Cost of Living Comparison Between Tawau and Kuala Lumpur Cost of Living Comparison Between Tawau and Kuala Lumpur

🙂 Solo nomad: Tawau is 22% cheaper than Kuala Lumpur without rent, and 22.3% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Tawau is 5.4% cheaper than Kuala Lumpur without rent, and 19.1% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.6 MYR 15.19

$4.58 MYR 19.31

-21.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.17 MYR 80.9

$28.83 MYR 122

-33.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.02 MYR 16.96

$4.77 MYR 20.13

-15.72%

Cappuccino

$2.31 MYR 9.75

$2.96 MYR 12.48

-21.96%

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

$0.74 MYR 3.11

$0.85 MYR 3.58

-12.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.39 MYR 1.65

$0.5 MYR 2.11

-22.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.41 MYR 10.16

$4.23 MYR 17.82

-43.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.36 MYR 14.17

$5.95 MYR 25.11

-43.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 MYR 6.56

$2.08 MYR 8.78

-25.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.3 MYR 5.49

$1 MYR 4.22

30.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.73 MYR 7.3

$1.64 MYR 6.92

5.49%

Eggs

$2.05 MYR 8.63

$2.29 MYR 9.64

-10.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.13 MYR 63.8

$14.84 MYR 62.6

1.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.48 MYR 18.91

$4.52 MYR 19.05

-0.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.58 MYR 40.4

$9.51 MYR 40.1

0.74%

Apples (1kg)

$2.86 MYR 12.06

$2.95 MYR 12.46

-3.05%

Banana (1kg)

$1.48 MYR 6.22

$1.62 MYR 6.85

-8.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.6 MYR 10.98

$2.7 MYR 11.37

-3.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.44 MYR 6.05

$1.51 MYR 6.38

-4.64%

Potato (1kg)

$1.18 MYR 4.96

$1.21 MYR 5.11

-2.48%

Onion (1kg)

$1.33 MYR 5.6

$1.4 MYR 5.92

-5.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.04 MYR 4.4

$1.21 MYR 5.09

-14.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 MYR 2.33

$0.68 MYR 2.87

-19.12%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.3 MYR 18.13

$4.19 MYR 17.68

2.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.44 MYR 60.9

$18.11 MYR 76.4

-20.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.88 MYR 12.13

$3.33 MYR 14.06

-13.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.94 MYR 12.39

$4.39 MYR 18.5

-33.03%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 MYR 2.85

$0.72 MYR 3.06

-5.56%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.97 MYR 50.5

$11.74 MYR 49.49

1.96%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 MYR 4.9

$1.21 MYR 5.11

-4.13%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.98 MYR 4.15

$1.13 MYR 4.78

-13.27%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.77 MYR 24.33

$4.59 MYR 19.35

25.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.49 MYR 2.09

$0.48 MYR 2.01

2.08%

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

$35.7K MYR 150.5K

$40K MYR 168.8K

-10.85%

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

$31K MYR 130.6K

$33K MYR 139.2K

-6.17%

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

$43.49 MYR 183

$64.8 MYR 273

-32.88%

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

$9.16 MYR 38.65

$11.7 MYR 49.34

-21.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.84 MYR 122

$25.5 MYR 108

13.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.56 MYR 158

$45.93 MYR 194

-18.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.93 MYR 24.99

$7.76 MYR 32.73

-23.58%

Cinema Ticket

$2.91 MYR 12.27

$5.23 MYR 22.03

-44.36%

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

$191 MYR 804

$266 MYR 1,122

-28.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,045 MYR 29.7K

$9,267 MYR 39.1K

-23.98%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.8 MYR 252

$61.5 MYR 259

-2.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.2 MYR 115

$38.04 MYR 160

-28.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MYR 307

$86.3 MYR 364

-15.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$50.5 MYR 213

$79.6 MYR 336

-36.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$387 MYR 1,633

$578 MYR 2,437

-32.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$266 MYR 1,123

$371 MYR 1,566

-28.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$646 MYR 2,724

$1,061 MYR 4,472

-39.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$478 MYR 2,015

$628 MYR 2,649

-23.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,845 MYR 7,781

$3,071 MYR 12.9K

-39.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,106 MYR 4,664

$1,532 MYR 6,459

-27.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,342 MYR 5,659

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.07

4.47

-8.95%

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

Last update for Tawau: October 26, 2025

Last update for Kuala Lumpur: October 28, 2025

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