Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Kuala Lipis

For one person, living is cheaper in Kuala Lipis: $939 a month against $3,152 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $26,600 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
45

Cost of Living Index in Kuala Lipis
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Kuala Lipis Living Index

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Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,152

/mo nomad

Kuala Lipis

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$939

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Kuala Lipis

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

A single person spends $3,152 per month in Sydney vs $939 in Kuala Lipis, rent included.

Sydney $3,152
Kuala Lipis $939

A couple spends around $4,710 per month in Sydney vs $1,395 in Kuala Lipis, rent included.

Sydney $4,710
Kuala Lipis $1,395

A family of three spends $6,268 per month in Sydney vs $1,852 in Kuala Lipis, rent included.

Sydney $6,268
Kuala Lipis $1,852

Sydney costs about 236% more than Kuala Lipis, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sydney sits 133% above the global median, while Kuala Lipis is 30% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.57 A$25.29

$3.72 MYR 15.17

372.31%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.5 A$132

$24.25 MYR 98.9

277.24%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.96 A$17.21

$4.97 MYR 20.26

140.64%

Cappuccino

$4.07 A$5.85

$3.12 MYR 12.74

30.45%

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

$2.85 A$4.10

$0.85 MYR 3.47

235.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 A$3.24

$0.45 MYR 1.83

400.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.60 A$10.94

$3.37 MYR 13.76

125.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.43 A$10.69

$5.84 MYR 23.84

27.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 A$2.38

$1.93 MYR 7.86

-13.99%

White Bread (500g)

$2.78 A$4.00

$1.07 MYR 4.36

159.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 A$3.49

$1.47 MYR 6.00

64.63%

Eggs

$5.64 A$8.12

$1.86 MYR 7.57

203.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.71 A$16.85

$9.63 MYR 39.28

21.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.66 A$13.89

$3.30 MYR 13.45

192.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.75 A$24.10

$9.46 MYR 38.59

77.06%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 A$5.85

$3.47 MYR 14.16

17.29%

Banana (1kg)

$3.25 A$4.68

$1.87 MYR 7.64

73.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.44 A$4.96

$2.63 MYR 10.75

30.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.28 A$6.16

$1.74 MYR 7.09

145.98%

Potato (1kg)

$3.28 A$4.72

$2.10 MYR 8.59

56.19%

Onion (1kg)

$2.30 A$3.30

$1.95 MYR 7.95

17.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.30 A$3.31

$1.44 MYR 5.89

59.72%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 A$1.74

$0.51 MYR 2.09

137.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$43.71 A$62.9

$4.55 MYR 18.56

860.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.88 A$19.97

$19.95 MYR 81.4

-30.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.90 A$5.62

$2.76 MYR 11.28

41.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 A$5.63

$4.68 MYR 19.11

-16.45%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.04 A$4.38

$0.70 MYR 2.86

334.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$150 A$216

$14.01 MYR 57.1

972.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.38 A$4.86

$1.21 MYR 4.93

179.34%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 A$2.24

$0.38 MYR 1.57

310.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.01 A$57.6

$8.96 MYR 36.55

346.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 A$2.01

$0.86 MYR 3.52

62.79%

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

$29.1K A$41.9K

$42.4K MYR 172.9K

-31.30%

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

$30.1K A$43.4K

$32.6K MYR 133.1K

-7.66%

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

$223 A$320

$50.1 MYR 205

343.96%

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

$27.16 A$39.08

$8.01 MYR 32.68

239.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.8 A$80.3

$26.76 MYR 109

108.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.6 A$107

$38.90 MYR 159

91.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.99 A$34.52

$6.94 MYR 28.30

245.68%

Cinema Ticket

$17.56 A$25.27

$4.91 MYR 20.05

257.64%

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

$2,196 A$3,160

$274 MYR 1,119

700.59%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.2K A$40.6K

$10.5K MYR 42.6K

169.66%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.4 A$113

$52.2 MYR 213

50.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$68.4 A$98.5

$29.64 MYR 121

130.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$160

$77.9 MYR 318

42.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 A$193

$85.9 MYR 350

56.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,500 A$3,598

$433 MYR 1,767

477.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,709 A$2,460

$309 MYR 1,260

453.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,946 A$7,117

$777 MYR 3,171

536.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,022 A$4,349

$467 MYR 1,907

546.48%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.2K A$18.9K

$1,798 MYR 7,336

632.26%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,370 A$12.0K

$1,129 MYR 4,606

641.32%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,113 A$5,919

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.84

4.51

29.49%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 11, 2026

Last update for Kuala Lipis: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.7K 54.2%

Kuala Lipis

$309 32.9% 81.9% $1.4K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$379 12%

Kuala Lipis

$250 26.6% 33.9% $128

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$306 9.7%

Kuala Lipis

$85 9% 72.2% $221

Eating Out

Sydney

$299 9.5%

Kuala Lipis

$116 12.3% 61.2% $183

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$177 5.6%

Kuala Lipis

$111 11.8% 37.4% $66

Getting Around

Sydney

$174 5.5%

Kuala Lipis

$20 2.1% 88.5% $154

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$110 3.5%

Kuala Lipis

$49 5.2% 55.6% $61

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,500 in Sydney versus $433 in Kuala Lipis. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $91.0 in Sydney versus $24.00 in Kuala Lipis. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $379 vs $250 – making Kuala Lipis the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇲🇾 Kuala Lipis

🕒 Local time

17:04 5:04 PM

14:04 2:04 PM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

20,000

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.218 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MYR, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.59 MYR (1 MYR = 0.218 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Sydney Kuala Lipis 6,670 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Sydney
Kuala Lipis

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 Kuala Lipis: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Sydney is pricier by about 236%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,728 per month in Sydney and $1,408 in Kuala Lipis. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Kuala Lipis, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $3,152 in Sydney and $939 in Kuala Lipis. That's a gap of about 236%.

Public transport costs about 972% less in Kuala Lipis. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Kuala Lipis, where all-in costs run around $939, than in Sydney at $3,152. In Kuala Lipis it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sydney it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Kuala Lipis – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Kuala Lipis. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Sydney makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.