Cost of living comparison

compared to

Malaysia vs. Solomon Islands Cost of Living Summary

Malaysia is 4.5% cheaper than Solomon Islands overall.

Restaurants: pay 55.1% less in Malaysia
Groceries: pay 18.7% less in Malaysia
Transportation: pay 46.6% less in Malaysia
Housing: pay 64.0% less in Malaysia
Childcare: pay 99.1% more in Malaysia
Entertainment and Sports: pay 32.5% more in Malaysia
Clothing: pay 21.6% more in Malaysia

The cost of childcare, entertainment and sports, and clothing in Malaysia are more expensive than in Solomon Islands. Expenses including housing, restaurants, transportation, and groceries are lower in Malaysia. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Malaysia.

Malaysia vs. Solomon Islands Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Malaysia instead of Solomon Islands, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 55.1% less for restaurants

	Solomon Islands	Malaysia
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$6.08 SBD50.04	$3.22 MYR13.31	-47.0%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$12.16 SBD100.08	$4.41 MYR18.24	-63.7%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.37 SBD11.26	$0.73 MYR3.01	-46.7%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.06 SBD8.76	$0.39 MYR1.63	-63.0%
Average			-55.1%

Solomon Islands vs. Malaysia - Cost of restaurants

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pay 18.7% less for groceries

	Solomon Islands	Malaysia
Bread 1 loaf	$1.49 SBD12.22	$1.02 MYR4.21	-31.5%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$1.99 SBD16.35	$7.79 MYR32.19	+292.2%
Milk (1 gallon)	$9.73 SBD80.10	$6.67 MYR27.55	-31.5%
Eggs 1 dozen	$5.49 SBD45.19	$1.99 MYR8.21	-63.8%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$3.92 SBD32.23	$1.93 MYR7.99	-50.6%
Apples (1 lb)	$3.20 SBD26.33	$1.28 MYR5.29	-60.0%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.17 SBD9.65	$0.67 MYR2.75	-43.2%
Oranges (1 lb)	$3.54 SBD29.14	$1.29 MYR5.34	-63.5%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.50 SBD12.35	$0.73 MYR3.03	-51.2%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.91 SBD7.49	$0.53 MYR2.20	-41.5%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.52 SBD12.48	$0.59 MYR2.42	-61.4%
Average			-18.7%

Solomon Islands vs. Malaysia - Cost of groceries

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pay 46.6% less for transportation

	Solomon Islands	Malaysia
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.90 SBD40.31	$1.86 MYR7.67	-62.1%
Monthly public transit pass	$24.32 SBD200.16	$15.26 MYR63.08	-37.2%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	??	$35,849.31 MYR148,147.28
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$10.94 SBD90.07	$6.52 MYR26.93	-40.5%
Average			-46.6%

Solomon Islands vs. Malaysia - Cost of transportation

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pay 64.0% less for housing

	Solomon Islands	Malaysia
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$88.16 SBD725.60	$27.18 MYR112.33	-69.2%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$547.19 SBD4,503.70	$349.73 MYR1,445.27	-36.1%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$638.39 SBD5,254.32	$247.40 MYR1,022.40	-61.2%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$325.45 SBD2,678.67	$34.37 MYR142.05	-89.4%
Average			-64.0%

Solomon Islands vs. Malaysia - Cost of housing

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pay 99.1% more for childcare

	Solomon Islands	Malaysia
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$97.28 SBD800.66	$170.62 MYR705.09	+75.4%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$2,796.75 SBD23,018.93	$6,229.51 MYR25,743.43	+122.7%
Average			+99.1%

Solomon Islands vs. Malaysia - Cost of childcare

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pay 32.5% more for entertainment and sports

	Solomon Islands	Malaysia
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.82 SBD15.01	$3.72 MYR15.38	+104.0%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.13 SBD25.77	$2.63 MYR10.85	-16.2%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$4.01 SBD33.03	$4.18 MYR17.26	+4.1%
Monthly membership at local gym	??	$36.40 MYR150.42
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$3.34 SBD27.52	$4.62 MYR19.07	+38.0%
Average			+32.5%

Solomon Islands vs. Malaysia - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 21.6% more for clothing

	Solomon Islands	Malaysia
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$20.59 SBD169.47	$59.37 MYR245.35	+188.3%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$91.20 SBD750.62	$29.69 MYR122.68	-67.4%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$77.01 SBD633.85	$70.68 MYR292.07	-8.2%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$77.01 SBD633.85	$56.86 MYR234.98	-26.2%
Average			+21.6%

Solomon Islands vs. Malaysia - Cost of clothing

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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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