MYR 23.41

$7.33 MYR 29.75

-21.28%

Cinema Ticket

$2.88 MYR 11.70

$4.80 MYR 19.51

-40.00%

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

$95.3 MYR 387

$213 MYR 864

-55.21%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,547 MYR 18.5K

$8,234 MYR 33.4K

-44.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.0 MYR 240

$49.78 MYR 202

18.50%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.74 MYR 92.3

$34.45 MYR 140

-33.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71.1 MYR 289

$54.1 MYR 220

31.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.7 MYR 380

$48.92 MYR 199

91.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$384 MYR 1,560

$454 MYR 1,843

-15.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$274 MYR 1,114

$349 MYR 1,418

-21.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$654 MYR 2,657

$835 MYR 3,388

-21.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$468 MYR 1,899

$554 MYR 2,249

-15.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,451 MYR 5,893

$3,218 MYR 13.1K

-54.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$903 MYR 3,667

$759 MYR 3,081

19.04%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$752 MYR 3,052

$1,712 MYR 6,952

-56.09%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.49

-33.18%

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

Last update for Sandakan, Sabah: January 10, 2026

Last update for Petaling Jaya: 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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