Kuala Lumpur vs New York City - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Kuala Lumpur New York City
🚶 Cost of living one person
$892
$4051
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$2135
$8925
🏠 One person rent
$450
$2620
🏘️ Family rent
$787
$4454
🍽️ Food expenses
$295
$807
🚐 Transport expenses
$69.6
$399
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$1450
$5777
😷 Air quality
Moderate
Good
✈️ Airport proximity
16 km
13 km
🎓 Higher education
93
100
😀 Quality of life
76
97
🏙️ Population
1.98M
8.8M

The cost of living in Kuala Lumpur is 78% less expensive than in New York City. Cities ranked 6160th and 5th ($892 vs $4051) in the list of the most expensive cities in the world and ranked 1st and 3rd 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 1.6 months in Kuala Lumpur compared to 1.4 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 883rd and 13th among best cities to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in Kuala Lumpur vs New York City infographic

Share this infographic!

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
$4.35
$24.7
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$27.4
$111
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$4.78
$12.6
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$4.99
$9.78
☕ Cappuccino
$3.17
$6.22
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$0.85
$3.16
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$495
$2702
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$343
$2361
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1006
$5005
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$604
$3996
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$48.4
$122
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$75.4
$187
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$27.7
$69.3
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
4.53%
6.73%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$3145
$19111
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$1425
$3215
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$0.72
$2.88
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$12.4
$138
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$9.79
$27.1
⛽ Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$0.51
$1.02
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$2.05
$1.39
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.02
$4.43
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.42
$6.1
🥚 Eggs, x12
$2.5
$5.36
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$14.7
$16.6
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$5.14
$13.7
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$10.2
$19.2
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.94
$5.78
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.61
$2.13
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.88
$5.75
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.55
$5.74
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.18
$3.22
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.15
$3.62
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.46
$1.57
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$1.2
$2.88
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$17.6
$20.1
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$3.2
$3.49
🚬 Cigarette pack
$4.31
$17.1
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$3.47
$10.5
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$3.34
$10
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.46
$7.97
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$2.21
$2.36
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$46.4
$144
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$4.89
$19.8
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$20
$156
💇 Haircut, simple
$6.4
$25.4
👖 Brand Jeans
$59.8
$65.6
👟 Brand Sneakers
$80.1
$111
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$259
$1717
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$9485
$20585

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

More cities to compare

Cost of Living in the nearest cities

Cities near Kuala Lumpur

Distance City Cost of living
11 km or 6.7 mi Petaling Jaya
$738
15 km or 9.1 mi Subang Jaya
$732
19 km or 12 mi Shah Alam
$687
24 km or 15 mi Putrajaya
$571
25 km or 16 mi Cyberjaya
$617
30 km or 19 mi Klang
$729
54 km or 33 mi Seremban
$630
123 km or 77 mi Malacca
$699
124 km or 77 mi Teluk Intan
$673
155 km or 97 mi Muar
$752
167 km or 104 mi Dumai
$585
176 km or 109 mi Ipoh
$670
196 km or 122 mi Kuantan
$518
199 km or 124 mi Batu Pahat
$750
211 km or 131 mi Tanjungbalai
$538
217 km or 135 mi Taiping
$759
219 km or 136 mi Kluang
$745
229 km or 142 mi Chukai
$579
282 km or 175 mi Tebing Tinggi
$504
291 km or 181 mi Butterworth
$671
291 km or 181 mi Kuala Terengganu
$544
292 km or 181 mi Pekanbaru
$590
293 km or 182 mi Pematangsiantar
$518
294 km or 183 mi George Town
$669
297 km or 184 mi Johor Bahru
$709
309 km or 192 mi Sungai Petani
$637
311 km or 193 mi Singapore City
$3168
315 km or 195 mi Bukit Merah
$2852
335 km or 208 mi Padangsidempuan
$624
338 km or 210 mi Kota Bharu
$517
341 km or 212 mi Medan
$519
346 km or 215 mi Batam
$604
360 km or 224 mi Binjai
$503
361 km or 225 mi Alor Setar
$523
394 km or 245 mi Tanjung Pinang
$549
402 km or 250 mi Kangar
$563
413 km or 257 mi Langkawi
$594
441 km or 274 mi Langsa
$490
451 km or 280 mi Hat Yai
$561
457 km or 284 mi Ko Lipe
$742

Cities near New York City

Distance City Cost of living
11 km or 6.6 mi Astoria
$2510
11 km or 6.8 mi Hoboken
$3280
11 km or 7.1 mi Jersey
$3002
13 km or 8.3 mi Union
$2857
14 km or 8.8 mi West New York
$2634
14 km or 8.9 mi Bayonne
$3168
15 km or 9.6 mi North Bergen
$2611
17 km or 10 mi Secaucus
$2701
17 km or 11 mi Cliffside Park
$2414
18 km or 11 mi Kearny
$2671
20 km or 12 mi Valley Stream
$2715
20 km or 13 mi Fort Lee
$2165
20 km or 13 mi Lyndhurst
$2605
22 km or 14 mi Newark
$2575
23 km or 14 mi Elizabeth
$2733
23 km or 14 mi Belleville
$2479
25 km or 15 mi Hillside
$2664
25 km or 15 mi Long Beach
$2722
25 km or 15 mi Nutley
$2493
25 km or 16 mi East Orange
$2635
25 km or 16 mi Irvington
$2622
26 km or 16 mi Rockville Centre
$2607
26 km or 16 mi Linden
$2762
26 km or 16 mi Hackensack
$2590
26 km or 16 mi Bloomfield
$2424
26 km or 16 mi Teaneck
$2641
26 km or 16 mi Carteret
$2778
26 km or 16 mi Passaic
$2646
27 km or 17 mi Roselle
$2760
27 km or 17 mi Hempstead
$2702
28 km or 17 mi Union Township
$2732
28 km or 18 mi Clifton
$2721
28 km or 18 mi Maplewood
$2691
29 km or 18 mi Montclair
$2454
29 km or 18 mi Bergenfield
$2586
29 km or 18 mi Mount Vernon
$2811
30 km or 18 mi Rahway
$2771
30 km or 18 mi Uniondale
$2578
30 km or 18 mi West Orange
$2553
30 km or 18 mi New Rochelle
$3108