Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Kulim

For one person, living is cheaper in Kulim: $891 a month against $3,267 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $28,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

157

Cost of Living Index in Sydney
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Sydney Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Kulim
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Kulim Living Index

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Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,267

/mo nomad

Kulim

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$891

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Kulim

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

A single person spends $3,267 per month in Sydney vs $891 in Kulim, rent included.

Sydney $3,267
Kulim $891

A couple spends around $4,847 per month in Sydney vs $1,374 in Kulim, rent included.

Sydney $4,847
Kulim $1,374

A family of three spends $6,428 per month in Sydney vs $1,857 in Kulim, rent included.

Sydney $6,428
Kulim $1,857

Sydney costs about 267% more than Kulim, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sydney sits 140% above the global median, while Kulim is 35% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.50 A$24.87

$3.72 MYR 15.17

370.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$90.4 A$128

$19.45 MYR 79.3

364.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.96 A$16.99

$4.53 MYR 18.45

164.02%

Cappuccino

$4.00 A$5.68

$2.89 MYR 11.76

38.41%

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

$2.81 A$4.00

$0.78 MYR 3.19

260.26%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.22 A$3.16

$0.42 MYR 1.70

428.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.13 A$11.56

$3.90 MYR 15.90

108.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.20 A$10.23

$4.61 MYR 18.76

56.18%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 A$2.42

$1.96 MYR 7.97

-13.27%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.17

$1.23 MYR 5.00

139.02%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 A$3.57

$1.30 MYR 5.29

93.08%

Eggs

$5.66 A$8.04

$2.23 MYR 9.07

153.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.22 A$17.36

$12.68 MYR 51.7

-3.63%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.31 A$13.24

$3.85 MYR 15.70

141.82%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.87 A$23.97

$10.72 MYR 43.69

57.37%

Apples (1kg)

$3.90 A$5.54

$3.05 MYR 12.42

27.87%

Banana (1kg)

$3.22 A$4.58

$1.89 MYR 7.68

70.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.43 A$4.88

$2.55 MYR 10.37

34.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.33 A$6.16

$1.44 MYR 5.88

200.69%

Potato (1kg)

$3.35 A$4.75

$1.19 MYR 4.83

181.51%

Onion (1kg)

$2.40 A$3.41

$1.36 MYR 5.54

76.47%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.34 A$3.32

$1.08 MYR 4.41

116.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 A$1.65

$0.53 MYR 2.15

118.87%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$45.47 A$64.6

$4.47 MYR 18.22

917.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.99 A$19.88

$21.05 MYR 85.8

-33.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.11 A$5.84

$3.07 MYR 12.49

33.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.18 A$5.94

$3.90 MYR 15.90

7.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.12 A$4.44

$0.75 MYR 3.06

316.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$152 A$216

$12.64 MYR 51.5

1100.95%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.46 A$4.92

$1.04 MYR 4.23

232.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 A$2.22

$0.56 MYR 2.28

178.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.54 A$56.2

$8.26 MYR 33.64

378.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 A$2.05

$0.74 MYR 3.00

95.95%

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

$29.9K A$42.5K

$48.9K MYR 199.1K

-38.82%

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

$27.5K A$39.1K

$30.9K MYR 125.9K

-10.98%

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

$251 A$356

$45.19 MYR 184

455.08%

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

$27.76 A$39.44

$8.70 MYR 35.44

219.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$58.0 A$82.4

$25.83 MYR 105

124.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$70.7 A$100

$36.10 MYR 147

95.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.25 A$33.04

$7.37 MYR 30.04

215.47%

Cinema Ticket

$17.83 A$25.33

$4.46 MYR 18.16

299.78%

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

$2,358 A$3,351

$268 MYR 1,091

781.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$27.2K A$38.6K

$7,096 MYR 28.9K

283.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.5 A$114

$62.2 MYR 253

29.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$69.3 A$98.5

$30.78 MYR 125

125.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$157

$77.2 MYR 314

43.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$127 A$181

$70.8 MYR 289

79.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,566 A$3,646

$419 MYR 1,707

512.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,792 A$2,547

$265 MYR 1,079

576.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,202 A$7,391

$763 MYR 3,110

581.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,156 A$4,485

$497 MYR 2,026

534.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.4K A$19.0K

$2,141 MYR 8,723

525.40%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,727 A$12.4K

$1,272 MYR 5,184

585.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,118 A$5,851

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.92

4.06

45.81%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 24, 2026

Last update for Kulim: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.8K 54.9%

Kulim

$265 29.7% 85.2% $1.5K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$382 11.7%

Kulim

$262 29.4% 31.6% $121

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$337 10.3%

Kulim

$80 9% 76.3% $257

Eating Out

Sydney

$299 9.2%

Kulim

$112 12.5% 62.7% $188

Getting Around

Sydney

$176 5.4%

Kulim

$19 2.2% 88.9% $156

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$175 5.3%

Kulim

$108 12.2% 37.9% $66

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$106 3.3%

Kulim

$45 5.1% 57.7% $61

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,566 in Sydney versus $419 in Kulim. 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 $90 in Sydney versus $19 in Kulim. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $382 vs $262 – making Kulim the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇲🇾 Kulim

🕒 Local time

01:21 1:21 AM

22:21 10:21 PM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

319,056

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.704 USD

1 AUD = 0.632 EUR

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.221 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 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 AUD (1 AUD = 0.704 USD). 1 EUR = 1.58 AUD (1 AUD = 0.632 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 4.07 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.53 MYR (1 MYR = 0.221 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

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Sydney Kulim 6,880 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

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Kulim

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 Kulim: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sydney costs about 267% more than Kulim, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,900 per month in Sydney and $1,336 in Kulim. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Kulim, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $419 there versus $2,566 in Sydney.

Groceries cost about 46% more in Sydney, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $90 in Sydney and $19 in Kulim. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $3,267 in Sydney and $891 in Kulim. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward Kulim – 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.

For expats, Kulim is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and the 267% gap matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.