Cost of living comparison

 Petaling Jaya, Malaysia
compared to
 Malaysia
Malaysia vs. Petaling Jaya Cost of Living Summary

Malaysia is 1.5% cheaper than Petaling Jaya.

Restaurants
pay 13.5% less in Malaysia
Groceries
pay 5.1% more in Malaysia
Transportation
pay 26.8% more in Malaysia
Housing
pay 14.8% less in Malaysia
Childcare
pay 25.6% less in Malaysia
Entertainment and Sports
pay 2.7% more in Malaysia
Clothing
pay 8.8% more in Malaysia

The cost of transportation, clothing, groceries, and entertainment and sports in Malaysia are more expensive than in Petaling Jaya. Expenses including childcare, housing, and restaurants are lower in Malaysia.

Malaysia vs. Petaling Jaya Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Malaysia instead of Petaling Jaya, you would:

pay 13.5% less for restaurants

 
Petaling Jaya
Malaysia
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $3.63
MYR15.47
$2.98
MYR12.68
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$4.54
MYR19.34
$4.23
MYR18.00
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $0.83
MYR3.55
$0.68
MYR2.89

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pay 5.1% more for groceries

 
Petaling Jaya
Malaysia
Bread
1 loaf
$0.81
MYR3.45
$0.91
MYR3.88
Local cheese (8 oz) $6.15
MYR26.19
$7.65
MYR32.56
Milk (1 gallon) $7.03
MYR29.94
$6.39
MYR27.19

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pay 26.8% more for transportation

 
Petaling Jaya
Malaysia
Gasoline (1 gallon) $1.76
MYR7.50
$1.77
MYR7.54
Monthly public transit pass $14.76
MYR62.84
$15.69
MYR66.77
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $27,257.24
MYR116,020.44
$34,330.57
MYR146,128.09

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pay 14.8% less for housing

 
Petaling Jaya
Malaysia
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$24.11
MYR102.61
$26.31
MYR112.01
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $445.77
MYR1,897.42
$322.80
MYR1,374.01
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $330.98
MYR1,408.82
$212.35
MYR903.87

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pay 25.6% less for childcare

 
Petaling Jaya
Malaysia
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $209.30
MYR890.87
$163.68
MYR696.70
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $9,388.60
MYR39,962.60
$6,626.64
MYR28,206.29

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pay 2.7% more for entertainment and sports

 
Petaling Jaya
Malaysia
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $3.98
MYR16.92
$3.66
MYR15.57
Cappuccino in mid-range area $2.61
MYR11.12
$2.54
MYR10.81
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$4.08
MYR17.35
$4.07
MYR17.31

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pay 8.8% more for clothing

 
Petaling Jaya
Malaysia
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$47.05
MYR200.27
$53.15
MYR226.23
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$37.34
MYR158.92
$30.13
MYR128.24
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$53.54
MYR227.90
$65.18
MYR277.43

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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: June 2025
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