Cost of living comparison
compared to
Johor Bahru vs. Kuala Lumpur Cost of Living Summary
Johor Bahru is 18.3% cheaper than Kuala Lumpur.
- Restaurants
-
pay 13.2% less in Johor Bahru
- Groceries
-
pay 8.6% less in Johor Bahru
- Transportation
-
pay 16.8% less in Johor Bahru
- Housing
-
pay 5.2% less in Johor Bahru
- Childcare
-
pay 36.2% less in Johor Bahru
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 12.0% less in Johor Bahru
- Clothing
-
pay 36.2% less in Johor Bahru
Expenses including childcare, clothing, transportation, restaurants, entertainment and sports, and groceries are lower in Johor Bahru.
Johor Bahru vs. Kuala Lumpur Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Johor Bahru instead of Kuala Lumpur, you would:
pay 13.2% less for restaurants
|
Kuala Lumpur
|
Johor Bahru
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$4.74
MYR19.32
|
$3.55
MYR14.49
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$4.74
MYR19.32
|
$4.74
MYR19.32
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.89
MYR3.61
|
$0.78
MYR3.20
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.49
MYR1.98
|
$0.47
MYR1.92
|
|
Kuala Lumpur vs. Johor Bahru - Cost of restaurants
pay 8.6% less for groceries
|
Kuala Lumpur
|
Johor Bahru
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$0.98
MYR3.98
|
$0.98
MYR3.99
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.13
MYR29.06
|
$5.33
MYR21.74
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$7.98
MYR32.52
|
$7.01
MYR28.59
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.23
MYR9.08
|
$1.86
MYR7.59
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$2.09
MYR8.54
|
$2.20
MYR8.97
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.32
MYR5.38
|
$1.24
MYR5.04
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.75
MYR3.05
|
$0.68
MYR2.76
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.22
MYR4.98
|
$1.15
MYR4.68
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.69
MYR2.82
|
$0.56
MYR2.29
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.57
MYR2.30
|
$0.53
MYR2.16
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.62
MYR2.53
|
$0.62
MYR2.53
|
|
Kuala Lumpur vs. Johor Bahru - Cost of groceries
pay 16.8% less for transportation
|
Kuala Lumpur
|
Johor Bahru
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$1.87
MYR7.61
|
$1.84
MYR7.51
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$11.85
MYR48.31
|
$11.85
MYR48.31
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$40,284.36
MYR164,239.34
|
$35,545.02
MYR144,917.06
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$10.66
MYR43.48
|
$6.69
MYR27.29
|
|
Kuala Lumpur vs. Johor Bahru - Cost of transportation
pay 5.2% less for housing
|
Kuala Lumpur
|
Johor Bahru
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$25.49
MYR103.91
|
$30.15
MYR122.94
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$573.16
MYR2,336.79
|
$494.94
MYR2,017.89
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$350.71
MYR1,429.85
|
$375.20
MYR1,529.68
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$46.59
MYR189.95
|
$31.51
MYR128.48
|
|
Kuala Lumpur vs. Johor Bahru - Cost of housing
pay 36.2% less for childcare
|
Kuala Lumpur
|
Johor Bahru
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$264.45
MYR1,078.18
|
$153.04
MYR623.95
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$9,004.74
MYR36,712.32
|
$6,279.62
MYR25,602.01
|
|
Kuala Lumpur vs. Johor Bahru - Cost of childcare
pay 12.0% less for entertainment and sports
|
Kuala Lumpur
|
Johor Bahru
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$4.27
MYR17.39
|
$3.55
MYR14.49
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.06
MYR12.48
|
$2.91
MYR11.85
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$4.27
MYR17.39
|
$4.25
MYR17.34
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$46.43
MYR189.28
|
$34.36
MYR140.09
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$4.98
MYR20.29
|
$4.98
MYR20.29
|
|
Kuala Lumpur vs. Johor Bahru - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 36.2% less for clothing
|
Kuala Lumpur
|
Johor Bahru
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$61.66
MYR251.38
|
$49.76
MYR202.88
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$37.10
MYR151.28
|
$16.59
MYR67.63
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$87.80
MYR357.96
|
$71.09
MYR289.83
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$82.47
MYR336.25
|
$40.23
MYR164.00
|
|
Kuala Lumpur vs. Johor Bahru - Cost of clothing
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025
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