Cost of Living Comparison Between Southern Cross and Melbourne Cost of Living Comparison Between Southern Cross and Melbourne

🙂 Solo nomad: Southern Cross is 17.5% cheaper than Melbourne without rent, and 8.2% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Southern Cross is 15.8% cheaper than Melbourne without rent, and 9.7% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.16 A$27.82

$19.2 A$29.41

-5.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.8 A$88.6

$78.6 A$120

-26.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.92 A$15.19

$10.02 A$15.35

-1.00%

Cappuccino

$3.18 A$4.88

$3.67 A$5.62

-13.35%

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

$2.23 A$3.42

$2.54 A$3.89

-12.20%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.65 A$2.53

$2.28 A$3.49

-27.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.52 A$9.98

$7.28 A$11.15

-10.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.59 A$11.63

$7.3 A$11.18

3.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.25

$1.44 A$2.2

2.08%

White Bread (500g)

$2.32 A$3.56

$2.63 A$4.02

-11.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.03 A$3.11

$2.27 A$3.48

-10.57%

Eggs

$2.64 A$4.05

$4.86 A$7.45

-45.68%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.55 A$13.1

$8.74 A$13.39

-2.17%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.59 A$13.16

$9.19 A$14.07

-6.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.43 A$20.57

$14.95 A$22.9

-10.17%

Apples (1kg)

$3.28 A$5.02

$3.33 A$5.1

-1.50%

Banana (1kg)

$2.83 A$4.33

$2.84 A$4.35

-0.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.88 A$4.41

$3 A$4.6

-4.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.09 A$6.27

$3.95 A$6.05

3.54%

Potato (1kg)

$2.42 A$3.71

$2.67 A$4.09

-9.36%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 A$3.3

$2.34 A$3.58

-8.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.11 A$3.23

$2.15 A$3.3

-1.86%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 A$2.42

$1.64 A$2.5

-3.66%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$33.03 A$50.6

$32.11 A$49.19

2.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 A$19.96

$13.13 A$20.11

-0.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.48 A$6.87

$4.54 A$6.96

-1.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.41 A$8.29

$5.05 A$7.74

7.13%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.56 A$3.92

$3.67 A$5.62

-30.25%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$64.1 A$98.2

$118 A$180

-45.57%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.63 A$5.55

$3.65 A$5.6

-0.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.54 A$2.36

$1.34 A$2.05

14.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.7 A$51.6

$27.26 A$41.77

23.62%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.18 A$1.81

$1.19 A$1.82

-0.84%

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

$28.6K A$43.8K

$28.6K A$43.9K

-0.23%

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

$22.4K A$34.3K

$23.5K A$36K

-4.78%

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

$180 A$276

$150 A$230

19.77%

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

$27.49 A$42.12

$20.8 A$31.86

32.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.5 A$82

$51 A$78.2

4.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$47.95 A$73.5

$48.23 A$73.9

-0.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.82 A$24.24

$15.91 A$24.38

-0.57%

Cinema Ticket

$12.85 A$19.69

$16.53 A$25.32

-22.26%

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

$1,630 A$2,497

$1,730 A$2,651

-5.83%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.2K A$18.8K

$19.1K A$29.3K

-36.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68 A$104

$67.8 A$104

0.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.5 A$78.9

$53.7 A$82.2

-4.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 A$155

$108 A$165

-6.21%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 A$165

$106 A$162

1.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,265 A$1,938

$1,548 A$2,371

-18.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,059 A$1,622

$1,228 A$1,881

-13.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,989 A$3,048

$2,973 A$4,555

-33.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,670 A$2,558

$1,956 A$2,997

-14.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,010 A$9,208

$7,110 A$10.9K

-15.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,301 A$8,122

$5,790 A$8,871

-8.45%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,672 A$10.2K

$4,045 A$6,198

64.92%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.25

6.19

0.97%

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

Last update for Southern Cross: October 29, 2025

Last update for Melbourne: October 28, 2025

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