Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ulu Tiram and Kuching

For one person, living is cheaper in Ulu Tiram: $938 a month against $972 in Kuching, rent and utilities included – about $410 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

44

Cost of Living Index in Ulu Tiram
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Ulu Tiram Living Index
47

Cost of Living Index in Kuching
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Kuching Living Index

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Ulu Tiram

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$938

/mo nomad

Kuching

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$972

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ulu Tiram and in Kuching

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $938 in Ulu Tiram versus $972 in Kuching.

Ulu Tiram $938
Kuching $972

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,412 in Ulu Tiram versus $1,521 in Kuching.

Ulu Tiram $1,412
Kuching $1,521

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,885 in Ulu Tiram versus $2,070 in Kuching.

Ulu Tiram $1,885
Kuching $2,070

Living in Ulu Tiram costs roughly 3% less than in Kuching, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Ulu Tiram 31% lower, Kuching 29% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.58 MYR 14.59

$3.37 MYR 13.74

6.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.21 MYR 78.2

$24.51 MYR 99.8

-21.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.97 MYR 20.24

$4.90 MYR 19.96

1.43%

Cappuccino

$2.92 MYR 11.90

$3.19 MYR 12.99

-8.46%

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

$0.85 MYR 3.44

$0.78 MYR 3.19

8.97%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.41 MYR 1.67

$0.38 MYR 1.55

7.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.50 MYR 18.30

$4.61 MYR 18.77

-2.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.40 MYR 26.03

$5.96 MYR 24.28

7.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.73 MYR 7.02

$2.39 MYR 9.73

-27.62%

White Bread (500g)

$1.04 MYR 4.23

$1.19 MYR 4.86

-12.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 MYR 6.03

$1.19 MYR 4.84

24.37%

Eggs

$1.80 MYR 7.33

$2.38 MYR 9.67

-24.37%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.62 MYR 39.17

$10.99 MYR 44.73

-12.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.23 MYR 17.21

$4.34 MYR 17.65

-2.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.57 MYR 38.95

$10.00 MYR 40.69

-4.30%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 MYR 13.44

$3.17 MYR 12.91

4.10%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 MYR 6.90

$1.32 MYR 5.38

28.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.76 MYR 11.25

$2.52 MYR 10.27

9.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.64 MYR 6.68

$1.78 MYR 7.25

-7.87%

Potato (1kg)

$1.45 MYR 5.92

$1.38 MYR 5.63

5.07%

Onion (1kg)

$1.67 MYR 6.78

$1.19 MYR 4.83

40.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.39 MYR 5.65

$1.61 MYR 6.56

-13.66%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 MYR 2.29

$0.55 MYR 2.22

1.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MYR 17.48

$4.76 MYR 19.36

-9.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.28 MYR 70.3

$22.25 MYR 90.6

-22.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.96 MYR 12.04

$4.13 MYR 16.80

-28.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.11 MYR 12.65

$5.06 MYR 20.58

-38.54%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.80 MYR 3.25

$0.36 MYR 1.47

122.22%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$13.32 MYR 54.2

$7.48 MYR 30.44

78.07%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.94 MYR 3.84

$0.97 MYR 3.95

-3.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.38 MYR 1.55

$1.23 MYR 5.01

-69.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.77 MYR 35.71

$8.82 MYR 35.88

-0.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.86 MYR 3.51

$0.94 MYR 3.83

-8.51%

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

$43.8K MYR 178.3K

$45.9K MYR 187.0K

-4.62%

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

$35.5K MYR 144.5K

$36.1K MYR 146.8K

-1.55%

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

$53.5 MYR 218

$35.63 MYR 145

50.10%

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

$8.46 MYR 34.42

$10.19 MYR 41.48

-16.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.46 MYR 116

$25.50 MYR 104

11.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.15 MYR 151

$33.85 MYR 138

9.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.93 MYR 28.19

$12.26 MYR 49.89

-43.47%

Cinema Ticket

$4.80 MYR 19.53

$4.87 MYR 19.83

-1.44%

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

$241 MYR 980

$135 MYR 550

78.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,550 MYR 18.5K

$7,150 MYR 29.1K

-36.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.0 MYR 224

$64.1 MYR 261

-14.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$16.99 MYR 69.2

$37.52 MYR 153

-54.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.7 MYR 320

$90.0 MYR 366

-12.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$87.0 MYR 354

$64.6 MYR 263

34.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$453 MYR 1,844

$469 MYR 1,910

-3.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$315 MYR 1,282

$334 MYR 1,360

-5.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$709 MYR 2,887

$834 MYR 3,396

-14.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$547 MYR 2,227

$654 MYR 2,664

-16.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,005 MYR 8,161

$2,053 MYR 8,356

-2.33%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,196 MYR 4,867

$1,534 MYR 6,242

-22.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$869 MYR 3,535

$535 MYR 2,179

62.23%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.06

4.37

-7.09%

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

Last update for Ulu Tiram: October 25, 2026

Last update for Kuching: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ulu Tiram

$315 33.6%

Kuching

$334 34.4% 6.1% $19

Groceries & Markets

Ulu Tiram

$241 25.7%

Kuching

$272 28% 13% $31

Eating Out

Ulu Tiram

$119 12.7%

Kuching

$120 12.3% 0.6% $0.7

Clothing & Footwear

Ulu Tiram

$107 11.4%

Kuching

$115 11.9% 7.7% $8.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ulu Tiram

$90 9.6%

Kuching

$71 7.3% 21.1% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Ulu Tiram

$47 5%

Kuching

$44 4.5% 6.7% $3.1

Getting Around

Ulu Tiram

$19 2.1%

Kuching

$16 1.7% 17.1% $3.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $453 in Ulu Tiram and $469 in Kuching. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ulu Tiram pays 62% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $19 in Ulu Tiram vs $25 in Kuching for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $241 vs $272 per month, with Ulu Tiram cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Ulu Tiram

🇲🇾 Kuching

🕒 Local time

02:12 2:12 AM

Same time as Ulu Tiram

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

75,350

349,147

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.246 USD

1 MYR = 0.22 EUR

1 MYR = 0.246 USD

1 MYR = 0.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ulu Tiram Kuching 730 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Ulu Tiram
Kuching

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

Ulu Tiram vs Kuching: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ulu Tiram is about 3% cheaper overall, especially in groceries and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 62% higher in Ulu Tiram, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $453 in Ulu Tiram versus $469 in Kuching. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Ulu Tiram – a meal for two runs $19 versus $25 in Kuching. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $938 per month in Ulu Tiram versus $972 in Kuching – Ulu Tiram is about 3% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Ulu Tiram is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Ulu Tiram and Kuching are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.