Cost of living comparison

 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
compared to
 Tokyo, Japan
Tokyo vs. Kuala Lumpur Cost of Living Summary

Tokyo is 73.0% more expensive than Kuala Lumpur.

Restaurants
pay 32.5% more in Tokyo
Groceries
pay 88.2% more in Tokyo
Transportation
pay 2.7 times more in Tokyo
Housing
pay 89.9% more in Tokyo
Childcare
pay 87.6% more in Tokyo
Entertainment and Sports
pay 40.3% more in Tokyo
Clothing
pay 1.9% less in Tokyo

The cost of transportation, housing, groceries, childcare, entertainment and sports, and restaurants in Tokyo are more expensive than in Kuala Lumpur. Notably, transportation, housing, and groceries are significantly more expensive in Tokyo.

Tokyo vs. Kuala Lumpur Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Tokyo instead of Kuala Lumpur, you would:

pay 32.5% more for restaurants

 
Kuala Lumpur
Tokyo
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $4.54
MYR20.14
$6.51
¥976
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$4.54
MYR20.14
$5.21
¥781
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $0.84
MYR3.74
$1.12
¥167

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pay 88.2% more for groceries

 
Kuala Lumpur
Tokyo
Bread
1 loaf
$0.95
MYR4.20
$1.63
¥245
Local cheese (8 oz) $7.58
MYR33.59
$7.01
¥1,051
Milk (1 gallon) $7.22
MYR32.00
$5.89
¥882

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pay 2.7 times more for transportation

 
Kuala Lumpur
Tokyo
Gasoline (1 gallon) $1.77
MYR7.86
$4.42
¥663
Monthly public transit pass $11.36
MYR50.35
$58.62
¥8,784
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $37,478.71
MYR166,161.84
$21,767.76
¥3,261,789

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pay 89.9% more for housing

 
Kuala Lumpur
Tokyo
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$25.27
MYR112.01
$31.86
¥4,774
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $536.30
MYR2,377.67
$1,120.28
¥167,868
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $371.69
MYR1,647.89
$582.98
¥87,357

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pay 87.6% more for childcare

 
Kuala Lumpur
Tokyo
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $250.80
MYR1,111.94
$533.29
¥79,911
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $8,920.55
MYR39,549.26
$14,506.96
¥2,173,794

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pay 40.3% more for entertainment and sports

 
Kuala Lumpur
Tokyo
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $4.09
MYR18.13
$3.26
¥488
Cappuccino in mid-range area $2.92
MYR12.94
$3.40
¥510
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$4.09
MYR18.13
$3.91
¥586

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pay 1.9% less for clothing

 
Kuala Lumpur
Tokyo
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$57.74
MYR255.98
$52.60
¥7,882
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$35.00
MYR155.18
$36.87
¥5,525
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$76.75
MYR340.28
$63.41
¥9,502

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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: April 2025
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