Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sarawak and Bangalore

For one person, living is cheaper in Bangalore: $557 a month against $933 in Sarawak, rent and utilities included – about $4,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Sarawak
Learn more

Sarawak Living Index
27

Cost of Living Index in Bangalore
Learn more

Bangalore Living Index

Jump to prices

Sarawak

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$933

/mo nomad

Bangalore

🇮🇳 India

$557

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sarawak and in Bangalore

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $933 in Sarawak versus $557 in Bangalore.

Sarawak $933
Bangalore $557

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,391 in Sarawak versus $941 in Bangalore.

Sarawak $1,391
Bangalore $941

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,849 in Sarawak versus $1,324 in Bangalore.

Sarawak $1,849
Bangalore $1,324

Living in Sarawak is roughly 67% more expensive than in Bangalore, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Sarawak 31% lower, Bangalore 59% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.65 MYR 14.88

$3.13 ₹297

16.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.77 MYR 80.6

$17.66 ₹1,677

11.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.75 MYR 19.38

$4.66 ₹443

1.93%

Cappuccino

$2.88 MYR 11.74

$2.28 ₹217

26.32%

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

$0.81 MYR 3.29

$0.40 ₹37.91

102.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.39 MYR 1.61

$0.14 ₹13.62

178.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.60 MYR 14.68

$2.27 ₹216

58.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 MYR 18.81

$3.60 ₹342

28.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.86 MYR 7.58

$0.66 ₹62.4

181.82%

White Bread (500g)

$1.04 MYR 4.24

$0.59 ₹55.8

76.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 MYR 6.04

$0.81 ₹76.5

82.72%

Eggs

$2.04 MYR 8.32

$1.14 ₹109

78.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.84 MYR 56.5

$6.19 ₹588

123.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.30 MYR 17.54

$3.75 ₹356

14.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.43 MYR 38.47

Apples (1kg)

$3.14 MYR 12.83

$2.86 ₹272

9.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.71 MYR 6.97

$0.73 ₹69.3

134.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.51 MYR 10.22

$1.20 ₹114

109.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 MYR 6.55

$0.42 ₹39.54

283.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.27 MYR 5.18

$0.39 ₹36.59

225.64%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 MYR 4.68

$0.40 ₹37.84

187.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 MYR 4.79

$0.40 ₹37.56

192.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 MYR 2.18

$0.30 ₹28.09

76.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.54 MYR 18.52

$4.66 ₹442

-2.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.12 MYR 78.0

$9.48 ₹900

101.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.94 MYR 12.01

$1.97 ₹187

49.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.51 MYR 18.38

$2.98 ₹283

51.34%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$6.59 ₹626

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.71 MYR 2.89

$0.51 ₹48.66

39.22%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.15 MYR 49.57

$15.69 ₹1,490

-22.56%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.25 MYR 5.10

$1.06 ₹101

17.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.51 MYR 2.07

$0.30 ₹28.52

70.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.21 MYR 29.41

$2.16 ₹205

233.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.82 MYR 3.34

$1.15 ₹109

-28.70%

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

$42.2K MYR 172.1K

$11.3K ₹1.1M

273.22%

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

$34.8K MYR 141.8K

$18.8K ₹1.8M

84.84%

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

$48.56 MYR 198

$30.35 ₹2,882

60.00%

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

$9.65 MYR 39.38

$4.11 ₹390

134.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.71 MYR 113

$10.45 ₹992

165.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.76 MYR 166

$18.89 ₹1,794

115.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.10 MYR 28.98

$6.10 ₹579

16.39%

Cinema Ticket

$4.92 MYR 20.05

$4.86 ₹461

1.23%

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

$190 MYR 775

$102 ₹9,687

86.25%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,067 MYR 28.8K

$2,978 ₹282.8K

137.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.8 MYR 232

$33.83 ₹3,212

67.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.52 MYR 141

$30.70 ₹2,915

12.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.8 MYR 325

$56.3 ₹5,343

41.76%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$75.9 MYR 310

$40.05 ₹3,803

89.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$410 MYR 1,674

$309 ₹29.4K

32.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$299 MYR 1,219

$179 ₹17.0K

66.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$672 MYR 2,742

$799 ₹75.9K

-15.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$477 MYR 1,946

$481 ₹45.6K

-0.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,042 MYR 8,329

$1,928 ₹183.0K

5.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,074 MYR 4,381

$1,076 ₹102.2K

-0.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$339 MYR 1,381

$943 ₹89.6K

-64.12%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.06

8.47

-52.07%

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

Last update for Sarawak: October 18, 2026

Last update for Bangalore: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sarawak

$299 32%

Bangalore

$179 32.1% 40.1% $120

Groceries & Markets

Sarawak

$258 27.6%

Bangalore

$125 22.4% 51.5% $133

Clothing & Footwear

Sarawak

$111 11.9%

Bangalore

$72 13% 34.9% $39

Eating Out

Sarawak

$110 11.8%

Bangalore

$87 15.6% 20.8% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sarawak

$86 9.2%

Bangalore

$45 8.1% 47.7% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Sarawak

$51 5.4%

Bangalore

$29 5.1% 43.5% $22

Getting Around

Sarawak

$19 2%

Bangalore

$20 3.6% 8.2% $1.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $410 in Sarawak and $309 in Bangalore. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bangalore pays 179% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $20.00 in Sarawak vs $18.00 in Bangalore for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $258 vs $125 per month, with Bangalore cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Sarawak

🇮🇳 Bangalore

🕒 Local time

22:40 10:40 PM

20:10 8:10 PM

2 h 30 min behind Sarawak

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,495,492

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.218 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.53 USD

1,000 INR = 9.37 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, USD, EUR to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.59 MYR (1 MYR = 0.218 EUR).

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 94.96 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 107 INR (1,000 INR = 9.37 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Sarawak Bangalore 3,810 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Sarawak
Bangalore

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

Sarawak vs Bangalore: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bangalore wins on cost – living expenses run 67% lower than in Sarawak. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Bangalore the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 179% lower in Bangalore. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $410 in Sarawak versus $309 in Bangalore. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Bangalore runs roughly 29% less than in Sarawak. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $190 in Sarawak versus $102 in Bangalore. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Either city works on $800 a month, though Bangalore gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Both work as nomad bases, but Bangalore delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $557 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Bangalore hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Sarawak and Bangalore are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Bangalore gentler on the wallet – expenses run 67% less than in Sarawak. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.