Cost of living comparison
compared to
Kuala Lumpur vs. New Zealand Cost of Living Summary
Kuala Lumpur is 35.4% cheaper than New Zealand overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 62.3% less in Kuala Lumpur
- Groceries
-
pay 16.6% less in Kuala Lumpur
- Transportation
-
pay 32.7% less in Kuala Lumpur
- Housing
-
pay 49.6% less in Kuala Lumpur
- Childcare
-
pay 45.8% less in Kuala Lumpur
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 30.0% less in Kuala Lumpur
- Clothing
-
pay 11.1% less in Kuala Lumpur
Expenses including restaurants, housing, childcare, transportation, entertainment and sports, and groceries are lower in Kuala Lumpur.
Kuala Lumpur vs. New Zealand Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Kuala Lumpur instead of New Zealand, you would:
pay 62.3% less for restaurants
|
New Zealand
|
Kuala Lumpur
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$14.45
NZ$25.10
|
$4.74
MYR19.32
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.14
NZ$15.87
|
$4.74
MYR19.32
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.11
NZ$3.66
|
$0.89
MYR3.61
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.02
NZ$3.50
|
$0.49
MYR1.98
|
|
New Zealand vs. Kuala Lumpur - Cost of restaurants
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 16.6% less for groceries
|
New Zealand
|
Kuala Lumpur
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.74
NZ$3.02
|
$0.98
MYR3.98
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$3.88
NZ$6.74
|
$7.13
MYR29.06
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.34
NZ$11.01
|
$7.98
MYR32.52
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.96
NZ$10.35
|
$2.23
MYR9.08
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.01
NZ$6.96
|
$2.09
MYR8.54
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.18
NZ$2.05
|
$1.32
MYR5.38
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.95
NZ$1.65
|
$0.75
MYR3.05
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.29
NZ$2.25
|
$1.22
MYR4.98
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.11
NZ$3.66
|
$0.69
MYR2.82
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.85
NZ$1.48
|
$0.57
MYR2.30
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.80
NZ$1.38
|
$0.62
MYR2.53
|
|
New Zealand vs. Kuala Lumpur - Cost of groceries
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 32.7% less for transportation
|
New Zealand
|
Kuala Lumpur
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.08
NZ$10.56
|
$1.87
MYR7.61
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$74.52
NZ$129.46
|
$11.85
MYR48.31
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$24,777.66
NZ$43,046.67
|
$40,284.36
MYR164,239.34
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$17.81
NZ$30.94
|
$10.66
MYR43.48
|
|
New Zealand vs. Kuala Lumpur - Cost of transportation
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 49.6% less for housing
|
New Zealand
|
Kuala Lumpur
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$50.00
NZ$86.86
|
$25.49
MYR103.91
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$978.36
NZ$1,699.72
|
$573.16
MYR2,336.79
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$810.06
NZ$1,407.33
|
$350.71
MYR1,429.85
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$95.66
NZ$166.20
|
$46.59
MYR189.95
|
|
New Zealand vs. Kuala Lumpur - Cost of housing
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 45.8% less for childcare
|
New Zealand
|
Kuala Lumpur
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$635.34
NZ$1,103.80
|
$264.45
MYR1,078.18
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$13,463.91
NZ$23,391.09
|
$9,004.74
MYR36,712.32
|
|
New Zealand vs. Kuala Lumpur - Cost of childcare
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 30.0% less for entertainment and sports
|
New Zealand
|
Kuala Lumpur
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.04
NZ$10.50
|
$4.27
MYR17.39
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.35
NZ$5.82
|
$3.06
MYR12.48
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$23.12
NZ$40.17
|
$4.27
MYR17.39
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$37.72
NZ$65.53
|
$46.43
MYR189.28
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$10.72
NZ$18.62
|
$4.98
MYR20.29
|
|
New Zealand vs. Kuala Lumpur - Cost of entertainment and sports
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 11.1% less for clothing
|
New Zealand
|
Kuala Lumpur
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$65.22
NZ$113.31
|
$61.66
MYR251.38
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$39.23
NZ$68.16
|
$37.10
MYR151.28
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$90.28
NZ$156.84
|
$87.80
MYR357.96
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$119.43
NZ$207.49
|
$82.47
MYR336.25
|
|
New Zealand vs. Kuala Lumpur - Cost of clothing
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
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
Change currency:
Compare countries by overall cost of living
See the
cost of living in New Zealand vs. Malaysia.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within New Zealand and Malaysia.
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Kuala Lumpur or New Zealand. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.