Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Sydney 

Indices DifferenceInfo
Consumer Prices in Sydney are 2.7% higher than in Melbourne (without rent)
Consumer Prices Including Rent in Sydney are 15.5% higher than in Melbourne
Rent Prices in Sydney are 42.4% higher than in Melbourne
Restaurant Prices in Sydney are 1.1% higher than in Melbourne
Groceries Prices in Sydney are 2.3% lower than in Melbourne
Local Purchasing Power in Sydney is 3.5% higher than in Melbourne
Currency: Sticky Currency      Switch to metric measurement units
Restaurants
Melbourne Edit Sydney Edit Difference
Meal, Inexpensive Restaurant 25.00 A$ 25.00 A$      0.0 %
Meal for 2 People, Mid-range Restaurant, Three-course 130.00 A$ 140.00 A$      +7.7 %
McMeal at McDonalds (or Equivalent Combo Meal) 15.00 A$ 14.53 A$      -3.1 %
Domestic Beer (1 pint draught) 12.00 A$ 10.00 A$      -16.7 %
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 12.00 A$ 12.00 A$      0.0 %
Cappuccino (regular) 5.38 A$ 4.93 A$      -8.4 %
Coke/Pepsi (12 oz small bottle) 3.92 A$ 3.64 A$      -7.3 %
Water (12 oz small bottle) 3.42 A$ 3.34 A$      -2.3 %
Markets
Melbourne Edit Sydney Edit
Milk (regular), (1 gallon) 8.72 A$ 10.06 A$      +15.4 %
Loaf of Fresh White Bread (1 lb) 3.23 A$ 3.60 A$      +11.5 %
Rice (white), (1 lb) 1.63 A$ 1.58 A$      -3.0 %
Eggs (regular) (12) 5.70 A$ 6.13 A$      +7.6 %
Local Cheese (1 lb) 8.13 A$ 7.08 A$      -13.0 %
Chicken Fillets (1 lb) 6.21 A$ 5.89 A$      -5.2 %
Beef Round (1 lb) (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) 10.75 A$ 10.17 A$      -5.4 %
Apples (1 lb) 2.30 A$ 2.22 A$      -3.4 %
Banana (1 lb) 1.78 A$ 1.79 A$      +0.8 %
Oranges (1 lb) 2.07 A$ 1.81 A$      -12.5 %
Tomato (1 lb) 3.39 A$ 3.47 A$      +2.4 %
Potato (1 lb) 1.84 A$ 1.71 A$      -7.3 %
Onion (1 lb) 1.68 A$ 1.52 A$      -9.1 %
Lettuce (1 head) 5.26 A$ 4.39 A$      -16.5 %
Water (1.5 liter bottle) 2.80 A$ 2.40 A$      -14.5 %
Bottle of Wine (Mid-Range) 20.00 A$ 20.00 A$      0.0 %
Domestic Beer (0.5 liter bottle) 6.84 A$ 7.44 A$      +8.8 %
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 7.23 A$ 7.52 A$      +4.0 %
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro) 40.00 A$ 41.00 A$      +2.5 %
Transportation
Melbourne Edit Sydney Edit
One-way Ticket (Local Transport) 4.60 A$ 5.00 A$      +8.7 %
Monthly Pass (Regular Price) 165.60 A$ 217.39 A$      +31.3 %
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff) 5.35 A$ 5.00 A$      -6.5 %
Taxi 1 mile (Normal Tariff) 4.83 A$ 4.51 A$      -6.7 %
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff) 60.00 A$ 60.00 A$      0.0 %
Gasoline (1 gallon) 7.90 A$ 7.69 A$      -2.7 %
Volkswagen Golf 1.4 90 KW Trendline (Or Equivalent New Car) 35,000.00 A$ 35,000.00 A$      0.0 %
Toyota Corolla Sedan 1.6l 97kW Comfort (Or Equivalent New Car) 29,968.63 A$ 30,187.96 A$      +0.7 %
Utilities (Monthly)
Melbourne Edit Sydney Edit
Basic (Electricity, Heating, Cooling, Water, Garbage) for 915 sq ft Apartment 268.80 A$ 263.50 A$      -2.0 %
1 min. of Prepaid Mobile Tariff Local (No Discounts or Plans) 0.68 A$ 0.89 A$      +30.8 %
Internet (60 Mbps or More, Unlimited Data, Cable/ADSL) 83.00 A$ 85.57 A$      +3.1 %
Sports And Leisure
Melbourne Edit Sydney Edit
Fitness Club, Monthly Fee for 1 Adult 75.69 A$ 96.41 A$      +27.4 %
Tennis Court Rent (1 Hour on Weekend) 23.45 A$ 25.36 A$      +8.1 %
Cinema, International Release, 1 Seat 22.00 A$ 24.50 A$      +11.4 %
Childcare
Melbourne Edit Sydney Edit
Preschool (or Kindergarten), Full Day, Private, Monthly for 1 Child 2,700.94 A$ 2,650.24 A$      -1.9 %
International Primary School, Yearly for 1 Child 31,800.00 A$ 23,077.50 A$      -27.4 %
Clothing And Shoes
Melbourne Edit Sydney Edit
1 Pair of Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar) 129.60 A$ 121.47 A$      -6.3 %
1 Summer Dress in a Chain Store (Zara, H&M, ...) 87.45 A$ 85.74 A$      -1.9 %
1 Pair of Nike Running Shoes (Mid-Range) 173.98 A$ 173.34 A$      -0.4 %
1 Pair of Men Leather Business Shoes 198.85 A$ 209.92 A$      +5.6 %
Rent Per Month
Melbourne Edit Sydney Edit
Apartment (1 bedroom) in City Centre 2,262.69 A$ 3,149.64 A$      +39.2 %
Apartment (1 bedroom) Outside of Centre 1,812.11 A$ 2,260.00 A$      +24.7 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) in City Centre 4,352.73 A$ 6,595.76 A$      +51.5 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) Outside of Centre 2,819.49 A$ 4,006.19 A$      +42.1 %
Buy Apartment Price
Melbourne Edit Sydney Edit
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment in City Centre 1,047.75 A$ 2,107.92 A$      +101.2 %
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment Outside of Centre 961.90 A$ 1,324.40 A$      +37.7 %
Salaries And Financing
Melbourne Edit Sydney Edit
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax) 5,130.94 A$ 6,131.76 A$      +19.5 %
Mortgage Interest Rate in Percentages (%), Yearly, for 20 Years Fixed-Rate 4.93 5.04      +2.2 %
Last update: June 2023June 2023
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