Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Thames

For one person, living is cheaper in Thames: $1,966 a month against $3,152 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $14,200 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
96

Cost of Living Index in Thames
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Thames Living Index

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Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,152

/mo nomad

Thames

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,966

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Thames

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

A single person spends $3,152 per month in Sydney vs $1,966 in Thames, rent included.

Sydney $3,152
Thames $1,966

A couple spends around $4,710 per month in Sydney vs $2,999 in Thames, rent included.

Sydney $4,710
Thames $2,999

A family of three spends $6,268 per month in Sydney vs $4,032 in Thames, rent included.

Sydney $6,268
Thames $4,032

Sydney costs about 60% more than Thames, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Sydney and Thames sit above the global median – Sydney by 133%, Thames by 46%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.57 A$25.29

$13.93 NZ$24.63

26.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.5 A$132

$68.4 NZ$121

33.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.96 A$17.21

$8.89 NZ$15.72

34.53%

Cappuccino

$4.07 A$5.85

$3.42 NZ$6.06

19.01%

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

$2.85 A$4.10

$2.02 NZ$3.57

41.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 A$3.24

$1.74 NZ$3.08

29.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.60 A$10.94

$6.88 NZ$12.16

10.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.43 A$10.69

$6.73 NZ$11.90

10.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 A$2.38

$1.87 NZ$3.31

-11.23%

White Bread (500g)

$2.78 A$4.00

$2.22 NZ$3.93

25.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 A$3.49

$1.79 NZ$3.16

35.20%

Eggs

$5.64 A$8.12

$6.20 NZ$10.97

-9.03%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.71 A$16.85

$8.79 NZ$15.55

33.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.66 A$13.89

$9.68 NZ$17.11

-0.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.75 A$24.10

$16.82 NZ$29.74

-0.42%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 A$5.85

$2.80 NZ$4.95

45.36%

Banana (1kg)

$3.25 A$4.68

$2.16 NZ$3.82

50.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.44 A$4.96

$2.91 NZ$5.14

18.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.28 A$6.16

$5.75 NZ$10.17

-25.57%

Potato (1kg)

$3.28 A$4.72

$2.13 NZ$3.77

53.99%

Onion (1kg)

$2.30 A$3.30

$1.52 NZ$2.69

51.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.30 A$3.31

$1.98 NZ$3.50

16.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 A$1.74

$1.04 NZ$1.84

16.35%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$43.71 A$62.9

$26.57 NZ$46.99

64.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.88 A$19.97

$10.25 NZ$18.12

35.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.90 A$5.62

$2.84 NZ$5.02

37.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 A$5.63

$3.38 NZ$5.98

15.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.04 A$4.38

$1.45 NZ$2.56

109.66%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$150 A$216

$75.4 NZ$133

99.35%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.38 A$4.86

$2.30 NZ$4.06

46.96%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 A$2.24

$1.92 NZ$3.40

-18.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.01 A$57.6

$32.20 NZ$56.9

24.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 A$2.01

$1.87 NZ$3.31

-25.13%

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

$29.1K A$41.9K

$25.1K NZ$44.5K

15.80%

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

$30.1K A$43.4K

$21.7K NZ$38.4K

38.90%

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

$223 A$320

$183 NZ$324

21.32%

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

$27.16 A$39.08

$26.20 NZ$46.33

3.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.8 A$80.3

$50.7 NZ$89.6

10.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.6 A$107

$41.84 NZ$74.0

78.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.99 A$34.52

Cinema Ticket

$17.56 A$25.27

$13.10 NZ$23.17

34.05%

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

$2,196 A$3,160

$1,135 NZ$2,007

93.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.2K A$40.6K

$19.2K NZ$34.0K

46.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.4 A$113

$79.2 NZ$140

-0.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$68.4 A$98.5

$39.93 NZ$70.6

71.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$160

$92.3 NZ$163

20.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 A$193

$111 NZ$197

20.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,500 A$3,598

$930 NZ$1,645

168.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,709 A$2,460

$821 NZ$1,451

108.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,946 A$7,117

$1,484 NZ$2,624

233.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,022 A$4,349

$1,486 NZ$2,629

103.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.2K A$18.9K

$4,552 NZ$8,050

189.29%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,370 A$12.0K

$3,773 NZ$6,673

121.81%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,113 A$5,919

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.84

5.37

8.75%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 11, 2026

Last update for Thames: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.7K 54.2%

Thames

$821 41.7% 52% $889

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$379 12%

Thames

$337 17.1% 11% $42

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$306 9.7%

Thames

$260 13.2% 14.8% $45

Eating Out

Sydney

$299 9.5%

Thames

$242 12.3% 18.9% $56

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$177 5.6%

Thames

$145 7.4% 17.8% $31

Getting Around

Sydney

$174 5.5%

Thames

$93 4.7% 46.4% $81

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$110 3.5%

Thames

$68 3.5% 38% $42

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,500 in Sydney versus $930 in Thames. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $91.0 in Sydney versus $68.0 in Thames. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $379 vs $337 – making Thames the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇳🇿 Thames

🕒 Local time

08:47 8:47 AM

10:47 10:47 AM

2 h ahead of Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

7,500

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NZD, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1.77 NZD (1 NZD = 0.565 USD). 1 EUR = 1.99 NZD (1 NZD = 0.503 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Sydney Thames 2,230 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Sydney
Thames

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 Thames: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $3,152 in Sydney, $1,966 in Thames – roughly 60% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,728 per month in Sydney and $2,949 in Thames. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Thames, 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 $68.0 in Thames. 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 $1,966 in Thames. That's a gap of about 60%.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Thames, where all-in costs run around $1,966, than in Sydney at $3,152. In Thames it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sydney it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Thames – 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 Thames. 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.