Malaysia vs United States - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Malaysia United States
🚶 Cost of living one person
$818
$2522
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$1932
$5757
🏠 One person rent
$385
$1593
🏘️ Family rent
$618
$2642
🍽️ Food expenses
$288
$656
🚐 Transport expenses
$65.3
$103
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$919
$4550
💸 GDP per capita
$11874
$84534
😃 Human freedom index
7.11
8.71
❤️ Life expectancy
76.7
78.4
👮 Corruption perceptions index
52
64
🌐 English speaking %
57.3%
95.9%
🎓 Higher education
78
100
😀 Quality of life
68
88
🏙️ Population
35.6M
340M

The average cost of living in Malaysia ($818) is 68% less expensive than in the United States ($2522). Malaysia ranked 127th vs 9th for the United States in the list of the most expensive countries in the world.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 1.1 months in Malaysia compared to 1.8 months in the United States. Ranked 55th and 22nd best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Share this picture

Prices in Malaysia vs the United States

We calculate prices for Malaysia and the United States as a population-weighted mean of 34 and 2202 cities, respectively. Since large cities tend to have a higher cost of living, it's better to visit specific city pages below for more relevant information.

Malaysia United States
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$3.74
$19.8
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$23.3
$77
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$4.73
$11.7
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$4.35
$6.39
 Cappuccino
$3.06
$5.44
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$0.77
$2.76
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$474
$1682
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$288
$1337
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$830
$2997
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$483
$2414
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$33.5
$130
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$52
$200
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$27.1
$68.9
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
4.27%
6.16%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$2250
$4871
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$1191
$3394
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$0.81
$2.34
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$15.2
$71.1
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$8.29
$18
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$0.64
$1.02
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$2.03
$1.11
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.12
$3.58
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.51
$4.47
🥚 Eggs, x12
$2.33
$4.73
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$13.7
$13.2
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.94
$12.3
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$9.24
$17.3
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.13
$5.06
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.78
$1.82
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.65
$4.57
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.54
$4.83
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.34
$2.88
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.51
$2.97
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.39
$1.52
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$1.14
$2.75
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$19.2
$15
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$2.98
$2.45
🚬 Cigarette pack
$4.36
$11.1
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$4
$10.5
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$3.8
$6.66
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.64
$4.59
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.94
$2.24
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$40.8
$52.6
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$4.8
$14.7
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$24.6
$127
💇 Haircut, simple
$7.71
$22.1
👖 Brand Jeans
$62.6
$55.3
👟 Brand Sneakers
$80.7
$94.7
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$233
$1520
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$8255
$20019

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in Malaysia vs the United States

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In Malaysia

City Cost of living Population
Kuala Lumpur
$992
9M
Shah Alam
$741
741K
Johor Bahru
$843
798K
George Town
$762
794K
Ipoh
$677
867K
Klang
$743
878K
Subang Jaya
$798
708K
Petaling Jaya
$783
639K
Kuantan
$576
608K
Sandakan
$583
396K
Kota Bharu
$531
491K
Seremban
$617
420K
Sungai Petani
$637
545K
Kota Kinabalu
$718
452K
Chukai
$621
256K
Muar
$759
357K
Teluk Intan
$678
233K
Malacca
$707
455K
Kuching
$698
325K
Miri
$688
235K
Kluang
$717
205K
Lahad Datu
$620
200K
Alor Setar
$545
217K
Taiping
$555
245K
Putrajaya
$610
109K
Kuala Terengganu
$550
255K
Sibu
$614
248K
Batu Pahat
$737
140K
Butterworth
$720
80.4K
Bintulu
$588
114K

In the United States

City Cost of living Population
New York City
$4202
8.8M
Los Angeles
$3420
3.9M
Chicago
$2851
2.75M
Houston
$2261
2.3M
San Diego
$3486
1.39M
Philadelphia
$2597
1.6M
San Francisco
$4110
874K
Phoenix
$2423
1.61M
Dallas
$2472
1.3M
San Jose
$3957
1.01M
San Antonio
$2071
1.43M
Washington
$3350
690K
Seattle
$3183
737K
Austin
$2475
962K
Boston
$3680
676K
Fort Worth
$2259
919K
Hempstead
$2710
793K
Indianapolis
$2405
888K
Charlotte
$2470
875K
Jacksonville
$2192
950K
Columbus
$2140
906K
Denver
$2848
716K
Portland
$2785
653K
Nashville
$2451
689K
Atlanta
$2628
499K
Oklahoma City
$1931
681K
Baltimore
$2224
586K
Las Vegas
$2294
642K
Sacramento
$2682
525K
Memphis
$1917
633K