Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Malaysia

Name: Malaysia
Address: MY

For one person, living is cheaper in Malaysia: $908 a month against $3,182 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $27,300 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
44

Cost of Living Index in Malaysia
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Malaysia Living Index

Jump to prices

Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,182

/mo nomad

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$908

/mo nomad

😐 Solo nomad: Sydney is 117.7% more expensive than Malaysia without rent, and 250.4% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Sydney is 136% more expensive than Malaysia without rent, and 239.1% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.66 A$25.28

$3.68 MYR 15.03

379.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$97.1 A$139

$19.24 MYR 78.5

404.63%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.94 A$17.09

$4.82 MYR 19.69

147.72%

Cappuccino

$4.00 A$5.72

$2.87 MYR 11.70

39.37%

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

$2.84 A$4.06

$0.81 MYR 3.30

250.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 A$3.25

$0.41 MYR 1.67

453.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.89 A$11.29

$3.75 MYR 15.32

110.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.13 A$10.20

$4.76 MYR 19.45

49.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 A$2.38

$1.90 MYR 7.74

-12.63%

White Bread (500g)

$2.79 A$4.00

$1.06 MYR 4.32

163.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.32 A$3.33

$1.48 MYR 6.05

56.76%

Eggs

$5.53 A$7.92

$2.16 MYR 8.83

156.02%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.08 A$17.28

$13.27 MYR 54.2

-8.97%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.84 A$14.09

$4.07 MYR 16.60

141.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.61 A$23.78

$8.71 MYR 35.56

90.70%

Apples (1kg)

$4.02 A$5.76

$3.04 MYR 12.40

32.24%

Banana (1kg)

$3.15 A$4.51

$1.66 MYR 6.80

89.76%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.50 A$5.01

$2.59 MYR 10.59

35.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.47 A$6.39

$1.58 MYR 6.46

182.91%

Potato (1kg)

$3.32 A$4.76

$1.22 MYR 4.99

172.13%

Onion (1kg)

$2.30 A$3.30

$1.28 MYR 5.23

79.69%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.34 A$3.35

$1.17 MYR 4.77

100.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 A$1.65

$0.56 MYR 2.27

105.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$45.02 A$64.4

$4.51 MYR 18.41

898.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.96 A$19.97

$19.23 MYR 78.5

-27.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.98 A$5.70

$2.97 MYR 12.13

34.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.07 A$5.82

$4.04 MYR 16.51

0.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.16 A$4.52

$0.72 MYR 2.94

338.89%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$150 A$215

$12.43 MYR 50.8

1106.44%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.45 A$4.94

$1.19 MYR 4.86

189.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.63 A$2.33

$0.95 MYR 3.88

71.58%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.98 A$57.2

$6.10 MYR 24.92

555.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 A$2.01

$0.66 MYR 2.69

112.12%

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

$28.4K A$40.7K

$41.1K MYR 167.7K

-30.78%

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

$29.4K A$42.1K

$34.5K MYR 141.0K

-14.82%

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

$220 A$315

$55.4 MYR 226

297.27%

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

$27.70 A$39.64

$10.14 MYR 41.40

173.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.5 A$79.5

$27.39 MYR 112

102.74%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.3 A$106

$37.46 MYR 153

98.40%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.95 A$34.28

$7.20 MYR 29.39

232.64%

Cinema Ticket

$17.73 A$25.37

$5.01 MYR 20.44

253.89%

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

$2,157 A$3,087

$191 MYR 778

1031.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.3K A$40.5K

$8,217 MYR 33.5K

244.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.4 A$112

$63.2 MYR 258

24.05%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$70.5 A$101

$33.41 MYR 136

111.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$159

$80.0 MYR 327

39.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$132 A$189

$71.9 MYR 294

83.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,514 A$3,598

$401 MYR 1,636

527.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,732 A$2,478

$272 MYR 1,112

535.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,889 A$6,996

$705 MYR 2,880

593.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,039 A$4,349

$467 MYR 1,909

550.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.2K A$18.9K

$2,042 MYR 8,337

547.11%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,117 A$11.6K

$1,181 MYR 4,822

587.32%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,082 A$5,842

$917 MYR 3,745

345.05%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.84

4.23

38.06%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 5, 2026

Last update for Malaysia: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.7K 54.5%

Malaysia

$272 29.9% 84.3% $1.5K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$380 12%

Malaysia

$253 27.8% 33.5% $128

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$303 9.6%

Malaysia

$93 10.2% 69.4% $210

Eating Out

Sydney

$299 9.4%

Malaysia

$111 12.3% 62.8% $188

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$176 5.6%

Malaysia

$112 12.3% 36.6% $65

Getting Around

Sydney

$174 5.5%

Malaysia

$21 2.3% 87.8% $153

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$110 3.5%

Malaysia

$47 5.2% 56.8% $62

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇲🇾 Malaysia

🕒 Local time

22:05 10:05 PM

19:05 7:05 PM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

32,447,385

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.699 USD

1 AUD = 0.624 EUR

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.219 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.699 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.624 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.58 MYR (1 MYR = 0.219 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Sydney Malaysia 6,620 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Sydney
Malaysia

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

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