Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sungai Petani and Dhaka

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $406 a month against $806 in Sungai Petani, rent and utilities included – about $4,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

39

Cost of Living Index in Sungai Petani
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Sungai Petani Living Index
20

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
Learn more

Dhaka Living Index

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Sungai Petani

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$806

/mo nomad

Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$406

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sungai Petani and in Dhaka

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $806 in Sungai Petani versus $406 in Dhaka.

Sungai Petani $806
Dhaka $406

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,201 in Sungai Petani versus $687 in Dhaka.

Sungai Petani $1,201
Dhaka $687

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,596 in Sungai Petani versus $969 in Dhaka.

Sungai Petani $1,596
Dhaka $969

Living in Sungai Petani is roughly 99% more expensive than in Dhaka, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Sungai Petani 40% lower, Dhaka 70% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.43 MYR 9.93

$2.28 ৳282

6.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$16.94 MYR 69.1

$12.33 ৳1,523

37.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.28 MYR 17.46

$3.95 ৳488

8.35%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.48 ৳554

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.13 ৳510

Cappuccino

$2.50 MYR 10.20

$2.28 ৳281

9.65%

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

$0.73 MYR 2.96

$0.33 ৳40.88

121.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.38 MYR 1.56

$0.16 ৳19.86

137.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.67 MYR 14.99

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.46 MYR 18.18

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 MYR 7.52

$0.85 ৳104

116.47%

White Bread (500g)

$1.05 MYR 4.26

$0.60 ৳74.5

75.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 MYR 6.92

$0.69 ৳85.4

146.38%

Eggs

$2.21 MYR 9.00

$1.23 ৳152

79.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.55 MYR 38.96

$8.80 ৳1,087

8.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.42 MYR 18.04

$3.33 ৳412

32.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.60 MYR 35.07

$6.63 ৳819

29.71%

Apples (1kg)

$3.04 MYR 12.42

$2.85 ৳352

6.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 MYR 6.66

$0.90 ৳111

81.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.62 MYR 10.68

$2.34 ৳289

11.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.42 MYR 5.78

$0.63 ৳78.4

125.40%

Potato (1kg)

$1.06 MYR 4.34

$0.24 ৳29.59

341.67%

Onion (1kg)

$1.07 MYR 4.36

$0.46 ৳57.3

132.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 MYR 4.41

$0.35 ৳42.79

208.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.57 MYR 2.33

$0.28 ৳34.24

103.57%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$12.11 ৳1,496

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.31 ৳656

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.42 ৳794

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MYR 17.54

$3.28 ৳405

31.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.13 MYR 78.0

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.93 MYR 11.95

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.34 MYR 21.78

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 MYR 3.04

$0.42 ৳52.3

78.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.48 MYR 50.9

$22.43 ৳2,772

-44.36%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.67 MYR 6.83

$1.19 ৳147

40.34%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.41 MYR 1.66

$0.39 ৳48.71

5.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.38 MYR 30.13

$3.28 ৳406

125.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.48 MYR 1.95

$1.10 ৳136

-56.36%

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

$42.1K MYR 171.8K

$29.4K ৳3.6M

43.07%

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

$35.8K MYR 146.1K

$32.2K ৳4.0M

11.37%

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

$37.72 MYR 154

$38.28 ৳4,729

-1.46%

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

$9.73 MYR 39.71

$4.09 ৳506

137.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.90 MYR 81.2

$9.02 ৳1,114

120.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$24.69 MYR 101

$13.66 ৳1,688

80.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.83 MYR 60.5

$10.21 ৳1,261

45.25%

Cinema Ticket

$2.88 MYR 11.77

$4.11 ৳508

-29.93%

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

$418 MYR 1,704

$90.7 ৳11.2K

360.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.8K MYR 44.1K

$2,591 ৳320.2K

317.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.8 MYR 240

$17.06 ৳2,108

244.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.57 MYR 145

$21.38 ৳2,641

66.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.9 MYR 302

$51.4 ৳6,355

43.73%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$69.7 MYR 284

$36.78 ৳4,545

89.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$186 MYR 760

$133 ৳16.4K

39.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$244 MYR 995

$65.1 ৳8,041

274.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$494 MYR 2,015

$377 ৳46.6K

30.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$365 MYR 1,488

$192 ৳23.8K

89.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,236 MYR 5,042

$1,621 ৳200.3K

-23.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$480 MYR 1,958

$760 ৳93.9K

-36.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$492 MYR 2,008

$246 ৳30.4K

100.04%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.04

10.48

-61.45%

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

Last update for Sungai Petani: October 10, 2026

Last update for Dhaka: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sungai Petani

$244 30.3%

Dhaka

$65 16% 73.3% $179

Groceries & Markets

Sungai Petani

$244 30.2%

Dhaka

$124 30.5% 49.3% $120

Clothing & Footwear

Sungai Petani

$107 13.3%

Dhaka

$57 14.1% 46.8% $50

Eating Out

Sungai Petani

$94 11.7%

Dhaka

$59 14.6% 36.8% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sungai Petani

$67 8.4%

Dhaka

$51 12.7% 23.7% $16

Sport & Entertainment

Sungai Petani

$30 3.8%

Dhaka

$22 5.4% 28.1% $8.6

Getting Around

Sungai Petani

$19 2.4%

Dhaka

$27 6.7% 42.3% $8.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $186 in Sungai Petani and $133 in Dhaka. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sungai Petani pays 100% 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: $17.00 in Sungai Petani vs $12.00 in Dhaka for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $244 vs $124 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Sungai Petani

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🕒 Local time

23:24 11:24 PM

21:24 9:24 PM

2 h behind Sungai Petani

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,053

21,741,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

Bangladeshi Taka BDT ৳

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.219 EUR

1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD

1,000 BDT = 7.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BDT, USD, EUR to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.58 MYR (1 MYR = 0.219 EUR).

Bangladeshi Taka exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 124 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD). 1 EUR = 139 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.22 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Sungai Petani Dhaka 2,290 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Sungai Petani
Dhaka

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

Sungai Petani vs Dhaka: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 99% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 100% higher in Sungai Petani, 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: $186 in Sungai Petani versus $133 in Dhaka. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $806 per month in Sungai Petani versus $406 in Dhaka – a 99% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Dhaka runs roughly 80% less than in Sungai Petani. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Dhaka gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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, Sungai Petani and Dhaka 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 Dhaka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 99% less than in Sungai Petani. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.