Cost of living comparison

compared to

Flagstaff vs. Melbourne Cost of Living Summary

Flagstaff is 6.3% cheaper than Melbourne.

Restaurants
pay 12.9% more in Flagstaff
Groceries
pay 16.7% less in Flagstaff
Transportation
pay 32.3% less in Flagstaff
Housing
pay 15.8% more in Flagstaff
Childcare
pay 22.8% less in Flagstaff
Entertainment and Sports
pay 10.3% less in Flagstaff
Clothing
pay 15.5% less in Flagstaff

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

Flagstaff vs. Melbourne Cost Breakdown

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

pay 12.9% more for restaurants

 
Melbourne
Flagstaff
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $17.41
A$24.77
$20.00
 
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$12.27
A$17.45
$14.50
 
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $3.10
A$4.41
$3.22
 

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pay 16.7% less for groceries

 
Melbourne
Flagstaff
Bread
1 loaf
$2.93
A$4.17
$2.56
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $5.24
A$7.46
$7.05
 
Milk (1 gallon) $5.80
A$8.25
$3.10
 

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pay 32.3% less for transportation

 
Melbourne
Flagstaff
Gasoline (1 gallon) $5.46
A$7.77
$4.34
 
Monthly public transit pass $139.25
A$198.13
$32.00
 
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $28,538.88
A$40,607.41
$36,113.30
 

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pay 15.8% more for housing

 
Melbourne
Flagstaff
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$56.47
A$80.34
$77.73
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,726.11
A$2,456.05
$2,025.00
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $1,405.75
A$2,000.21
$1,643.75
 

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pay 22.8% less for childcare

 
Melbourne
Flagstaff
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $2,374.95
A$3,379.26
$1,819.33
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $29,879.04
A$42,514.29
$23,262.50
 

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pay 10.3% less for entertainment and sports

 
Melbourne
Flagstaff
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $9.75
A$13.87
$6.00
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $4.02
A$5.71
$6.14
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$44.55
A$63.39
$10.34
 

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pay 15.5% less for clothing

 
Melbourne
Flagstaff
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$80.23
A$114.15
$61.77
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$49.88
A$70.98
$35.00
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$119.33
A$169.79
$110.18
 

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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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