Cost of living comparison

Maldives

compared to

Brunei

Bandar Seri Begawan vs. Male Cost of Living Summary

Bandar Seri Begawan is 27.8% cheaper than Male.

Restaurants: pay 29.8% less in Bandar Seri Begawan
Groceries: pay 12.8% less in Bandar Seri Begawan
Transportation: pay 66.5% less in Bandar Seri Begawan
Housing: pay 31.1% less in Bandar Seri Begawan
Childcare: pay 94.8% more in Bandar Seri Begawan
Entertainment and Sports: pay 33.9% less in Bandar Seri Begawan
Clothing: pay 55.7% more in Bandar Seri Begawan

The cost of childcare and clothing in Bandar Seri Begawan are more expensive than in Male. Expenses including transportation, entertainment and sports, housing, restaurants, and groceries are lower in Bandar Seri Begawan. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Bandar Seri Begawan.

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Bandar Seri Begawan vs. Male Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Bandar Seri Begawan instead of Male, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 29.8% less for restaurants

	Male	Bandar Seri Begawan
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$6.00 MVR92.74	$3.91 BND4.98	-34.9%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$9.73 MVR150.39	$6.17 BND7.87	-36.6%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.63 MVR25.12	$0.92 BND1.18	-43.2%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.30 MVR4.59	$0.52 BND0.66	+73.6%
Average			-29.8%

Male vs. Bandar Seri Begawan - Cost of restaurants

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pay 12.8% less for groceries

	Male	Bandar Seri Begawan
Bread 1 loaf	$1.65 MVR25.57	$1.72 BND2.19	+3.9%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.34 MVR82.43	$4.69 BND5.98	-12.1%
Milk (1 gallon)	$7.69 MVR118.80	$7.05 BND8.99	-8.3%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.92 MVR29.70	$2.04 BND2.61	+6.2%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.77 MVR42.73	$2.04 BND2.60	-26.3%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.80 MVR27.83	$1.42 BND1.81	-21.3%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.39 MVR21.40	$0.99 BND1.27	-28.4%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.85 MVR28.65	$1.33 BND1.70	-28.3%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.22 MVR18.84	$1.15 BND1.47	-5.5%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.93 MVR14.40	$0.77 BND0.98	-17.3%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.86 MVR13.30	$0.93 BND1.19	+8.1%
Average			-12.8%

Male vs. Bandar Seri Begawan - Cost of groceries

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pay 66.5% less for transportation

	Male	Bandar Seri Begawan
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$3.81 MVR58.81	$1.55 BND1.98	-59.2%
Monthly public transit pass	$30.82 MVR476.23	$0.78 BND1.00	-97.5%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$32,446.46 MVR501K	$42,965.55 BND54,822.79	+32.4%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$17.52 MVR270.70	$30.47 BND38.87	+73.9%
Average			-66.5%

Male vs. Bandar Seri Begawan - Cost of transportation

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pay 31.1% less for housing

	Male	Bandar Seri Begawan
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$73.00 MVR1,127.92	$65.10 BND83.06	-10.8%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$951.14 MVR14,695.19	$720.60 BND919.46	-24.2%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$699.92 MVR10,813.71	$473.37 BND604.01	-32.4%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$90.98 MVR1,405.60	$46.90 BND59.84	-48.4%
Average			-31.1%

Male vs. Bandar Seri Begawan - Cost of housing

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pay 94.8% more for childcare

	Male	Bandar Seri Begawan
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$184.98 MVR2,857.90	$216.79 BND276.61	+17.2%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$3,004.83 MVR46,424.59	$9,724.87 BND12,408.65	+223.6%
Average			+94.8%

Male vs. Bandar Seri Begawan - Cost of childcare

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pay 33.9% less for entertainment and sports

	Male	Bandar Seri Begawan
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$4.87 MVR75.19	$1.95 BND2.49	-59.9%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.55 MVR54.84	$3.91 BND4.98	+10.0%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$14.93 MVR230.60	$15.63 BND19.94	+4.7%
Monthly membership at local gym	$70.81 MVR1,093.98	$45.57 BND58.14	-35.6%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$9.73 MVR150.39	$5.47 BND6.98	-43.8%
Average			-33.9%

Male vs. Bandar Seri Begawan - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 55.7% more for clothing

	Male	Bandar Seri Begawan
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$39.51 MVR610.48	$76.16 BND97.18	+92.8%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$49.64 MVR766.88	$93.73 BND119.60	+88.8%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$87.13 MVR1,346.11	$102.14 BND130.33	+17.2%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$52.52 MVR811.39	$72.26 BND92.20	+37.6%
Average			+55.7%

Male vs. Bandar Seri Begawan - 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 November 2026). How we calculate this

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