Cost of living comparison

compared to

Kuwait City vs. Kuala Lumpur Cost of Living Summary

Kuwait City is 30.8% more expensive than Kuala Lumpur.

Restaurants: pay 43.1% more in Kuwait City
Groceries: pay 2.0% less in Kuwait City
Transportation: pay 80.0% more in Kuwait City
Housing: pay 47.4% more in Kuwait City
Childcare: pay 0.7% less in Kuwait City
Entertainment and Sports: pay 59.2% more in Kuwait City
Clothing: pay 11.6% less in Kuwait City

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

Kuwait City vs. Kuala Lumpur Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Kuwait City instead of Kuala Lumpur, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 43.1% more for restaurants

	Kuala Lumpur	Kuwait City
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$4.74 MYR19.59	$11.45 KWD3.510	+141.5%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$4.74 MYR19.59	$9.48 KWD2.910	+100.1%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.89 MYR3.66	$0.56 KWD0.170	-36.4%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.49 MYR2.01	$0.33 KWD0.100	-32.8%
Average			+43.1%

Kuala Lumpur vs. Kuwait City - Cost of restaurants

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pay 2.0% less for groceries

	Kuala Lumpur	Kuwait City
Bread 1 loaf	$0.98 MYR4.03	$1.32 KWD0.410	+35.4%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$7.13 MYR29.45	$2.68 KWD0.820	-62.3%
Milk (1 gallon)	$7.98 MYR32.96	$5.98 KWD1.840	-25.0%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.23 MYR9.21	$1.95 KWD0.600	-12.3%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.09 MYR8.65	$3.21 KWD0.980	+53.2%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.32 MYR5.45	$1.06 KWD0.320	-19.9%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.75 MYR3.09	$0.88 KWD0.270	+17.9%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.22 MYR5.04	$0.77 KWD0.240	-37.2%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.69 MYR2.86	$0.78 KWD0.240	+12.6%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.57 MYR2.34	$0.60 KWD0.180	+6.4%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.62 MYR2.56	$0.68 KWD0.210	+9.4%
Average			-2.0%

Kuala Lumpur vs. Kuwait City - Cost of groceries

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pay 80.0% more for transportation

	Kuala Lumpur	Kuwait City
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$1.87 MYR7.71	$1.35 KWD0.420	-27.6%
Monthly public transit pass	$11.85 MYR48.96	$44.15 KWD13.550	+272.6%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$40,284.36 MYR166,475.12	$21,257.11 KWD6,525.510	-47.2%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$10.66 MYR44.07	$23.71 KWD7.280	+122.3%
Average			+80.0%

Kuala Lumpur vs. Kuwait City - Cost of transportation

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pay 47.4% more for housing

	Kuala Lumpur	Kuwait City
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$25.49 MYR105.32	$29.07 KWD8.920	+14.1%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$573.16 MYR2,368.60	$923.87 KWD283.610	+61.2%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$350.71 MYR1,449.31	$704.38 KWD216.230	+100.8%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$46.59 MYR192.54	$52.86 KWD16.230	+13.4%
Average			+47.4%

Kuala Lumpur vs. Kuwait City - Cost of housing

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pay 0.7% less for childcare

	Kuala Lumpur	Kuwait City
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$264.45 MYR1,092.86	$306.59 KWD94.120	+15.9%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$9,004.74 MYR37,212.09	$7,442.33 KWD2,284.650	-17.4%
Average			-0.7%

Kuala Lumpur vs. Kuwait City - Cost of childcare

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pay 59.2% more for entertainment and sports

	Kuala Lumpur	Kuwait City
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$4.27 MYR17.63	$3.27 KWD1.000	-23.3%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.06 MYR12.65	$5.74 KWD1.760	+87.4%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$4.27 MYR17.63	$2.94 KWD0.900	-31.0%
Monthly membership at local gym	$46.43 MYR191.86	$108.17 KWD33.210	+133.0%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$4.98 MYR20.56	$11.45 KWD3.510	+130.0%
Average			+59.2%

Kuala Lumpur vs. Kuwait City - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 11.6% less for clothing

	Kuala Lumpur	Kuwait City
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$61.66 MYR254.80	$39.65 KWD12.170	-35.7%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$37.10 MYR153.34	$38.70 KWD11.880	+4.3%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$87.80 MYR362.83	$85.03 KWD26.100	-3.2%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$82.47 MYR340.83	$72.67 KWD22.310	-11.9%
Average			-11.6%

Kuala Lumpur vs. Kuwait City - Cost of clothing

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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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