Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Sarawak

For one person, living is cheaper in Sarawak: $933 a month against $3,245 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $27,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

156

Cost of Living Index in Sydney
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Sydney Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Sarawak
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Sarawak Living Index

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Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,245

/mo nomad

Sarawak

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$933

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Sarawak

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

A single person spends $3,245 per month in Sydney vs $933 in Sarawak, rent included.

Sydney $3,245
Sarawak $933

A couple spends around $4,803 per month in Sydney vs $1,391 in Sarawak, rent included.

Sydney $4,803
Sarawak $1,391

A family of three spends $6,362 per month in Sydney vs $1,849 in Sarawak, rent included.

Sydney $6,362
Sarawak $1,849

Sydney costs about 248% more than Sarawak, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sydney sits 139% above the global median, while Sarawak is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.41 A$25.05

$3.65 MYR 14.88

376.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$90.3 A$130

$19.77 MYR 80.6

356.60%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.92 A$17.15

$4.75 MYR 19.38

150.95%

Cappuccino

$4.03 A$5.80

$2.88 MYR 11.74

39.93%

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

$2.88 A$4.15

$0.81 MYR 3.29

255.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 A$3.20

$0.39 MYR 1.61

471.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.89 A$11.36

$3.60 MYR 14.68

119.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.78 A$9.76

$4.61 MYR 18.81

47.07%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 A$2.45

$1.86 MYR 7.58

-8.06%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$1.04 MYR 4.24

182.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 A$3.61

$1.48 MYR 6.04

69.59%

Eggs

$5.55 A$7.99

$2.04 MYR 8.32

172.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.77 A$16.94

$13.84 MYR 56.5

-14.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 A$13.35

$4.30 MYR 17.54

115.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.70 A$24.03

$9.43 MYR 38.47

77.09%

Apples (1kg)

$3.92 A$5.64

$3.14 MYR 12.83

24.84%

Banana (1kg)

$3.16 A$4.55

$1.71 MYR 6.97

84.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.48 A$5.00

$2.51 MYR 10.22

38.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.38 A$6.31

$1.61 MYR 6.55

172.05%

Potato (1kg)

$3.33 A$4.79

$1.27 MYR 5.18

162.20%

Onion (1kg)

$2.40 A$3.46

$1.15 MYR 4.68

108.70%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.31 A$3.32

$1.17 MYR 4.79

97.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 A$1.65

$0.53 MYR 2.18

116.98%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.34 A$63.8

$4.54 MYR 18.52

876.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.71 A$19.72

$19.12 MYR 78.0

-28.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.00 A$5.75

$2.94 MYR 12.01

36.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.03 A$5.80

$4.51 MYR 18.38

-10.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.22 A$4.63

$0.71 MYR 2.89

353.52%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$154 A$222

$12.15 MYR 49.57

1168.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.57 A$5.14

$1.25 MYR 5.10

185.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.58 A$2.27

$0.51 MYR 2.07

209.80%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.44 A$56.8

$7.21 MYR 29.41

447.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.13

$0.82 MYR 3.34

80.49%

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

$29.6K A$42.5K

$42.2K MYR 172.1K

-29.96%

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

$27.7K A$39.8K

$34.8K MYR 141.8K

-20.44%

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

$241 A$347

$48.56 MYR 198

397.08%

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

$27.57 A$39.67

$9.65 MYR 39.38

185.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$56.3 A$81.0

$27.71 MYR 113

103.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$78.1 A$112

$40.76 MYR 166

91.71%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.26 A$33.47

$7.10 MYR 28.98

227.61%

Cinema Ticket

$17.55 A$25.26

$4.92 MYR 20.05

256.71%

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

$2,185 A$3,144

$190 MYR 775

1049.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$27.8K A$40.0K

$7,067 MYR 28.8K

293.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$56.8 MYR 232

40.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$70.7 A$102

$34.52 MYR 141

104.75%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$159

$79.8 MYR 325

38.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$129 A$186

$75.9 MYR 310

70.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,477 A$3,564

$410 MYR 1,674

503.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,777 A$2,557

$299 MYR 1,219

494.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,885 A$7,030

$672 MYR 2,742

626.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,093 A$4,451

$477 MYR 1,946

548.49%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.4K A$19.3K

$2,042 MYR 8,329

556.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,375 A$12.1K

$1,074 MYR 4,381

679.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,074 A$5,862

$339 MYR 1,381

1103.43%

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 20, 2026

Last update for Sarawak: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.8K 54.8%

Sarawak

$299 32% 83.2% $1.5K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$378 11.7%

Sarawak

$258 27.6% 31.9% $121

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$325 10%

Sarawak

$86 9.2% 73.6% $239

Eating Out

Sydney

$297 9.2%

Sarawak

$110 11.8% 62.9% $187

Getting Around

Sydney

$178 5.5%

Sarawak

$19 2% 89.5% $160

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$176 5.4%

Sarawak

$111 11.9% 36.8% $65

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$113 3.5%

Sarawak

$51 5.4% 55.3% $63

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,477 in Sydney versus $410 in Sarawak. 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 1103% 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 $90.0 in Sydney versus $20.00 in Sarawak. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $378 vs $258 – making Sarawak the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇲🇾 Sarawak

🕒 Local time

03:15 3:15 AM

00:15 12:15 AM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

💱 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 20, 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 20, 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 Sarawak 5,820 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Sydney
Sarawak

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 Sarawak: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $3,245 in Sydney, $933 in Sarawak – roughly 248% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,867 per month in Sydney and $1,399 in Sarawak. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Public transport costs about 1168% less in Sarawak. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $2,185 per month in Sydney and $190 in Sarawak. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Sarawak, where all-in costs run around $933, than in Sydney at $3,245. In Sarawak it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sydney it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Sarawak – 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 Sarawak. 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.