Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Subang Jaya

For one person, living is cheaper in Subang Jaya: $951 a month against $3,152 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $26,400 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
46

Cost of Living Index in Subang Jaya
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Subang Jaya Living Index

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Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,152

/mo nomad

Subang Jaya

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$951

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Subang Jaya

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

A single person spends $3,152 per month in Sydney vs $951 in Subang Jaya, rent included.

Sydney $3,152
Subang Jaya $951

A couple spends around $4,710 per month in Sydney vs $1,448 in Subang Jaya, rent included.

Sydney $4,710
Subang Jaya $1,448

A family of three spends $6,268 per month in Sydney vs $1,945 in Subang Jaya, rent included.

Sydney $6,268
Subang Jaya $1,945

Sydney costs about 232% more than Subang Jaya, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sydney sits 133% above the global median, while Subang Jaya is 30% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.57 A$25.29

$3.58 MYR 14.61

390.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.5 A$132

$19.71 MYR 80.4

364.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.96 A$17.21

$4.56 MYR 18.60

162.28%

Cappuccino

$4.07 A$5.85

$3.03 MYR 12.37

34.32%

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

$2.85 A$4.10

$0.77 MYR 3.14

270.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 A$3.24

$0.40 MYR 1.63

462.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.60 A$10.94

$4.11 MYR 16.76

84.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.43 A$10.69

$4.53 MYR 18.47

64.02%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 A$2.38

$1.85 MYR 7.55

-10.27%

White Bread (500g)

$2.78 A$4.00

$1.04 MYR 4.26

167.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 A$3.49

$1.68 MYR 6.85

44.05%

Eggs

$5.64 A$8.12

$2.24 MYR 9.15

151.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.71 A$16.85

$13.42 MYR 54.7

-12.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.66 A$13.89

$4.54 MYR 18.53

112.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.75 A$24.10

$8.45 MYR 34.46

98.22%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 A$5.85

$3.06 MYR 12.48

33.01%

Banana (1kg)

$3.25 A$4.68

$1.78 MYR 7.28

82.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.44 A$4.96

$2.27 MYR 9.24

51.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.28 A$6.16

$1.40 MYR 5.70

205.71%

Potato (1kg)

$3.28 A$4.72

$1.11 MYR 4.52

195.50%

Onion (1kg)

$2.30 A$3.30

$1.12 MYR 4.58

105.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.30 A$3.31

$1.09 MYR 4.46

111.01%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 A$1.74

$0.54 MYR 2.19

124.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$43.71 A$62.9

$4.42 MYR 18.05

888.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.88 A$19.97

$18.72 MYR 76.4

-25.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.90 A$5.62

$3.01 MYR 12.28

29.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 A$5.63

$4.90 MYR 20.00

-20.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.04 A$4.38

$0.84 MYR 3.42

261.90%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$150 A$216

$12.39 MYR 50.6

1112.51%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.38 A$4.86

$1.21 MYR 4.92

179.34%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 A$2.24

$0.40 MYR 1.64

290.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.01 A$57.6

$4.77 MYR 19.44

738.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 A$2.01

$0.88 MYR 3.57

59.09%

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

$29.1K A$41.9K

$42.4K MYR 172.8K

-31.25%

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

$30.1K A$43.4K

$34.9K MYR 142.3K

-13.63%

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

$223 A$320

$36.42 MYR 149

511.20%

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

$27.16 A$39.08

$9.61 MYR 39.20

182.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.8 A$80.3

$29.25 MYR 119

90.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.6 A$107

$24.81 MYR 101

200.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.99 A$34.52

$2.41 MYR 9.85

895.44%

Cinema Ticket

$17.56 A$25.27

$5.04 MYR 20.56

248.41%

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

$2,196 A$3,160

$296 MYR 1,209

641.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.2K A$40.6K

$10.7K MYR 43.7K

163.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.4 A$113

$59.5 MYR 243

31.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$68.4 A$98.5

$34.85 MYR 142

96.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$160

$86.0 MYR 351

29.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 A$193

$70.6 MYR 288

90.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,500 A$3,598

$566 MYR 2,308

341.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,709 A$2,460

$342 MYR 1,394

400.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,946 A$7,117

$714 MYR 2,914

592.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,022 A$4,349

$620 MYR 2,529

387.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.2K A$18.9K

$2,360 MYR 9,629

457.89%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,370 A$12.0K

$1,857 MYR 7,574

350.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,113 A$5,919

$918 MYR 3,747

347.87%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.84

4.04

44.55%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 11, 2026

Last update for Subang Jaya: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.7K 54.2%

Subang Jaya

$342 36% 80% $1.4K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$379 12%

Subang Jaya

$254 26.7% 33% $125

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$306 9.7%

Subang Jaya

$75 7.9% 75.4% $230

Eating Out

Sydney

$299 9.5%

Subang Jaya

$113 11.9% 62.2% $186

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$177 5.6%

Subang Jaya

$113 11.9% 36.1% $64

Getting Around

Sydney

$174 5.5%

Subang Jaya

$19 2% 89.1% $155

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$110 3.5%

Subang Jaya

$35 3.7% 68.2% $75

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,500 in Sydney versus $566 in Subang Jaya. 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 348% 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 $20.00 in Subang Jaya. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $379 vs $254 – making Subang Jaya the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇲🇾 Subang Jaya

🕒 Local time

22:48 10:48 PM

19:48 7:48 PM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

902,086

💱 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 Subang Jaya 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 Subang Jaya: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sydney costs about 232% more than Subang Jaya, 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 $1,426 in Subang Jaya. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Public transport costs about 1113% less in Subang Jaya. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $2,196 per month in Sydney and $296 in Subang Jaya. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Subang Jaya, where all-in costs run around $951, than in Sydney at $3,152. In Subang Jaya it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sydney it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Subang Jaya – 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 Subang Jaya. 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.