Cost of living comparison

Cuba

compared to

Malaysia

Malaysia vs. Cuba Cost of Living Summary

Malaysia is 2.3% more expensive than Cuba overall.

Restaurants: pay 20.5% less in Malaysia
Groceries: pay 29.4% less in Malaysia
Transportation: pay 33.2% less in Malaysia
Housing: pay 18.6% more in Malaysia
Childcare: pay 54.0% more in Malaysia
Entertainment and Sports: pay 2.8 times more in Malaysia
Clothing: pay 19.5% more in Malaysia

The cost of entertainment and sports, childcare, clothing, and housing in Malaysia are more expensive than in Cuba. Expenses including transportation, groceries, and restaurants are lower in Malaysia. Notably, entertainment and sports is significantly more expensive in Malaysia.

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Malaysia vs. Cuba Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Malaysia instead of Cuba, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 20.5% less for restaurants

	Cuba	Malaysia
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$3.71 CUC3.71	$3.42 MYR13.98	-7.6%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.00 CUC5.00	$4.64 MYR18.95	-7.2%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.70 CUC1.70	$0.75 MYR3.07	-55.8%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.00 CUC1.00	$0.42 MYR1.72	-57.8%
Average			-20.5%

Cuba vs. Malaysia - Cost of restaurants

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pay 29.4% less for groceries

	Cuba	Malaysia
Bread 1 loaf	$1.49 CUC1.49	$1.10 MYR4.49	-26.2%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$2.22 CUC2.22	$6.94 MYR28.32	+212.5%
Milk (1 gallon)	$14.20 CUC14.20	$7.18 MYR29.31	-49.4%
Eggs 1 dozen	$3.71 CUC3.71	$2.09 MYR8.53	-43.8%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.07 CUC2.07	$1.90 MYR7.75	-8.3%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.75 CUC2.75	$1.35 MYR5.53	-50.7%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.48 CUC0.48	$0.73 MYR2.97	+50.4%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.79 CUC1.79	$1.19 MYR4.84	-33.6%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.04 CUC1.04	$0.69 MYR2.83	-33.5%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.73 CUC1.73	$0.57 MYR2.34	-66.8%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.85 CUC1.85	$0.61 MYR2.50	-67.0%
Average			-29.4%

Cuba vs. Malaysia - Cost of groceries

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pay 33.2% less for transportation

	Cuba	Malaysia
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.83 CUC4.83	$2.76 MYR11.29	-42.7%
Monthly public transit pass	$22.50 CUC22.50	$15.28 MYR62.39	-32.1%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$60,000.00 CUC60,000.00	$40,802.19 MYR167K	-32.0%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$6.20 CUC6.20	$6.46 MYR26.37	+4.2%
Average			-33.2%

Cuba vs. Malaysia - Cost of transportation

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pay 18.6% more for housing

	Cuba	Malaysia
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$90.21 CUC90.21	$27.60 MYR112.71	-69.4%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$254.03 CUC254.03	$363.41 MYR1,483.90	+43.1%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$214.40 CUC214.40	$265.07 MYR1,082.35	+23.6%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$36.20 CUC36.20	$36.69 MYR149.79	+1.4%
Average			+18.6%

Cuba vs. Malaysia - Cost of housing

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pay 54.0% more for childcare

	Cuba	Malaysia
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$112.00 CUC112.00	$231.07 MYR943.51	+106.3%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$7,000.00 CUC7,000.00	$8,043.53 MYR32,843.35	+14.9%
Average			+54.0%

Cuba vs. Malaysia - Cost of childcare

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pay 2.8 times more for entertainment and sports

	Cuba	Malaysia
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.60 CUC1.60	$3.61 MYR14.73	+125.2%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$1.11 CUC1.11	$2.76 MYR11.29	+149.0%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.00 CUC2.00	$4.35 MYR17.74	+117.3%
Monthly membership at local gym	$19.00 CUC19.00	$38.82 MYR158.52	+104.3%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$0.85 CUC0.85	$4.73 MYR19.31	+456.2%
Average			+180.1%

Cuba vs. Malaysia - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 19.5% more for clothing

	Cuba	Malaysia
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$37.00 CUC37.00	$58.43 MYR238.60	+57.9%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$37.00 CUC37.00	$30.42 MYR124.22	-17.8%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$68.67 CUC68.67	$77.72 MYR317.35	+13.2%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$56.00 CUC56.00	$77.79 MYR317.65	+38.9%
Average			+19.5%

Cuba vs. Malaysia - Cost of clothing

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We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this

Compare further: Cuba vs. Malaysia

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in Malaysia?

Quality of Life Comparison · 17 statistics

Be 2.1 times more likely to be unemployed in Malaysia

Size Comparison · See true size

Cuba is about 3 times smaller than Malaysia.

Moving from Cuba to Malaysia · Cost, visas & climate

Compare cost of living, salary and climate.

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