Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Muar

For one person, living is cheaper in Muar: $951 a month against $3,267 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $27,800 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
48

Cost of Living Index in Muar
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Muar Living Index

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Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,267

/mo nomad

Muar

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$951

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Muar

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,267 in Sydney versus $951 in Muar.

Sydney $3,267
Muar $951

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,847 in Sydney versus $1,505 in Muar.

Sydney $4,847
Muar $1,505

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,428 in Sydney versus $2,059 in Muar.

Sydney $6,428
Muar $2,059

Living in Sydney is roughly 244% more expensive than in Muar, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Sydney is 140% above, Muar is 30% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.50 A$24.88

$4.82 MYR 19.72

263.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$90.4 A$128

$29.01 MYR 119

211.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.96 A$17.00

$3.88 MYR 15.86

208.25%

Cappuccino

$4.00 A$5.69

$3.05 MYR 12.46

31.15%

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

$2.81 A$4.00

$0.76 MYR 3.12

269.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.22 A$3.16

$0.46 MYR 1.88

382.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.13 A$11.57

$4.44 MYR 18.14

83.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.20 A$10.24

$6.27 MYR 25.63

14.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 A$2.42

$2.13 MYR 8.72

-20.19%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.18

$1.07 MYR 4.37

174.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 A$3.58

$1.85 MYR 7.58

35.68%

Eggs

$5.66 A$8.05

$2.44 MYR 9.96

131.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.22 A$17.37

$14.25 MYR 58.3

-14.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.31 A$13.24

$4.44 MYR 18.17

109.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.87 A$23.99

$9.95 MYR 40.68

69.55%

Apples (1kg)

$3.90 A$5.55

$3.36 MYR 13.75

16.07%

Banana (1kg)

$3.22 A$4.58

$1.85 MYR 7.55

74.05%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.43 A$4.88

$2.25 MYR 9.19

52.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.33 A$6.16

$1.51 MYR 6.19

186.75%

Potato (1kg)

$3.35 A$4.76

$1.22 MYR 4.97

174.59%

Onion (1kg)

$2.40 A$3.41

$1.37 MYR 5.60

75.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.34 A$3.33

$1.16 MYR 4.74

101.72%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 A$1.65

$0.71 MYR 2.91

63.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$45.47 A$64.7

$4.45 MYR 18.19

921.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.99 A$19.89

$19.48 MYR 79.7

-28.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.11 A$5.84

$3.48 MYR 14.24

18.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.18 A$5.94

$4.99 MYR 20.42

-16.23%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.12 A$4.44

$0.64 MYR 2.63

387.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$152 A$216

$10.62 MYR 43.43

1329.38%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.46 A$4.92

$1.19 MYR 4.85

190.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 A$2.22

$1.25 MYR 5.10

24.80%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.54 A$56.2

$4.87 MYR 19.93

711.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 A$2.06

$0.81 MYR 3.32

79.01%

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

$29.9K A$42.5K

$44.4K MYR 181.6K

-32.70%

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

$27.5K A$39.1K

$34.9K MYR 142.5K

-21.07%

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

$251 A$357

$62.0 MYR 254

304.38%

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

$27.76 A$39.47

$8.88 MYR 36.32

212.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$58.0 A$82.5

$26.21 MYR 107

121.25%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$70.7 A$100

$37.02 MYR 151

90.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.25 A$33.06

$5.79 MYR 23.66

301.55%

Cinema Ticket

$17.83 A$25.35

$4.85 MYR 19.83

267.63%

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

$2,358 A$3,353

$240 MYR 981

883.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$27.2K A$38.7K

$13.3K MYR 54.5K

104.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.5 A$114

$72.2 MYR 295

11.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$69.3 A$98.5

$41.83 MYR 171

65.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$157

$84.3 MYR 345

31.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$127 A$181

$96.3 MYR 394

32.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,566 A$3,648

$445 MYR 1,818

477.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,792 A$2,549

$253 MYR 1,033

609.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,202 A$7,396

$617 MYR 2,521

743.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,156 A$4,488

$518 MYR 2,117

509.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.4K A$19.0K

$2,001 MYR 8,180

569.19%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,727 A$12.4K

$1,229 MYR 5,023

610.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,118 A$5,856

$603 MYR 2,465

583.15%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.92

4.17

41.97%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 24, 2026

Last update for Muar: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.8K 54.9%

Muar

$253 26.6% 85.9% $1.5K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$382 11.7%

Muar

$274 28.9% 28.2% $108

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$337 10.3%

Muar

$97 10.2% 71.1% $239

Eating Out

Sydney

$299 9.2%

Muar

$126 13.3% 57.7% $173

Getting Around

Sydney

$176 5.4%

Muar

$21 2.2% 88.3% $155

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$175 5.3%

Muar

$133 14% 24% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$106 3.3%

Muar

$47 4.9% 56.1% $60

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,566 in Sydney and $445 in Muar. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sydney pays about 6.8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $90 in Sydney vs $29 in Muar for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $382 vs $274 per month, with Muar cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇲🇾 Muar

🕒 Local time

06:31 6:31 AM

03:31 3:31 AM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

314,776

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.703 USD

1 AUD = 0.631 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 27, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 AUD (1 AUD = 0.703 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 AUD (1 AUD = 0.631 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 27, 2026: 1 USD = 4.09 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.56 MYR (1 MYR = 0.219 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

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Sydney Muar 6,460 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Sydney
Muar

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 Muar: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sydney and Muar differ by about 244% in total monthly costs ($3,267 vs $951 including rent). Muar is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Sydney is about 6.8 times higher, 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: $2,566 in Sydney versus $445 in Muar. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Muar runs roughly 93% less than in Sydney. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you’re watching your budget.

Childcare runs $2,358 in Sydney versus $240 in Muar. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $951 in Muar versus $3,267 in Sydney, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Muar but tight or insufficient in Sydney. The gap between the two cities makes Muar the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Muar is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Sydney, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Sydney and Muar 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 Muar gentler on the wallet – expenses run 71% less than in Sydney. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.