Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Puchong

For one person, living is cheaper in Puchong: $958 a month against $3,152 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $26,300 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
47

Cost of Living Index in Puchong
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Puchong Living Index

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Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,152

/mo nomad

Puchong

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$958

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Puchong

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

A single person spends $3,152 per month in Sydney vs $958 in Puchong, rent included.

Sydney $3,152
Puchong $958

A couple spends around $4,710 per month in Sydney vs $1,421 in Puchong, rent included.

Sydney $4,710
Puchong $1,421

A family of three spends $6,268 per month in Sydney vs $1,884 in Puchong, rent included.

Sydney $6,268
Puchong $1,884

Sydney costs about 229% more than Puchong, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sydney sits 133% above the global median, while Puchong is 29% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.57 A$25.29

$3.61 MYR 14.75

386.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.5 A$132

$18.21 MYR 74.3

402.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.96 A$17.21

$4.86 MYR 19.81

146.09%

Cappuccino

$4.07 A$5.85

$3.17 MYR 12.91

28.39%

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

$2.85 A$4.10

$0.84 MYR 3.44

239.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 A$3.24

$0.56 MYR 2.29

301.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.60 A$10.94

$4.33 MYR 17.66

75.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.43 A$10.69

$6.25 MYR 25.51

18.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 A$2.38

$1.95 MYR 7.97

-14.87%

White Bread (500g)

$2.78 A$4.00

$1.12 MYR 4.56

148.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 A$3.49

$1.49 MYR 6.07

62.42%

Eggs

$5.64 A$8.12

$1.56 MYR 6.35

261.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.71 A$16.85

$14.26 MYR 58.2

-17.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.66 A$13.89

$4.32 MYR 17.62

123.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.75 A$24.10

$9.76 MYR 39.81

71.62%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 A$5.85

$3.31 MYR 13.52

22.96%

Banana (1kg)

$3.25 A$4.68

$1.74 MYR 7.08

86.78%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.44 A$4.96

$2.26 MYR 9.24

52.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.28 A$6.16

$1.52 MYR 6.22

181.58%

Potato (1kg)

$3.28 A$4.72

$1.47 MYR 5.99

123.13%

Onion (1kg)

$2.30 A$3.30

$1.34 MYR 5.48

71.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.30 A$3.31

$1.20 MYR 4.90

91.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 A$1.74

$0.55 MYR 2.25

120.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$43.71 A$62.9

$4.32 MYR 17.63

911.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.88 A$19.97

$14.40 MYR 58.8

-3.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.90 A$5.62

$2.99 MYR 12.21

30.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 A$5.63

$3.09 MYR 12.60

26.54%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.04 A$4.38

$0.85 MYR 3.47

257.65%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$150 A$216

$12.15 MYR 49.57

1136.46%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.38 A$4.86

$1.00 MYR 4.10

238.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 A$2.24

$0.75 MYR 3.05

108.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.01 A$57.6

$4.94 MYR 20.14

709.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 A$2.01

$0.87 MYR 3.57

60.92%

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

$29.1K A$41.9K

$41.7K MYR 170.2K

-30.20%

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

$30.1K A$43.4K

$34.9K MYR 142.2K

-13.56%

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

$223 A$320

$52.1 MYR 212

327.58%

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

$27.16 A$39.08

$9.85 MYR 40.18

175.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.8 A$80.3

$28.12 MYR 115

98.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.6 A$107

$32.08 MYR 131

132.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.99 A$34.52

$7.13 MYR 29.08

236.47%

Cinema Ticket

$17.56 A$25.27

$4.98 MYR 20.33

252.61%

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

$2,196 A$3,160

$223 MYR 911

883.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.2K A$40.6K

$12.5K MYR 50.9K

125.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.4 A$113

$65.1 MYR 266

20.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$68.4 A$98.5

$41.91 MYR 171

63.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$160

$86.6 MYR 353

28.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 A$193

$97.2 MYR 396

38.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,500 A$3,598

$432 MYR 1,762

478.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,709 A$2,460

$304 MYR 1,242

461.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,946 A$7,117

$670 MYR 2,735

637.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,022 A$4,349

$477 MYR 1,948

532.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.2K A$18.9K

$2,002 MYR 8,167

557.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,370 A$12.0K

$1,093 MYR 4,458

665.93%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,113 A$5,919

$1,352 MYR 5,515

204.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.84

4.18

39.71%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 11, 2026

Last update for Puchong: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.7K 54.2%

Puchong

$304 31.8% 82.2% $1.4K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$379 12%

Puchong

$249 26% 34.3% $130

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$306 9.7%

Puchong

$90 9.4% 70.5% $216

Eating Out

Sydney

$299 9.5%

Puchong

$121 12.7% 59.4% $177

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$177 5.6%

Puchong

$131 13.7% 25.9% $46

Getting Around

Sydney

$174 5.5%

Puchong

$20 2.1% 88.3% $153

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$110 3.5%

Puchong

$42 4.4% 61.7% $68

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,500 in Sydney versus $432 in Puchong. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 204% higher in Sydney, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $91.0 in Sydney versus $18.00 in Puchong. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $379 vs $249 – making Puchong the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇲🇾 Puchong

🕒 Local time

19:04 7:04 PM

16:04 4:04 PM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

400,000

💱 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 Puchong 6,610 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Sydney
Puchong

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 Puchong: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sydney costs about 229% more than Puchong, 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 $4,728 per month in Sydney and $1,436 in Puchong. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

A mid-range dinner for two costs $91.0 in Sydney and $18.00 in Puchong. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $3,152 in Sydney and $958 in Puchong. That's a gap of about 229%.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Puchong, where all-in costs run around $958, than in Sydney at $3,152. In Puchong it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sydney it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Puchong – 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 Puchong. 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.