Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Adelaide

For one person, living is cheaper in Adelaide: $2,640 a month against $3,152 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

155

Cost of Living Index in Sydney
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Sydney Living Index
128

Cost of Living Index in Adelaide
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Adelaide Living Index

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Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,152

/mo nomad

Adelaide

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,640

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Adelaide

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,152 in Sydney versus $2,640 in Adelaide.

Sydney $3,152
Adelaide $2,640

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,710 in Sydney versus $3,749 in Adelaide.

Sydney $4,710
Adelaide $3,749

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,268 in Sydney versus $4,857 in Adelaide.

Sydney $6,268
Adelaide $4,857

Living in Sydney is roughly 19% more expensive than in Adelaide, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Sydney 133% above, Adelaide 96% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.57 A$25.29

$17.70 A$25.46

-0.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.5 A$132

$81.1 A$117

12.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.96 A$17.21

$11.86 A$17.06

0.84%

Cappuccino

$4.07 A$5.85

$4.07 A$5.86

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

$2.85 A$4.10

$2.84 A$4.08

0.35%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 A$3.24

$2.52 A$3.62

-10.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.60 A$10.94

$7.50 A$10.79

1.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.43 A$10.69

$8.48 A$12.20

-12.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 A$2.38

$1.90 A$2.74

-12.63%

White Bread (500g)

$2.78 A$4.00

$2.82 A$4.07

-1.42%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 A$3.49

$2.24 A$3.23

8.04%

Eggs

$5.64 A$8.12

$5.94 A$8.54

-5.05%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.71 A$16.85

$11.65 A$16.77

0.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.66 A$13.89

$9.14 A$13.15

5.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.75 A$24.10

$19.25 A$27.70

-12.99%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 A$5.85

$3.88 A$5.59

4.90%

Banana (1kg)

$3.25 A$4.68

$2.98 A$4.29

9.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.44 A$4.96

$3.47 A$4.99

-0.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.28 A$6.16

$5.04 A$7.26

-15.08%

Potato (1kg)

$3.28 A$4.72

$3.30 A$4.75

-0.61%

Onion (1kg)

$2.30 A$3.30

$2.38 A$3.43

-3.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.30 A$3.31

$2.61 A$3.75

-11.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 A$1.74

$2.23 A$3.22

-45.74%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$43.71 A$62.9

$45.17 A$65.0

-3.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.88 A$19.97

$13.83 A$19.91

0.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.90 A$5.62

$5.65 A$8.14

-30.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 A$5.63

$6.12 A$8.81

-36.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.04 A$4.38

$3.08 A$4.43

-1.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$150 A$216

$84.4 A$121

78.10%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.38 A$4.86

$3.43 A$4.94

-1.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 A$2.24

$1.92 A$2.77

-18.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.01 A$57.6

$31.27 A$45.00

27.95%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 A$2.01

$1.37 A$1.97

2.19%

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

$29.1K A$41.9K

$26.8K A$38.5K

8.87%

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

$30.1K A$43.4K

$27.8K A$40.0K

8.29%

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

$223 A$320

$193 A$278

15.25%

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

$27.16 A$39.08

$25.17 A$36.22

7.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.8 A$80.3

$57.8 A$83.2

-3.43%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.6 A$107

$62.7 A$90.2

19.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.99 A$34.52

$14.01 A$20.16

71.23%

Cinema Ticket

$17.56 A$25.27

$16.92 A$24.35

3.78%

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

$2,196 A$3,160

$2,073 A$2,984

5.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.2K A$40.6K

$14.1K A$20.3K

99.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.4 A$113

$72.2 A$104

8.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$68.4 A$98.5

$53.4 A$76.9

28.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$160

$114 A$164

-2.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 A$193

$137 A$198

-2.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,500 A$3,598

$1,699 A$2,444

47.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,709 A$2,460

$1,272 A$1,830

34.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,946 A$7,117

$2,444 A$3,517

102.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,022 A$4,349

$1,797 A$2,586

68.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.2K A$18.9K

$10.2K A$14.7K

28.84%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,370 A$12.0K

$6,768 A$9,739

23.67%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,113 A$5,919

$3,868 A$5,566

6.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.84

5.92

-1.35%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 11, 2026

Last update for Adelaide: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.7K 54.2%

Adelaide

$1.3K 48.2% 25.6% $437

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$379 12%

Adelaide

$415 15.7% 9.6% $36

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$306 9.7%

Adelaide

$276 10.5% 9.6% $29

Eating Out

Sydney

$299 9.5%

Adelaide

$302 11.4% 1.1% $3.3

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$177 5.6%

Adelaide

$169 6.4% 4.1% $7.2

Getting Around

Sydney

$174 5.5%

Adelaide

$110 4.2% 36.8% $64

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$110 3.5%

Adelaide

$97 3.7% 12% $13

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,500 in Sydney and $1,699 in Adelaide. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sydney pays 6% 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: $91.0 in Sydney vs $81.0 in Adelaide. Groceries flip the comparison at $379 vs $415, with Sydney cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇦🇺 Adelaide

🕒 Local time

10:24 10:24 AM

09:54 9:54 AM

30 min behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

1,245,011

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Sydney Adelaide 1,160 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Sydney
Adelaide

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

Sydney vs Adelaide: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sydney and Adelaide differ by about 19% in total monthly costs ($3,152 vs $2,640 including rent). Adelaide is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 6% higher in Sydney, 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: $2,500 in Sydney versus $1,699 in Adelaide. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,196 in Sydney versus $2,073 in Adelaide. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Sydney pay roughly 10% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Both cities are expensive relative to $3,000. Adelaide is the more realistic option, but even there you'll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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, Sydney and Adelaide 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 Adelaide gentler on the wallet – expenses run 19% less than in Sydney. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.