Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tawau and Tashkent

For one person, living is cheaper in Tawau: $888 a month against $1,048 in Tashkent, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Tawau
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Tawau Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Tashkent
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Tashkent Living Index

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Tawau

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$888

/mo nomad

Tashkent

🇺🇿 Uzbekistan

$1,048

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Tawau and in Tashkent

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Tawau and in Tashkent actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $888 per month in Tawau vs $1,048 in Tashkent, rent included.

Tawau $888
Tashkent $1,048

A couple spends around $1,354 per month in Tawau vs $1,646 in Tashkent, rent included.

Tawau $1,354
Tashkent $1,646

A family of three spends $1,820 per month in Tawau vs $2,244 in Tashkent, rent included.

Tawau $1,820
Tashkent $2,244

Tawau is about 15% cheaper than Tashkent, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Tawau and Tashkent are more affordable than the global median – Tawau 34% lower, Tashkent 23% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.14 MYR 12.80

$6.73 UZS 81.1K

-53.34%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.22 MYR 78.4

$32.94 UZS 397.0K

-41.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.21 MYR 17.19

$5.13 UZS 61.9K

-17.93%

Cappuccino

$3.15 MYR 12.86

$2.55 UZS 30.7K

23.53%

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

$0.95 MYR 3.86

$0.70 UZS 8,488

35.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.36 MYR 1.46

$0.33 UZS 3,955

9.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.66 MYR 10.83

$2.09 UZS 25.2K

27.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.52 MYR 18.45

$3.77 UZS 45.4K

19.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 MYR 7.10

$1.30 UZS 15.7K

33.85%

White Bread (500g)

$1.00 MYR 4.09

$0.85 UZS 10.2K

17.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.49 MYR 6.06

$1.63 UZS 19.7K

-8.59%

Eggs

$2.16 MYR 8.80

$1.80 UZS 21.6K

20.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.36 MYR 58.6

$8.04 UZS 96.9K

78.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.35 MYR 17.75

$4.07 UZS 49.1K

6.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.83 MYR 40.10

$12.49 UZS 150.6K

-21.30%

Apples (1kg)

$3.04 MYR 12.41

$1.49 UZS 18.0K

104.03%

Banana (1kg)

$1.67 MYR 6.83

$1.81 UZS 21.8K

-7.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.48 MYR 10.13

$2.19 UZS 26.4K

13.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.49 MYR 6.10

$1.70 UZS 20.5K

-12.35%

Potato (1kg)

$1.31 MYR 5.32

$0.60 UZS 7,171

118.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.21 MYR 4.94

$0.37 UZS 4,488

227.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 MYR 4.37

$1.02 UZS 12.3K

4.90%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.57 MYR 2.31

$0.44 UZS 5,351

29.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.48 MYR 18.30

$1.95 UZS 23.5K

129.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.05 MYR 77.7

$7.33 UZS 88.4K

159.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.02 MYR 12.32

$1.32 UZS 15.9K

128.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.98 MYR 20.32

$3.55 UZS 42.7K

40.28%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.70 MYR 2.84

$0.15 UZS 1,786

366.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.41 MYR 50.6

$12.30 UZS 148.2K

0.89%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.25 MYR 5.11

$0.86 UZS 10.4K

45.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.48 MYR 1.97

$0.36 UZS 4,382

33.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.98 MYR 28.49

$3.18 UZS 38.4K

119.50%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.87 MYR 3.57

$1.13 UZS 13.6K

-23.01%

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

$50.2K MYR 204.8K

$17.3K UZS 208.5M

190.18%

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

$36.0K MYR 146.9K

$20.7K UZS 249.8M

73.73%

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

$49.37 MYR 201

$67.2 UZS 809.7K

-26.52%

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

$10.55 MYR 43.02

$4.40 UZS 53.0K

139.77%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.74 MYR 117

$13.35 UZS 160.9K

115.28%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.34 MYR 177

$67.5 UZS 813.2K

-35.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.82 MYR 27.83

$18.05 UZS 217.5K

-62.22%

Cinema Ticket

$3.77 MYR 15.39

$5.66 UZS 68.2K

-33.39%

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

$183 MYR 746

$333 UZS 4.0M

-45.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,623 MYR 31.1K

$9,238 UZS 111.3M

-17.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.9 MYR 240

$49.73 UZS 599.3K

18.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.06 MYR 135

$58.0 UZS 698.6K

-42.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.3 MYR 303

$112 UZS 1.3M

-33.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.2 MYR 360

$134 UZS 1.6M

-34.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$387 MYR 1,578

$595 UZS 7.2M

-35.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$253 MYR 1,030

$395 UZS 4.8M

-36.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$596 MYR 2,433

$1,188 UZS 14.3M

-49.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$447 MYR 1,823

$735 UZS 8.9M

-39.24%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,936 MYR 7,900

$1,621 UZS 19.5M

19.49%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,216 MYR 4,962

$944 UZS 11.4M

28.86%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$418 MYR 1,707

$716 UZS 8.6M

-41.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.06

23.31

-82.58%

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

Last update for Tawau: October 17, 2026

Last update for Tashkent: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Tawau

$260 29.2%

Tashkent

$193 18.4% 25.6% $66

Accommodation & Living

Tawau

$253 28.4%

Tashkent

$395 37.7% 56.3% $142

Clothing & Footwear

Tawau

$114 12.9%

Tashkent

$159 15.2% 38.9% $45

Eating Out

Tawau

$103 11.6%

Tashkent

$122 11.6% 18.3% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tawau

$89 10%

Tashkent

$85 8.1% 4.2% $3.7

Sport & Entertainment

Tawau

$51 5.7%

Tashkent

$79 7.5% 54.9% $28

Getting Around

Tawau

$19 2.1%

Tashkent

$16 1.5% 17.4% $3.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $387 in Tawau versus $595 in Tashkent. 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 71% higher in Tashkent, 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 $19.00 in Tawau versus $33.00 in Tashkent. Groceries tell a different story – $260 in Tawau vs $193 in Tashkent – so Tashkent wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Tawau

🇺🇿 Tashkent

🕒 Local time

03:35 3:35 AM

00:35 12:35 AM

3 h behind Tawau

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

420,806

2,956,384 Capital

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

Uzbekistani Som UZS soʻm

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.218 EUR

100,000 UZS = 8.3 USD

100,000 UZS = 7.38 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

UZS, USD, EUR to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.59 MYR (1 MYR = 0.218 EUR).

Uzbekistani Som exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 12,051 UZS (100,000 UZS = 8.3 USD). 1 EUR = 13,548 UZS (100,000 UZS = 7.38 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Tawau Tashkent 6,340 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Tawau
Tashkent

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

Tawau vs Tashkent: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Tashkent costs about 18% more than Tawau, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,332 per month in Tawau and $1,572 in Tashkent. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Tawau, 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 $19.00 in Tawau and $33.00 in Tashkent. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $888 in Tawau and $1,048 in Tashkent. That's a gap of about 18%.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Tawau, where all-in costs run around $888, than in Tashkent at $1,048. In Tawau it covers expenses comfortably, while in Tashkent it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Tawau – 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 Tawau. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Tashkent makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.