Kuala Lumpur vs New York City - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Kuala Lumpur New York City
🚶 Cost of living one person
$981
$4207
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$2371
$9179
🏠 One person rent
$468
$2718
🏘️ Family rent
$806
$4382
🍽️ Food expenses
$320
$875
🚐 Transport expenses
$107
$373
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$1331
$5229
😷 Air quality
Moderate
Excellent
✈️ Airport proximity
16 km
13 km
🎓 Higher education
93
100
😀 Quality of life
84
95
🏙️ Population
9M
8.8M

The cost of living in Kuala Lumpur is 77% less expensive than in New York City. Cities ranked 5802nd and 4th ($981 vs $4207) in the list of the most expensive cities in the world and ranked 1st and 2nd in Malaysia and the United States, respectively. Check Malaysia vs the United States comparison.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 1.4 months in Kuala Lumpur compared to 1.2 months in New York City. Kuala Lumpur ranked 1st best city to live in Malaysia vs New York City ranked 2nd in the United States, while ranked 520th and 18th among best cities to live in the world.

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Prices in Kuala Lumpur vs New York City

Prices for goods and services in Kuala Lumpur and New York City are partly crowdsourced by our visitors, just like yourself. Please consider telling us about your city.

Kuala Lumpur New York City
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$4.71
$23.6
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$31
$107
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$5.12
$13.6
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$5
$8.27
☕ Cappuccino
$3.55
$5.88
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$1.01
$2.87
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$602
$3712
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$350
$2223
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1058
$5056
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$631
$3881
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$41.1
$130
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$63.5
$200
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$26.5
$66.8
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
4.51%
6.64%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$3532
$17512
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$1566
$9335
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$0.78
$3.01
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$17.5
$134
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$10.8
$23.8
⛽ Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$0.6
$0.89
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$2.3
$1.38
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.11
$4.55
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.58
$6.56
🥚 Eggs, x12
$2.72
$7.96
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$15.1
$19.2
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$5.47
$15.1
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$9.9
$19.9
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.33
$6.67
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.82
$2.42
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.77
$5.62
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.63
$6.34
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.37
$3.09
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.53
$3.46
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.49
$1.65
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$1.24
$3.77
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$18.9
$18.5
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$3.33
$4.32
🚬 Cigarette pack
$4.57
$18.7
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$4.02
$23.4
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$3.89
$13.9
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.89
$7.99
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$2.43
$2.83
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$50.1
$118
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$5.12
$21.2
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$21.8
$156
💇 Haircut, simple
$6.47
$40.7
👖 Brand Jeans
$64.4
$68.7
👟 Brand Sneakers
$93.2
$116
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$309
$2132
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$10356
$21999

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Cost of Living in the nearest cities

Cities near Kuala Lumpur

Distance City Cost of living
11 km or 6.7 mi Petaling Jaya
$813
15 km or 9.1 mi Subang Jaya
$831
19 km or 12 mi Shah Alam
$750
24 km or 15 mi Putrajaya
$627
25 km or 16 mi Cyberjaya
$664
30 km or 19 mi Klang
$762
54 km or 33 mi Seremban
$678
123 km or 77 mi Malacca
$736
124 km or 77 mi Teluk Intan
$701
155 km or 97 mi Muar
$788
167 km or 104 mi Dumai
$513
176 km or 109 mi Ipoh
$696
196 km or 122 mi Kuantan
$588
199 km or 124 mi Batu Pahat
$780
211 km or 131 mi Tanjungbalai
$485
217 km or 135 mi Taiping
$572
219 km or 136 mi Kluang
$770
229 km or 142 mi Chukai
$640
282 km or 175 mi Tebing Tinggi
$461
291 km or 181 mi Butterworth
$740
291 km or 181 mi Kuala Terengganu
$572
292 km or 181 mi Pekanbaru
$495
293 km or 182 mi Pematangsiantar
$470
294 km or 183 mi George Town
$792
297 km or 184 mi Johor Bahru
$838
309 km or 192 mi Sungai Petani
$663
311 km or 193 mi Singapore City
$3119
315 km or 195 mi Bukit Merah
$2806
335 km or 208 mi Padangsidempuan
$558
338 km or 210 mi Kota Bharu
$551
341 km or 212 mi Medan
$461
346 km or 215 mi Batam
$533
360 km or 224 mi Binjai
$458
361 km or 225 mi Alor Setar
$564
394 km or 245 mi Tanjung Pinang
$495
402 km or 250 mi Kangar
$628
413 km or 257 mi Langkawi
$634
441 km or 274 mi Langsa
$451
451 km or 280 mi Hat Yai
$622
457 km or 284 mi Ko Lipe
$790

Cities near New York City

Distance City Cost of living
11 km or 6.6 mi Astoria
$2850
11 km or 6.8 mi Hoboken
$3614
11 km or 7.1 mi Jersey
$3134
13 km or 8.3 mi Union
$3092
14 km or 8.8 mi West New York
$2814
14 km or 8.9 mi Bayonne
$3307
15 km or 9.6 mi North Bergen
$2803
17 km or 10 mi Secaucus
$2868
17 km or 11 mi Cliffside Park
$2738
18 km or 11 mi Kearny
$2781
20 km or 12 mi Valley Stream
$2803
20 km or 13 mi Fort Lee
$2801
20 km or 13 mi Lyndhurst
$2696
22 km or 14 mi Newark
$2750
23 km or 14 mi Elizabeth
$2792
23 km or 14 mi Belleville
$2533
25 km or 15 mi Hillside
$2717
25 km or 15 mi Long Beach
$2809
25 km or 15 mi Nutley
$2539
25 km or 16 mi East Orange
$2512
25 km or 16 mi Irvington
$2665
26 km or 16 mi Rockville Centre
$2684
26 km or 16 mi Linden
$2774
26 km or 16 mi Hackensack
$2685
26 km or 16 mi Bloomfield
$2477
26 km or 16 mi Teaneck
$2702
26 km or 16 mi Carteret
$2782
26 km or 16 mi Passaic
$2665
27 km or 17 mi Roselle
$2772
27 km or 17 mi Hempstead
$2697
28 km or 17 mi Union Township
$2734
28 km or 18 mi Clifton
$2666
28 km or 18 mi Maplewood
$2638
29 km or 18 mi Montclair
$2497
29 km or 18 mi Bergenfield
$2687
29 km or 18 mi Mount Vernon
$2863
30 km or 18 mi Rahway
$2758
30 km or 18 mi Uniondale
$2690
30 km or 18 mi West Orange
$2503
30 km or 18 mi New Rochelle
$3188