Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Seremban and Melbourne

For one person, living is cheaper in Seremban: $794 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $24,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

39

Cost of Living Index in Seremban
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Seremban Living Index
138

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
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Melbourne Living Index

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Seremban

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$794

/mo nomad

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Seremban and in Melbourne

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $794 in Seremban versus $2,821 in Melbourne.

Seremban $794
Melbourne $2,821

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,250 in Seremban versus $4,235 in Melbourne.

Seremban $1,250
Melbourne $4,235

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,706 in Seremban versus $5,650 in Melbourne.

Seremban $1,706
Melbourne $5,650

Living in Seremban costs roughly 72% less than in Melbourne, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Seremban is 41% below, Melbourne is 109% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.72 MYR 15.18

$17.43 A$25.08

-78.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.69 MYR 76.2

$84.6 A$122

-77.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.78 MYR 15.41

$12.46 A$17.92

-69.66%

Cappuccino

$2.97 MYR 12.10

$4.11 A$5.91

-27.74%

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

$0.85 MYR 3.46

$3.06 A$4.40

-72.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.45 MYR 1.82

$2.52 A$3.62

-82.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 MYR 15.11

$9.80 A$14.10

-62.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.87 MYR 19.88

$8.57 A$12.33

-43.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.81 MYR 7.37

$1.48 A$2.14

22.30%

White Bread (500g)

$1.10 MYR 4.50

$2.94 A$4.23

-62.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.44 MYR 5.88

$2.66 A$3.82

-45.86%

Eggs

$1.74 MYR 7.11

$5.54 A$7.97

-68.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.31 MYR 74.7

$10.51 A$15.13

74.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.52 MYR 18.44

$9.65 A$13.89

-53.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.43 MYR 42.54

$15.22 A$21.91

-31.47%

Apples (1kg)

$3.28 MYR 13.39

$3.99 A$5.75

-17.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.34 MYR 5.46

$3.02 A$4.34

-55.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.67 MYR 19.06

$3.10 A$4.46

50.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.37 MYR 5.60

$4.82 A$6.93

-71.58%

Potato (1kg)

$1.03 MYR 4.21

$3.03 A$4.36

-66.01%

Onion (1kg)

$1.13 MYR 4.61

$2.44 A$3.52

-53.69%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 MYR 5.09

$2.46 A$3.54

-49.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 MYR 2.27

$1.63 A$2.34

-65.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.16 MYR 16.98

$44.07 A$63.4

-90.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.12 MYR 57.6

$12.70 A$18.28

11.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.84 MYR 11.59

$5.54 A$7.97

-48.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.98 MYR 12.18

$5.23 A$7.52

-43.02%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.20 MYR 4.90

$3.74 A$5.38

-67.91%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$24.44 MYR 99.7

$138 A$198

-82.23%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.76 MYR 3.09

$4.51 A$6.50

-83.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 MYR 2.89

$1.36 A$1.96

-47.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.87 MYR 40.28

$30.45 A$43.81

-67.59%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.64 MYR 2.62

$1.47 A$2.12

-56.46%

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

$41.1K MYR 167.8K

$29.0K A$41.7K

41.84%

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

$35.0K MYR 142.6K

$26.5K A$38.1K

32.05%

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

$43.82 MYR 179

$234 A$336

-81.25%

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

$10.58 MYR 43.15

$27.93 A$40.19

-62.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.23 MYR 115

$55.7 A$80.2

-49.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.3 MYR 271

$49.40 A$71.1

34.23%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

Cinema Ticket

$4.38 MYR 17.87

$15.09 A$21.72

-70.97%

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

$179 MYR 730

$2,371 A$3,412

-92.46%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,511 MYR 18.4K

$30.2K A$43.5K

-85.06%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.42 MYR 198

$80.0 A$115

-39.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$16.60 MYR 67.7

$50.7 A$73.0

-67.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.0 MYR 334

$121 A$174

-32.04%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$87.1 MYR 355

$130 A$188

-33.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$183 MYR 748

$1,759 A$2,531

-89.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$121 MYR 494

$1,390 A$2,000

-91.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$309 MYR 1,261

$3,494 A$5,027

-91.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$251 MYR 1,024

$2,493 A$3,588

-89.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$810 MYR 3,302

$4,383 A$6,307

-81.53%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.06

5.9

-31.19%

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

Last update for Seremban: October 12, 2026

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Seremban

$266 33.5%

Melbourne

$384 13.6% 44.3% $118

Accommodation & Living

Seremban

$121 15.3%

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3% 1047% $1.3K

Eating Out

Seremban

$110 13.9%

Melbourne

$315 11.2% 186% $204

Clothing & Footwear

Seremban

$105 13.3%

Melbourne

$172 6.1% 63.1% $66

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Seremban

$83 10.4%

Melbourne

$317 11.3% 284% $235

Sport & Entertainment

Seremban

$75 9.5%

Melbourne

$80 2.8% 6% $4.5

Getting Around

Seremban

$34 4.2%

Melbourne

$164 5.8% 388% $130

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $183 in Seremban and $1,759 in Melbourne. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 441% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $19.00 in Seremban vs $85.0 in Melbourne for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $384 per month, with Seremban cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Seremban

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🕒 Local time

23:12 11:12 PM

02:12 2:12 AM

3 h ahead of Seremban

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

681,541

5,031,195

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.218 EUR

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.59 MYR (1 MYR = 0.218 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Seremban Melbourne 6,310 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Seremban
Melbourne

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

Seremban vs Melbourne: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Seremban and Melbourne differ by about 255% in total monthly costs ($794 vs $2,821 including rent). Seremban is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 441% lower in Melbourne. 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: $183 in Seremban versus $1,759 in Melbourne. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $179 in Seremban versus $2,371 in Melbourne. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 44% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $794 in Seremban versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Seremban but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Seremban the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Seremban and Melbourne 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 Seremban gentler on the wallet – expenses run 255% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.