Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Keelung

For one person, living is cheaper in Keelung: $978 a month against $3,152 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $26,100 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
47

Cost of Living Index in Keelung
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Keelung Living Index

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Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,152

/mo nomad

Keelung

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$978

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Keelung

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 Keelung actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,152 in Sydney versus $978 in Keelung.

Sydney $3,152
Keelung $978

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,710 in Sydney versus $1,717 in Keelung.

Sydney $4,710
Keelung $1,717

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,268 in Sydney versus $2,457 in Keelung.

Sydney $6,268
Keelung $2,457

Living in Sydney is roughly 222% more expensive than in Keelung, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Sydney is 133% above, Keelung is 28% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.57 A$25.29

$4.65 NT$151

277.85%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.5 A$132

$31.92 NT$1,035

186.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.96 A$17.21

$4.85 NT$157

146.60%

Cappuccino

$4.07 A$5.85

$2.85 NT$92.4

42.81%

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

$2.85 A$4.10

$1.03 NT$33.31

176.70%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 A$3.24

$0.73 NT$23.60

208.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.60 A$10.94

$1.54 NT$50.1

393.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.43 A$10.69

$2.81 NT$91.1

164.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 A$2.38

$3.24 NT$105

-48.77%

White Bread (500g)

$2.78 A$4.00

$1.39 NT$45.01

100.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 A$3.49

$1.12 NT$36.44

116.07%

Eggs

$5.64 A$8.12

$2.22 NT$72.1

154.05%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.71 A$16.85

$29.36 NT$952

-60.12%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.66 A$13.89

$5.83 NT$189

65.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.75 A$24.10

$17.08 NT$554

-1.93%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 A$5.85

$4.35 NT$141

-6.44%

Banana (1kg)

$3.25 A$4.68

$1.89 NT$61.4

71.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.44 A$4.96

$3.02 NT$98.0

13.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.28 A$6.16

$2.16 NT$70.1

98.15%

Potato (1kg)

$3.28 A$4.72

$1.19 NT$38.69

175.63%

Onion (1kg)

$2.30 A$3.30

$1.90 NT$61.6

21.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.30 A$3.31

$2.42 NT$78.5

-4.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 A$1.74

$0.91 NT$29.60

32.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$43.71 A$62.9

$3.76 NT$122

1062.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.88 A$19.97

$9.24 NT$300

50.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.90 A$5.62

$1.09 NT$35.21

257.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 A$5.63

$2.56 NT$83.0

52.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.04 A$4.38

$0.64 NT$20.87

375.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$150 A$216

$63.7 NT$2,064

135.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.38 A$4.86

$2.61 NT$84.7

29.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 A$2.24

$0.96 NT$31.16

62.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.01 A$57.6

$9.61 NT$311

316.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 A$2.01

$1.03 NT$33.31

35.92%

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

$29.1K A$41.9K

$33.3K NT$1.1M

-12.57%

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

$30.1K A$43.4K

$23.0K NT$744.6K

31.22%

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

$223 A$320

$41.52 NT$1,346

436.13%

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

$27.16 A$39.08

$15.14 NT$491

79.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.8 A$80.3

$11.07 NT$359

404.25%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.6 A$107

$34.14 NT$1,107

118.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.99 A$34.52

$32.11 NT$1,041

-25.29%

Cinema Ticket

$17.56 A$25.27

$7.92 NT$257

121.72%

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

$2,196 A$3,160

$336 NT$10.9K

554.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.2K A$40.6K

$16.9K NT$546.4K

67.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.4 A$113

$73.0 NT$2,368

7.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$68.4 A$98.5

$36.15 NT$1,172

89.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$160

$47.16 NT$1,529

135.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 A$193

$31.66 NT$1,027

324.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,500 A$3,598

$401 NT$13.0K

524.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,709 A$2,460

$254 NT$8,247

572.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,946 A$7,117

$978 NT$31.7K

405.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,022 A$4,349

$731 NT$23.7K

313.60%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.2K A$18.9K

$3,385 NT$109.8K

289.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,370 A$12.0K

$2,352 NT$76.3K

255.94%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,113 A$5,919

$2,436 NT$79.0K

68.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.84

2.27

157.27%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 11, 2026

Last update for Keelung: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.7K 54.2%

Keelung

$254 26% 85.1% $1.5K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$379 12%

Keelung

$341 34.9% 9.8% $37

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$306 9.7%

Keelung

$68 6.9% 77.8% $238

Eating Out

Sydney

$299 9.5%

Keelung

$106 10.9% 64.4% $192

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$177 5.6%

Keelung

$85 8.7% 52.1% $92

Getting Around

Sydney

$174 5.5%

Keelung

$74 7.5% 57.6% $100

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$110 3.5%

Keelung

$50 5.1% 54.4% $60

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,500 in Sydney and $401 in Keelung. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sydney pays 69% 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 $32.00 in Keelung for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $379 vs $341 per month, with Keelung cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇹🇼 Keelung

🕒 Local time

05:07 5:07 AM

02:07 2:07 AM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

372,100

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

100 TWD = 3.08 USD

100 TWD = 2.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TWD, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 32.43 TWD (100 TWD = 3.08 USD). 1 EUR = 36.46 TWD (100 TWD = 2.74 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

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Sydney Keelung 7,260 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

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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 Keelung: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sydney and Keelung differ by about 222% in total monthly costs ($3,152 vs $978 including rent). Keelung is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 69% 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 $401 in Keelung. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 11% higher in Sydney. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Keelung – a meal for two runs $32.00 versus $91.0 in Sydney. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $978 in Keelung versus $3,152 in Sydney, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Keelung but tight or insufficient in Sydney. The gap between the two cities makes Keelung 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, Sydney and Keelung 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 Keelung gentler on the wallet – expenses run 222% less than in Sydney. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.