Cost of living comparison

compared to

Afghanistan vs. Malaysia Cost of Living Summary

Afghanistan is 6.6% cheaper than Malaysia overall.

Restaurants: pay 21.4% less in Afghanistan
Groceries: pay 54.8% less in Afghanistan
Transportation: pay 30.6% more in Afghanistan
Housing: pay 2.7 times more in Afghanistan
Childcare: pay 77.7% less in Afghanistan
Entertainment and Sports: pay 37.0% less in Afghanistan
Clothing: pay 56.0% less in Afghanistan

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

Afghanistan vs. Malaysia Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Afghanistan instead of Malaysia, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 21.4% less for restaurants

	Malaysia	Afghanistan
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$2.98 MYR13.22	$2.34 AFN174	-21.4%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$4.23 MYR18.78	$4.88 AFN363	+15.4%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.68 MYR3.01	$0.48 AFN36	-29.6%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.38 MYR1.70	$0.19 AFN14	-49.9%
Average			-21.4%

Malaysia vs. Afghanistan - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 54.8% less for groceries

	Malaysia	Afghanistan
Bread 1 loaf	$0.91 MYR4.05	$0.24 AFN18	-73.3%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$7.65 MYR33.97	$1.99 AFN148	-73.9%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.39 MYR28.37	$2.40 AFN179	-62.4%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.97 MYR8.75	$1.73 AFN129	-12.2%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$1.83 MYR8.13	$1.49 AFN111	-18.8%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.17 MYR5.21	$0.28 AFN21	-76.3%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.57 MYR2.53	$0.38 AFN28	-33.0%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.21 MYR5.39	$0.33 AFN24	-73.0%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.63 MYR2.81	$0.25 AFN19	-59.8%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.43 MYR1.91	$0.21 AFN15	-52.0%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.51 MYR2.26	$0.16 AFN12	-68.0%
Average			-54.8%

Malaysia vs. Afghanistan - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 30.6% more for transportation

	Malaysia	Afghanistan
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$1.77 MYR7.86	$4.06 AFN302	+129.3%
Monthly public transit pass	$15.69 MYR69.66	$15.44 AFN1,149	-1.6%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$34,330.57 MYR152,444.92	$8,439.56 AFN628,180	-75.4%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$6.94 MYR30.80	$11.80 AFN878	+70.1%
Average			+30.6%

Malaysia vs. Afghanistan - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 2.7 times more for housing

	Malaysia	Afghanistan
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$26.31 MYR116.85	$189.66 AFN14,117	+620.7%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$322.80 MYR1,433.40	$88.17 AFN6,562	-72.7%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$212.35 MYR942.94	$59.20 AFN4,407	-72.1%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$33.00 MYR146.53	$100.63 AFN7,490	+204.9%
Average			+170.2%

Malaysia vs. Afghanistan - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 77.7% less for childcare

	Malaysia	Afghanistan
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$163.68 MYR726.81	$37.05 AFN2,758	-77.4%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$6,626.64 MYR29,425.60	$1,462.66 AFN108,870	-77.9%
Average			-77.7%

Malaysia vs. Afghanistan - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 37.0% less for entertainment and sports

	Malaysia	Afghanistan
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.66 MYR16.24	$4.14 AFN308	+13.3%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.54 MYR11.28	$1.05 AFN78	-58.7%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$4.07 MYR18.06	$1.90 AFN142	-53.2%
Monthly membership at local gym	$36.32 MYR161.29	$11.46 AFN853	-68.5%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$4.00 MYR17.75	$3.29 AFN245	-17.7%
Average			-37.0%

Malaysia vs. Afghanistan - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 56.0% less for clothing

	Malaysia	Afghanistan
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$53.15 MYR236.01	$15.11 AFN1,125	-71.6%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$30.13 MYR133.78	$18.99 AFN1,413	-37.0%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$65.18 MYR289.42	$26.51 AFN1,973	-59.3%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$57.93 MYR257.26	$25.50 AFN1,898	-56.0%
Average			-56.0%

Malaysia vs. Afghanistan - 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: February 2025

More cost comparisons

Malaysia vs.

Egypt

Malaysia vs.

Canada

Malaysia vs.

Vietnam

Malaysia vs.

Australia

Malaysia vs.

Iceland

Malaysia vs.

Russia

Malaysia vs.

Germany

Malaysia vs.

Ecuador

Share this

Compare by city

For example, try comparing the cost of living in Kuala Lumpur vs. Kabul

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

Add prices for Malaysia

Add prices for Afghanistan

ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Afghanistan or Malaysia. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.