Cost of living comparison

Malaysia

compared to

Saudi Arabia

Mecca vs. Ipoh Cost of Living Summary

Mecca is 16.4% more expensive than Ipoh.

Restaurants: pay 26.0% more in Mecca
Groceries: pay 12.8% less in Mecca
Transportation: pay 23.0% more in Mecca
Housing: pay 29.7% more in Mecca
Childcare: pay 78.5% more in Mecca
Entertainment and Sports: pay 53.2% more in Mecca
Clothing: pay 33.8% less in Mecca

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

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Mecca vs. Ipoh Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Mecca instead of Ipoh, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 26.0% more for restaurants

	Ipoh	Mecca
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$3.30 MYR13.49	$4.53 SAR17.00	+37.1%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$4.40 MYR17.99	$6.93 SAR26.00	+57.3%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.72 MYR2.95	$0.69 SAR2.60	-4.0%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.46 MYR1.88	$0.24 SAR0.90	-47.9%
Average			+26.0%

Ipoh vs. Mecca - Cost of restaurants

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pay 12.8% less for groceries

	Ipoh	Mecca
Bread 1 loaf	$1.04 MYR4.26	$0.98 SAR3.67	-6.4%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$6.76 MYR27.59	$2.98 SAR11.17	-56.0%
Milk (1 gallon)	$7.67 MYR31.30	$6.49 SAR24.37	-15.3%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.28 MYR9.31	$2.46 SAR9.23	+8.0%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.02 MYR8.25	$3.71 SAR13.92	+83.7%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.39 MYR5.67	$0.93 SAR3.48	-33.2%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.82 MYR3.34	$0.73 SAR2.72	-11.4%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.04 MYR4.23	$0.71 SAR2.67	-31.2%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.71 MYR2.91	$0.68 SAR2.57	-3.7%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.59 MYR2.41	$0.52 SAR1.95	-12.1%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.62 MYR2.54	$0.58 SAR2.17	-7.1%
Average			-12.8%

Ipoh vs. Mecca - Cost of groceries

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pay 23.0% more for transportation

	Ipoh	Mecca
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$1.90 MYR7.75	$2.35 SAR8.82	+23.8%
Monthly public transit pass	??	??
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$41,736.41 MYR170K	$47,965.95 SAR180K	+14.9%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$11.01 MYR44.96	$16.26 SAR61.00	+47.6%
Average			+23.0%

Ipoh vs. Mecca - Cost of transportation

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pay 29.7% more for housing

	Ipoh	Mecca
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$26.27 MYR107.27	$62.84 SAR235.84	+139.2%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$367.05 MYR1,498.75	$524.96 SAR1,970.09	+43.0%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$244.70 MYR999.17	$286.20 SAR1,074.05	+17.0%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$47.56 MYR194.21	$50.94 SAR191.19	+7.1%
Average			+29.7%

Ipoh vs. Mecca - Cost of housing

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pay 78.5% more for childcare

	Ipoh	Mecca
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$299.09 MYR1,221.23	$760.49 SAR2,854.01	+154.3%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$13,124.70 MYR53,590.76	$16,442.55 SAR61,706.21	+25.3%
Average			+78.5%

Ipoh vs. Mecca - Cost of childcare

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pay 53.2% more for entertainment and sports

	Ipoh	Mecca
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$4.40 MYR17.99	$1.53 SAR5.75	-65.2%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.81 MYR11.49	$2.60 SAR9.74	-7.8%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$4.40 MYR17.99	$6.66 SAR25.00	+51.2%
Monthly membership at local gym	$24.47 MYR99.92	$81.01 SAR304.01	+231.1%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$3.43 MYR13.99	$11.99 SAR45.00	+250.0%
Average			+53.2%

Ipoh vs. Mecca - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 33.8% less for clothing

	Ipoh	Mecca
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$61.18 MYR249.79	$13.32 SAR50.00	-78.2%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$36.71 MYR149.88	$57.02 SAR214.00	+55.4%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$61.18 MYR249.79	$39.97 SAR150.01	-34.7%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$61.18 MYR249.79	$53.30 SAR200.01	-12.9%
Average			-33.8%

Ipoh vs. Mecca - 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

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