Cost of living comparison
compared to
Palau vs. Maldives Cost of Living Summary
Palau is 44.7% more expensive than Maldives overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 90.5% more in Palau
- Groceries
-
pay 2.2 times more in Palau
- Transportation
-
pay 22.1% more in Palau
- Housing
-
pay 16.9% more in Palau
- Childcare
-
pay 12.4% less in Palau
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 20.9% less in Palau
- Clothing
-
pay 94.5% more in Palau
The cost of groceries, clothing, restaurants, transportation, and housing in Palau are more expensive than in Maldives. Expenses including entertainment and sports and childcare are lower in Palau. Notably, groceries, clothing, and restaurants are significantly more expensive in Palau.
Palau vs. Maldives Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Palau instead of Maldives, you would:
pay 90.5% more for restaurants
|
Maldives
|
Palau
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$5.56
MVR85.56
|
$12.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.80
MVR150.98
|
$10.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.45
MVR22.29
|
$1.37
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.31
MVR4.70
|
$1.07
|
|
Maldives vs. Palau - Cost of restaurants
pay 2.2 times more for groceries
|
Maldives
|
Palau
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.59
MVR24.49
|
$3.44
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.58
MVR70.46
|
$5.00
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.95
MVR107.00
|
$9.97
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$1.67
MVR25.67
|
$5.97
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$2.82
MVR43.37
|
$6.30
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.84
MVR28.31
|
$2.40
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.73
MVR26.63
|
$1.00
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.96
MVR30.25
|
$2.50
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.48
MVR22.83
|
$7.50
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.70
MVR10.77
|
$2.09
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.55
MVR8.45
|
$1.50
|
|
Maldives vs. Palau - Cost of groceries
pay 22.1% more for transportation
|
Maldives
|
Palau
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.54
MVR54.53
|
$6.75
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$28.91
MVR445.28
|
?? | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$32,679.74
MVR503,267.97
|
$17,500.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$17.65
MVR271.76
|
?? | |
Maldives vs. Palau - Cost of transportation
pay 16.9% more for housing
|
Maldives
|
Palau
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$61.82
MVR952.02
|
$129.50
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,136.53
MVR17,502.54
|
$750.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$731.21
MVR11,260.62
|
$550.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$93.30
MVR1,436.78
|
?? | |
Maldives vs. Palau - Cost of housing
pay 12.4% less for childcare
|
Maldives
|
Palau
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$164.38
MVR2,531.44
|
$200.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$3,587.42
MVR55,246.24
|
$1,920.00
|
|
Maldives vs. Palau - Cost of childcare
pay 20.9% less for entertainment and sports
|
Maldives
|
Palau
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$4.74
MVR72.97
|
$1.50
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.31
MVR50.96
|
$4.08
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$13.07
MVR201.31
|
$11.25
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$72.98
MVR1,123.97
|
$55.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$9.80
MVR150.98
|
?? | |
Maldives vs. Palau - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 94.5% more for clothing
|
Maldives
|
Palau
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$43.03
MVR662.64
|
$62.50
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$56.86
MVR875.69
|
$52.50
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$90.20
MVR1,389.02
|
$147.50
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$51.74
MVR796.84
|
$195.00
|
|
Maldives vs. Palau - 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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