Cost of living comparison

Malaysia

compared to

Cuba

Cuba vs. Malaysia Cost of Living Summary

Cuba is 2.3% cheaper than Malaysia overall.

Restaurants: pay 25.8% more in Cuba
Groceries: pay 41.7% more in Cuba
Transportation: pay 49.7% more in Cuba
Housing: pay 15.7% less in Cuba
Childcare: pay 35.1% less in Cuba
Entertainment and Sports: pay 64.3% less in Cuba
Clothing: pay 16.3% less in Cuba

The cost of transportation, groceries, and restaurants in Cuba are more expensive than in Malaysia. Expenses including entertainment and sports, childcare, clothing, and housing are lower in Cuba.

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Cuba vs. Malaysia Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Cuba instead of Malaysia, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 25.8% more for restaurants

	Malaysia	Cuba
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$3.42 MYR13.98	$3.71 CUC3.71	+8.3%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$4.64 MYR18.95	$5.00 CUC5.00	+7.7%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.75 MYR3.07	$1.70 CUC1.70	+126.4%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.42 MYR1.72	$1.00 CUC1.00	+137.1%
Average			+25.8%

Malaysia vs. Cuba - Cost of restaurants

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pay 41.7% more for groceries

	Malaysia	Cuba
Bread 1 loaf	$1.10 MYR4.49	$1.49 CUC1.49	+35.5%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$6.94 MYR28.32	$2.22 CUC2.22	-68.0%
Milk (1 gallon)	$7.18 MYR29.31	$14.20 CUC14.20	+97.7%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.09 MYR8.53	$3.71 CUC3.71	+77.8%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$1.90 MYR7.75	$2.07 CUC2.07	+9.1%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.35 MYR5.53	$2.75 CUC2.75	+102.7%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.73 MYR2.97	$0.48 CUC0.48	-33.5%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.19 MYR4.84	$1.79 CUC1.79	+50.7%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.69 MYR2.83	$1.04 CUC1.04	+50.4%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.57 MYR2.34	$1.73 CUC1.73	+201.6%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.61 MYR2.50	$1.85 CUC1.85	+202.6%
Average			+41.7%

Malaysia vs. Cuba - Cost of groceries

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pay 49.7% more for transportation

	Malaysia	Cuba
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$2.76 MYR11.29	$4.83 CUC4.83	+74.6%
Monthly public transit pass	$15.28 MYR62.39	$22.50 CUC22.50	+47.3%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$40,802.19 MYR167K	$60,000.00 CUC60,000.00	+47.1%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$6.46 MYR26.37	$6.20 CUC6.20	-4.0%
Average			+49.7%

Malaysia vs. Cuba - Cost of transportation

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pay 15.7% less for housing

	Malaysia	Cuba
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$27.60 MYR112.71	$90.21 CUC90.21	+226.8%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$363.41 MYR1,483.90	$254.03 CUC254.03	-30.1%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$265.07 MYR1,082.35	$214.40 CUC214.40	-19.1%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$36.69 MYR149.79	$36.20 CUC36.20	-1.3%
Average			-15.7%

Malaysia vs. Cuba - Cost of housing

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pay 35.1% less for childcare

	Malaysia	Cuba
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$231.07 MYR943.51	$112.00 CUC112.00	-51.5%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$8,043.53 MYR32,843.35	$7,000.00 CUC7,000.00	-13.0%
Average			-35.1%

Malaysia vs. Cuba - Cost of childcare

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pay 64.3% less for entertainment and sports

	Malaysia	Cuba
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.61 MYR14.73	$1.60 CUC1.60	-55.6%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.76 MYR11.29	$1.11 CUC1.11	-59.8%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$4.35 MYR17.74	$2.00 CUC2.00	-54.0%
Monthly membership at local gym	$38.82 MYR158.52	$19.00 CUC19.00	-51.1%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$4.73 MYR19.31	$0.85 CUC0.85	-82.0%
Average			-64.3%

Malaysia vs. Cuba - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 16.3% less for clothing

	Malaysia	Cuba
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$58.43 MYR238.60	$37.00 CUC37.00	-36.7%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$30.42 MYR124.22	$37.00 CUC37.00	+21.6%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$77.72 MYR317.35	$68.67 CUC68.67	-11.7%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$77.79 MYR317.65	$56.00 CUC56.00	-28.0%
Average			-16.3%

Malaysia vs. Cuba - 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

Compare further: Malaysia vs. Cuba

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in Cuba?

Quality of Life Comparison · 17 statistics

Be 53.5% less likely to be unemployed in Cuba

Size Comparison · See true size

Malaysia is about 3 times bigger than Cuba.

Moving from Malaysia to Cuba · Cost, visas & climate

Compare cost of living, salary and climate.

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