Cost of living comparison

compared to

Melbourne vs. Madrid Cost of Living Summary

Melbourne is 40.9% more expensive than Madrid.

Restaurants
pay 1.3% less in Melbourne
Groceries
pay 26.8% more in Melbourne
Transportation
pay 23.7% more in Melbourne
Housing
pay 9.8% more in Melbourne
Childcare
pay 2.3 times more in Melbourne
Entertainment and Sports
pay 98.5% more in Melbourne
Clothing
pay 3.2% less in Melbourne

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

Melbourne vs. Madrid Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Melbourne instead of Madrid, you would:

pay 1.3% less for restaurants

 
Madrid
Melbourne
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $18.10
€15.55
$19.63
A$29.55
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$11.68
€10.03
$10.47
A$15.76
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $3.13
€2.69
$2.69
A$4.05

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pay 26.8% more for groceries

 
Madrid
Melbourne
Bread
1 loaf
$1.71
€1.47
$2.73
A$4.11
Local cheese (8 oz) $7.25
€6.22
$4.60
A$6.93
Milk (1 gallon) $4.61
€3.96
$6.19
A$9.33

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pay 23.7% more for transportation

 
Madrid
Melbourne
Gasoline (1 gallon) $7.08
€6.08
$4.42
A$6.66
Monthly public transit pass $45.84
€39.37
$122.33
A$184.18
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $38,541.72
€33,100.05
$29,060.36
A$43,752.43

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pay 9.8% more for housing

 
Madrid
Melbourne
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$34.54
€29.66
$51.49
A$77.52
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,540.98
€1,323.41
$1,557.21
A$2,344.49
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $1,118.82
€960.85
$1,186.33
A$1,786.10

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pay 2.3 times more for childcare

 
Madrid
Melbourne
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $673.20
€578.15
$1,960.54
A$2,951.73
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $13,119.76
€11,267.39
$22,736.38
A$34,231.23

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pay 98.5% more for entertainment and sports

 
Madrid
Melbourne
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $4.50
€3.86
$7.85
A$11.82
Cappuccino in mid-range area $3.20
€2.75
$3.69
A$5.56
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$7.01
€6.02
$32.71
A$49.25

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pay 3.2% less for clothing

 
Madrid
Melbourne
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$98.88
€84.92
$70.24
A$105.75
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$41.27
€35.44
$53.21
A$80.12
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$107.49
€92.31
$107.56
A$161.94

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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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