Cost of living comparison
compared to
Thailand vs. Penang Cost of Living Summary
Thailand is 30.2% more expensive than Penang.
- Restaurants
-
pay 11.4% more in Thailand
- Groceries
-
pay 10.8% more in Thailand
- Transportation
-
pay 79.7% more in Thailand
- Housing
-
pay 40.1% more in Thailand
- Childcare
-
pay 63.9% more in Thailand
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 1.5% less in Thailand
- Clothing
-
pay 6.9% more in Thailand
The cost of transportation, childcare, housing, restaurants, groceries, and clothing in Thailand are more expensive than in Penang. Notably, transportation is significantly more expensive in Thailand.
Thailand vs. Penang Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Thailand instead of Penang, you would:
pay 11.4% more for restaurants
|
Penang
|
Thailand
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$3.55
MYR14.49
|
$2.67
THB84.17
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$4.27
MYR17.39
|
$6.99
THB220.32
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.70
MYR2.84
|
$0.73
THB23.14
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.36
MYR1.45
|
$0.36
THB11.34
|
|
Penang vs. Thailand - Cost of restaurants
pay 10.8% more for groceries
|
Penang
|
Thailand
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.06
MYR4.31
|
$1.41
THB44.37
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.89
MYR32.17
|
$7.88
THB248.32
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$7.04
MYR28.70
|
$7.17
THB225.72
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.08
MYR8.48
|
$2.07
THB65.21
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$2.20
MYR8.98
|
$1.41
THB44.48
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.06
MYR4.33
|
$1.33
THB41.84
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.70
MYR2.85
|
$0.59
THB18.67
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.13
MYR4.60
|
$0.90
THB28.29
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.65
MYR2.66
|
$0.75
THB23.73
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.37
MYR1.52
|
$0.71
THB22.43
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.50
MYR2.03
|
$0.62
THB19.43
|
|
Penang vs. Thailand - Cost of groceries
pay 79.7% more for transportation
|
Penang
|
Thailand
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$1.84
MYR7.50
|
$4.83
THB152.21
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$17.77
MYR72.46
|
$28.12
THB885.78
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$33,767.77
MYR137,671.21
|
$30,471.21
THB959,841.01
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$5.07
MYR20.67
|
$10.53
THB331.67
|
|
Penang vs. Thailand - Cost of transportation
pay 40.1% more for housing
|
Penang
|
Thailand
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$30.78
MYR125.47
|
$18.52
THB583.44
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$325.83
MYR1,328.41
|
$414.60
THB13,059.95
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$196.68
MYR801.87
|
$266.86
THB8,406.05
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$25.46
MYR103.79
|
$60.46
THB1,904.49
|
|
Penang vs. Thailand - Cost of housing
pay 63.9% more for childcare
|
Penang
|
Thailand
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$239.34
MYR975.77
|
$359.13
THB11,312.55
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$6,250.00
MYR25,481.25
|
$11,104.31
THB349,785.03
|
|
Penang vs. Thailand - Cost of childcare
pay 1.5% less for entertainment and sports
|
Penang
|
Thailand
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$4.27
MYR17.39
|
$2.15
THB67.86
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.91
MYR11.87
|
$1.97
THB62.08
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$4.38
MYR17.87
|
$4.31
THB135.90
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$32.94
MYR134.29
|
$53.45
THB1,683.79
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$5.57
MYR22.70
|
$6.32
THB198.99
|
|
Penang vs. Thailand - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 6.9% more for clothing
|
Penang
|
Thailand
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$55.09
MYR224.62
|
$37.08
THB1,168.03
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$29.03
MYR118.35
|
$29.48
THB928.61
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$71.09
MYR289.83
|
$91.15
THB2,871.22
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$53.02
MYR216.17
|
$69.13
THB2,177.45
|
|
Penang vs. Thailand - 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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