Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Sentul

For one person, living is cheaper in Sentul: $878 a month against $3,152 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 Sentul
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Sentul Living Index

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Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,152

/mo nomad

Sentul

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$878

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Sentul

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,152 in Sydney versus $878 in Sentul.

Sydney $3,152
Sentul $878

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,710 in Sydney versus $1,334 in Sentul.

Sydney $4,710
Sentul $1,334

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,268 in Sydney versus $1,790 in Sentul.

Sydney $6,268
Sentul $1,790

Living in Sydney is roughly 259% more expensive than in Sentul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Sydney is 133% above, Sentul is 35% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.57 A$25.29

$3.64 MYR 14.84

382.69%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.5 A$132

$22.09 MYR 90.1

314.12%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.96 A$17.21

$5.03 MYR 20.53

137.77%

Cappuccino

$4.07 A$5.85

$2.99 MYR 12.21

36.12%

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

$2.85 A$4.10

$0.83 MYR 3.40

243.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 A$3.24

$0.51 MYR 2.10

341.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.60 A$10.94

$3.28 MYR 13.38

131.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.43 A$10.69

$5.87 MYR 23.93

26.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 A$2.38

$1.70 MYR 6.92

-2.35%

White Bread (500g)

$2.78 A$4.00

$1.03 MYR 4.21

169.90%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 A$3.49

$1.42 MYR 5.80

70.42%

Eggs

$5.64 A$8.12

$1.74 MYR 7.11

224.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.71 A$16.85

$9.66 MYR 39.39

21.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.66 A$13.89

$3.17 MYR 12.94

204.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.75 A$24.10

$9.45 MYR 38.56

77.25%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 A$5.85

$3.25 MYR 13.26

25.23%

Banana (1kg)

$3.25 A$4.68

$1.68 MYR 6.87

93.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.44 A$4.96

$2.65 MYR 10.81

29.81%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.28 A$6.16

$1.60 MYR 6.53

167.50%

Potato (1kg)

$3.28 A$4.72

$1.46 MYR 5.97

124.66%

Onion (1kg)

$2.30 A$3.30

$1.64 MYR 6.70

40.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.30 A$3.31

$1.32 MYR 5.38

74.24%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 A$1.74

$0.51 MYR 2.08

137.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$43.71 A$62.9

$4.16 MYR 16.99

950.72%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.88 A$19.97

$13.89 MYR 56.7

-0.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.90 A$5.62

$2.65 MYR 10.81

47.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 A$5.63

$3.11 MYR 12.68

25.72%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.04 A$4.38

$0.81 MYR 3.31

275.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$150 A$216

$12.06 MYR 49.19

1145.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.38 A$4.86

$0.96 MYR 3.91

252.08%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 A$2.24

$0.38 MYR 1.57

310.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.01 A$57.6

$8.97 MYR 36.60

346.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 A$2.01

$0.87 MYR 3.54

60.92%

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

$29.1K A$41.9K

$41.2K MYR 168.2K

-29.35%

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

$30.1K A$43.4K

$32.5K MYR 132.7K

-7.39%

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

$223 A$320

$49.70 MYR 203

347.89%

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

$27.16 A$39.08

$8.10 MYR 33.04

235.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.8 A$80.3

$27.39 MYR 112

103.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.6 A$107

$41.09 MYR 168

81.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.99 A$34.52

$7.45 MYR 30.40

222.01%

Cinema Ticket

$17.56 A$25.27

$5.04 MYR 20.57

248.41%

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

$2,196 A$3,160

$161 MYR 658

1262.13%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.2K A$40.6K

$4,446 MYR 18.1K

534.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.4 A$113

$50.5 MYR 206

55.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$68.4 A$98.5

$16.38 MYR 66.8

317.83%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$160

$77.1 MYR 315

44.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 A$193

$85.6 MYR 349

57.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,500 A$3,598

$348 MYR 1,419

618.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,709 A$2,460

$282 MYR 1,150

506.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,946 A$7,117

$707 MYR 2,883

599.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,022 A$4,349

$484 MYR 1,976

523.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.2K A$18.9K

$2,147 MYR 8,759

513.30%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,370 A$12.0K

$1,058 MYR 4,315

691.29%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,113 A$5,919

$890 MYR 3,631

362.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.84

4.06

43.84%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 11, 2026

Last update for Sentul: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.7K 54.2%

Sentul

$282 32.1% 83.5% $1.4K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$379 12%

Sentul

$224 25.6% 40.7% $154

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$306 9.7%

Sentul

$85 9.7% 72.1% $220

Eating Out

Sydney

$299 9.5%

Sentul

$114 12.9% 61.9% $185

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$177 5.6%

Sentul

$103 11.8% 41.5% $73

Getting Around

Sydney

$174 5.5%

Sentul

$18 2.1% 89.5% $155

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$110 3.5%

Sentul

$51 5.8% 53.4% $59

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,500 in Sydney and $348 in Sentul. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sydney pays 362% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $91.0 in Sydney vs $22.00 in Sentul for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $379 vs $224 per month, with Sentul cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇲🇾 Sentul

🕒 Local time

16:02 4:02 PM

13:02 1:02 PM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

100,000

💱 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 Sentul 6,620 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Sydney
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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 Sentul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sentul wins on cost – living expenses run 259% lower than in Sydney. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Sentul the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 362% higher in Sydney, 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: $2,500 in Sydney versus $348 in Sentul. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,196 in Sydney versus $161 in Sentul. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 69% higher in Sydney. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $878 in Sentul versus $3,152 in Sydney, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Sentul but tight or insufficient in Sydney. The gap between the two cities makes Sentul the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Sydney and Sentul 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 Sentul gentler on the wallet – expenses run 259% less than in Sydney. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.