Cost of living comparison

United States

compared to

Australia

Sydney vs. Johnson City Cost of Living Summary

Sydney is 51.1% more expensive than Johnson City.

Restaurants: pay 17.8% more in Sydney
Groceries: pay 1.9% more in Sydney
Transportation: pay 63.4% more in Sydney
Housing: pay 85.4% more in Sydney
Childcare: pay 88.8% more in Sydney
Entertainment and Sports: pay 51.8% more in Sydney
Clothing: pay 70.8% more in Sydney

The cost of childcare, housing, clothing, transportation, entertainment and sports, and restaurants in Sydney are more expensive than in Johnson City. Notably, childcare and housing are significantly more expensive in Sydney.

Planning a move to Australia? Get up to 5 free, no-obligation quotes from vetted international movers. Get free quotes →

Sydney vs. Johnson City Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Sydney instead of Johnson City, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 17.8% more for restaurants

	Johnson City	Sydney
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$14.00	$17.41 A$25.04	+24.3%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$10.00	$11.84 A$17.03	+18.4%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$2.90	$2.81 A$4.04	-3.1%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$2.00	$2.22 A$3.19	+10.8%
Average			+17.8%

Johnson City vs. Sydney - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 1.9% more for groceries

	Johnson City	Sydney
Bread 1 loaf	$3.86	$2.85 A$4.09	-26.2%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$3.67	$5.93 A$8.54	+61.7%
Milk (1 gallon)	$3.80	$6.42 A$9.24	+69.0%
Eggs 1 dozen	$3.19	$5.56 A$7.99	+73.9%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$6.23	$4.34 A$6.24	-30.4%
Apples (1 lb)	$3.53	$1.81 A$2.60	-48.8%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.80	$1.45 A$2.09	+81.2%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.81	$1.56 A$2.24	-13.9%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.62	$1.98 A$2.85	+22.0%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.56	$1.48 A$2.12	-5.1%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.96	$1.07 A$1.54	-45.5%
Average			+1.9%

Johnson City vs. Sydney - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 63.4% more for transportation

	Johnson City	Sydney
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$3.24	$5.40 A$7.77	+66.5%
Monthly public transit pass	$37.50	$151.36 A$217.75	+303.6%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$32,000.00	$28,893.97 A$41,568.07	-9.7%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$17.18	$16.24 A$23.36	-5.5%
Average			+63.4%

Johnson City vs. Sydney - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 85.4% more for housing

	Johnson City	Sydney
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$62.50	$56.21 A$80.87	-10.1%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,100.00	$2,517.32 A$3,621.52	+128.8%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$919.80	$1,743.66 A$2,508.51	+89.6%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$132.80	$168.46 A$242.35	+26.8%
Average			+85.4%

Johnson City vs. Sydney - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 88.8% more for childcare

	Johnson City	Sydney
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$1,208.33	$2,195.71 A$3,158.84	+81.7%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$14,500.00	$28,441.13 A$40,916.61	+96.1%
Average			+88.8%

Johnson City vs. Sydney - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 51.8% more for entertainment and sports

	Johnson City	Sydney
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$5.00	$7.66 A$11.02	+53.2%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$5.17	$3.97 A$5.72	-23.1%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$7.95	$44.55 A$64.09	+460.4%
Monthly membership at local gym	$46.66	$75.28 A$108.30	+61.3%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$12.00	$17.41 A$25.04	+45.1%
Average			+51.8%

Johnson City vs. Sydney - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 70.8% more for clothing

	Johnson City	Sydney
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$37.50	$78.68 A$113.19	+109.8%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$31.25	$69.62 A$100.16	+122.8%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$85.80	$111.40 A$160.26	+29.8%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$95.00	$133.24 A$191.68	+40.2%
Average			+70.8%

Johnson City vs. Sydney - Cost of clothing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

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: Johnson City vs. Sydney

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in Sydney?

More cost comparisons

Johnson City vs.

Cairo

Johnson City vs.

Berlin

Johnson City vs.

New York City

Johnson City vs.

Dublin

Johnson City vs.

Madrid

Johnson City vs.

Athens

Johnson City vs.

London

Johnson City vs.

Reykjavik

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

See the cost of living in United States vs. Australia. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within United States and Australia.

Help us improve these prices

MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate. Learn more

Add prices for Johnson City

Add prices for Sydney

Ask the Elsewhere Community

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Sydney or Johnson City. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.