Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Tainan

For one person, living is cheaper in Tainan: $1,068 a month against $3,152 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $25,000 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
52

Cost of Living Index in Tainan
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Tainan Living Index

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Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,152

/mo nomad

Tainan

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,068

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Tainan

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

A single person spends $3,152 per month in Sydney vs $1,068 in Tainan, rent included.

Sydney $3,152
Tainan $1,068

A couple spends around $4,710 per month in Sydney vs $1,837 in Tainan, rent included.

Sydney $4,710
Tainan $1,837

A family of three spends $6,268 per month in Sydney vs $2,606 in Tainan, rent included.

Sydney $6,268
Tainan $2,606

Sydney costs about 195% more than Tainan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sydney sits 133% above the global median, while Tainan is 21% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.57 A$25.29

$3.74 NT$121

369.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.5 A$132

$24.62 NT$799

271.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.96 A$17.21

$4.79 NT$155

149.69%

Cappuccino

$4.07 A$5.85

$3.27 NT$106

24.46%

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

$2.85 A$4.10

$0.95 NT$30.66

200.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 A$3.24

$0.63 NT$20.54

257.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.60 A$10.94

$2.86 NT$92.6

165.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.43 A$10.69

$3.49 NT$113

112.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 A$2.38

$3.09 NT$100

-46.28%

White Bread (500g)

$2.78 A$4.00

$1.77 NT$57.5

57.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 A$3.49

$3.15 NT$102

-23.17%

Eggs

$5.64 A$8.12

$2.75 NT$89.3

105.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.71 A$16.85

$19.50 NT$632

-39.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.66 A$13.89

$9.88 NT$320

-2.23%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.75 A$24.10

$21.04 NT$682

-20.39%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 A$5.85

$4.96 NT$161

-17.94%

Banana (1kg)

$3.25 A$4.68

$2.86 NT$92.7

13.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.44 A$4.96

$3.00 NT$97.4

14.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.28 A$6.16

$4.48 NT$145

-4.46%

Potato (1kg)

$3.28 A$4.72

$2.66 NT$86.4

23.31%

Onion (1kg)

$2.30 A$3.30

$2.27 NT$73.6

1.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.30 A$3.31

$1.71 NT$55.3

34.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 A$1.74

$1.15 NT$37.31

5.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$43.71 A$62.9

$3.81 NT$124

1047.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.88 A$19.97

$13.94 NT$452

-0.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.90 A$5.62

$1.65 NT$53.4

136.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 A$5.63

$2.17 NT$70.3

80.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.04 A$4.38

$0.61 NT$19.68

398.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$150 A$216

$33.89 NT$1,099

343.29%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.38 A$4.86

$2.53 NT$82.2

33.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 A$2.24

$0.77 NT$24.92

102.60%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.01 A$57.6

$5.74 NT$186

597.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 A$2.01

$1.01 NT$32.90

38.61%

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

$29.1K A$41.9K

$32.8K NT$1.1M

-11.21%

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

$30.1K A$43.4K

$24.1K NT$780.6K

25.17%

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

$223 A$320

$87.2 NT$2,828

155.25%

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

$27.16 A$39.08

$17.51 NT$568

55.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.8 A$80.3

$21.30 NT$691

162.07%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.6 A$107

$45.65 NT$1,480

63.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.99 A$34.52

Cinema Ticket

$17.56 A$25.27

$9.60 NT$311

82.92%

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

$2,196 A$3,160

$433 NT$14.1K

406.84%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.2K A$40.6K

$5,413 NT$175.5K

420.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.4 A$113

$63.2 NT$2,050

24.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$68.4 A$98.5

$39.20 NT$1,271

74.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$160

$83.7 NT$2,716

32.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 A$193

$103 NT$3,353

30.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,500 A$3,598

$297 NT$9,624

742.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,709 A$2,460

$200 NT$6,470

756.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,946 A$7,117

$845 NT$27.4K

485.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,022 A$4,349

$696 NT$22.6K

334.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.2K A$18.9K

$4,123 NT$133.7K

219.42%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,370 A$12.0K

$3,022 NT$98.0K

176.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,113 A$5,919

$1,376 NT$44.6K

198.86%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.84

2.4

143.33%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 11, 2026

Last update for Tainan: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.7K 54.2%

Tainan

$200 18.7% 88.3% $1.5K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$379 12%

Tainan

$393 36.9% 3.9% $15

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$306 9.7%

Tainan

$126 11.8% 58.8% $180

Eating Out

Sydney

$299 9.5%

Tainan

$111 10.4% 62.8% $187

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$177 5.6%

Tainan

$130 12.2% 26.2% $46

Getting Around

Sydney

$174 5.5%

Tainan

$43 4% 75.4% $131

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$110 3.5%

Tainan

$65 6.1% 40.9% $45

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,500 in Sydney versus $297 in Tainan. 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 199% 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 $25.00 in Tainan. Groceries tell a different story – $379 in Sydney vs $393 in Tainan – so Sydney wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇹🇼 Tainan

🕒 Local time

12:46 12:46 PM

09:46 9:46 AM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

1,886,033

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

100 TWD = 3.08 USD

100 TWD = 2.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TWD, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 32.43 TWD (100 TWD = 3.08 USD). 1 EUR = 36.46 TWD (100 TWD = 2.74 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Sydney Tainan 7,120 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Sydney
Tainan

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 Tainan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $3,152 in Sydney, $1,068 in Tainan – roughly 195% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,728 per month in Sydney and $1,602 in Tainan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Tainan, 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 $25.00 in Tainan. 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 $1,068 in Tainan. That's a gap of about 195%.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Tainan, where all-in costs run around $1,068, than in Sydney at $3,152. In Tainan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sydney it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Tainan – 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 Tainan. 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.