Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Starkville, MS and Macao

For one person, living is cheaper in Starkville, MS: $1,796 a month against $2,139 in Macao, rent and utilities included – about $4,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

87

Cost of Living Index in Starkville, MS
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Starkville, MS Living Index
104

Cost of Living Index in Macao
Learn more

Macao Living Index

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Starkville, MS

🇺🇸 United States

$1,796

/mo nomad

Macao

🇲🇴 Macao (China)

$2,139

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Starkville, MS and in Macao

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,796 in Starkville, MS versus $2,139 in Macao.

Starkville, MS $1,796
Macao $2,139

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,733 in Starkville, MS versus $3,023 in Macao.

Starkville, MS $2,733
Macao $3,023

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,669 in Starkville, MS versus $3,906 in Macao.

Starkville, MS $3,669
Macao $3,906

Living in Starkville, MS costs roughly 16% less than in Macao, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Starkville, MS 33% above, Macao 58% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.85 $14.85

$6.21 MOP 50.2

139.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$59.8 $59.8

$55.3 MOP 447

8.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.46 $8.46

$5.79 MOP 46.84

46.11%

Cappuccino

$4.27 $4.27

$4.93 MOP 39.81

-13.39%

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

$2.38 $2.38

$1.01 MOP 8.13

135.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 $1.85

$0.93 MOP 7.49

98.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.97 $3.97

$5.84 MOP 47.17

-32.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.94 $6.94

$7.49 MOP 60.6

-7.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.88 $0.88

$3.23 MOP 26.10

-72.76%

White Bread (500g)

$3.19 $3.19

$1.70 MOP 13.75

87.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.68 $2.68

$1.74 MOP 14.03

54.02%

Eggs

$4.21 $4.21

$3.39 MOP 27.38

24.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.34 $9.34

$15.91 MOP 129

-41.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.36 $11.36

$19.45 MOP 157

-41.59%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.05 $15.05

$28.73 MOP 232

-47.62%

Apples (1kg)

$3.81 $3.81

$2.59 MOP 20.96

47.10%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 $1.39

$2.90 MOP 23.48

-52.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.45 $3.45

$1.94 MOP 15.70

77.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.95 $2.95

$2.34 MOP 18.92

26.07%

Potato (1kg)

$2.18 $2.18

$4.05 MOP 32.72

-46.17%

Onion (1kg)

$2.19 $2.19

$2.81 MOP 22.73

-22.06%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.14 $2.14

$0.63 MOP 5.09

239.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.92 $1.92

$1.14 MOP 9.23

68.42%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.41 $8.41

$6.61 MOP 53.5

27.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.11 $10.11

$12.32 MOP 99.6

-17.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 $1.63

$1.70 MOP 13.77

-4.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.30 $3.30

$2.23 MOP 18.05

47.98%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.73 MOP 5.87

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.85 MOP 185

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.41 $4.41

$2.54 MOP 20.53

73.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.87 $1.87

$1.24 MOP 10.01

50.81%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.98 $32.98

$14.67 MOP 119

124.81%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.87 $0.87

$1.85 MOP 14.94

-52.97%

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

$30.4K $30.4K

$30.5K MOP 246.9K

-0.56%

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

$25.7K $25.7K

$31.9K MOP 258.1K

-19.48%

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

$169 $169

$124 MOP 1,004

36.29%

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

$30.57 $30.57

$23.42 MOP 189

30.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.3 $52.3

$36.77 MOP 297

42.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$17.28 $17.28

$65.2 MOP 527

-73.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.78 MOP 30.56

Cinema Ticket

$8.19 $8.19

$14.84 MOP 120

-44.81%

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

$1,534 $1,534

$1,197 MOP 9,679

28.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,370 $8,370

$19.0K MOP 153.9K

-56.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.7 $72.7

$69.9 MOP 565

4.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$52.2 $52.2

$32.93 MOP 266

58.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$86.9 $86.9

$93.3 MOP 754

-6.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$168 $168

$134 MOP 1,081

25.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$942 $942

$1,132 MOP 9,153

-16.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$748 $748

$1,077 MOP 8,702

-30.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,584 $1,584

$2,106 MOP 17.0K

-24.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,349 $1,349

$1,474 MOP 11.9K

-8.47%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,125 $2,125

$8,212 MOP 66.4K

-74.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,183 $2,183

$5,513 MOP 44.6K

-60.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,273 $4,273

$2,054 MOP 16.6K

108.02%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.65

121.67%

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

Last update for Starkville, MS: October 18, 2026

Last update for Macao: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Starkville, MS

$748 41.6%

Macao

$1.1K 50.3% 43.9% $329

Groceries & Markets

Starkville, MS

$332 18.5%

Macao

$422 19.8% 27.4% $91

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Starkville, MS

$252 14%

Macao

$184 8.6% 26.9% $68

Eating Out

Starkville, MS

$246 13.7%

Macao

$178 8.3% 27.6% $68

Clothing & Footwear

Starkville, MS

$171 9.5%

Macao

$148 6.9% 13.3% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Starkville, MS

$34 1.9%

Macao

$95 4.4% 182% $61

Getting Around

Starkville, MS

$14 * 0.8%

Macao

$34 1.6% 151% $21

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $942 in Starkville, MS and $1,132 in Macao. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Starkville, MS pays 108% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $60.0 in Starkville, MS vs $55.0 in Macao. Groceries flip the comparison at $332 vs $422, with Starkville, MS cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Starkville, MS

🇲🇴 Macao

🕒 Local time

04:59 4:59 AM

17:59 5:59 PM

13 h ahead of Starkville, MS

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

22,638

622,567 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Macanese Pataca MOP P

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1 MOP = 0.124 USD

1 MOP = 0.11 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MOP, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇲🇴 Macanese Pataca (P)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Macanese Pataca exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 8.08 MOP (1 MOP = 0.124 USD). 1 EUR = 9.09 MOP (1 MOP = 0.11 EUR).

MOP to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Starkville, MS Macao 13,390 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Starkville, MS
Macao

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

Starkville, MS vs Macao: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Starkville, MS wins on cost – living expenses run 19% lower than in Macao. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Starkville, MS the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 108% higher in Starkville, MS, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $942 in Starkville, MS versus $1,132 in Macao. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 27% higher in Macao. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,796 per month in Starkville, MS versus $2,139 in Macao – a 19% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,796 in Starkville, MS versus $2,139 in Macao, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Starkville, MS but tight or insufficient in Macao. The gap between the two cities makes Starkville, MS 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, Starkville, MS and Macao 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 Starkville, MS gentler on the wallet – expenses run 19% less than in Macao. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.