Cost of Living in Sydney
Summary of cost of living in Sydney, Australia:
- The estimated monthly costs for a family of four are 4,014.7$ (6,248.1A$), excluding rent (using our estimator).
- The estimated monthly costs for a single person are 1,130.3$ (1,759.1A$), excluding rent.
- Sydney is 29.3% less expensive than New York (excluding rent, see our cost of living index).
- Rent in Sydney is, on average, 49.0% lower than in New York.
Restaurants |  Edit |
Range |
|---|---|---|
| Meal, Inexpensive Restaurant | 25.00 A$ | |
| Meal for 2 People, Mid-range Restaurant, Three-course | 120.00 A$ | |
| McMeal at McDonalds (or Equivalent Combo Meal) | 15.00 A$ | |
| Domestic Beer (1 pint draught) | 10.00 A$ | |
| Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) | 11.00 A$ | |
| Cappuccino (regular) | 5.13 A$ | |
| Coke/Pepsi (12 oz small bottle) | 3.93 A$ | |
| Water (12 oz small bottle) | 3.07 A$ | |
Markets | Edit |
|
| Milk (regular), (1 gallon) | 9.74 A$ | |
| Loaf of Fresh White Bread (1 lb) | 3.86 A$ | |
| Rice (white), (1 lb) | 1.75 A$ | |
| Eggs (regular) (12) | 7.47 A$ | |
| Local Cheese (1 lb) | 6.94 A$ | |
| Chicken Fillets (1 lb) | 5.83 A$ | |
| Beef Round (1 lb) (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) | 9.54 A$ | |
| Apples (1 lb) | 2.32 A$ | |
| Banana (1 lb) | 1.94 A$ | |
| Oranges (1 lb) | 2.19 A$ | |
| Tomato (1 lb) | 3.00 A$ | |
| Potato (1 lb) | 1.72 A$ | |
| Onion (1 lb) | 1.61 A$ | |
| Lettuce (1 head) | 3.40 A$ | |
| Water (1.5 liter bottle) | 1.94 A$ | |
| Bottle of Wine (Mid-Range) | 22.00 A$ | |
| Domestic Beer (0.5 liter bottle) | 7.47 A$ | |
| Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) | 8.61 A$ | |
| Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro) | 50.00 A$ | |
Transportation | Edit |
|
| One-way Ticket (Local Transport) | 5.00 A$ | |
| Monthly Pass (Regular Price) | 217.39 A$ | |
| Taxi Start (Normal Tariff) | 7.00 A$ | |
| Taxi 1 mile (Normal Tariff) | 8.05 A$ | |
| Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff) | 80.00 A$ | |
| Gasoline (1 gallon) | 7.18 A$ | |
| Volkswagen Golf 1.4 90 KW Trendline (Or Equivalent New Car) | 44,423.00 A$ | |
| Toyota Corolla Sedan 1.6l 97kW Comfort (Or Equivalent New Car) | 34,214.26 A$ | |
Utilities (Monthly) | Edit |
|
| Basic (Electricity, Heating, Cooling, Water, Garbage) for 915 sq ft Apartment | 308.80 A$ | |
| Mobile Phone Monthly Plan with Calls and 10GB+ Data | 40.91 A$ | |
| Internet (60 Mbps or More, Unlimited Data, Cable/ADSL) | 79.62 A$ | |
Sports And Leisure | Edit |
|
| Fitness Club, Monthly Fee for 1 Adult | 88.95 A$ | |
| Tennis Court Rent (1 Hour on Weekend) | 32.27 A$ | |
| Cinema, International Release, 1 Seat | 24.00 A$ | |
Childcare | Edit |
|
| Preschool (or Kindergarten), Full Day, Private, Monthly for 1 Child | 3,209.41 A$ | |
| International Primary School, Yearly for 1 Child | 27,325.96 A$ | |
Clothing And Shoes | Edit |
|
| 1 Pair of Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar) | 118.50 A$ | |
| 1 Summer Dress in a Chain Store (Zara, H&M, ...) | 88.91 A$ | |
| 1 Pair of Nike Running Shoes (Mid-Range) | 159.17 A$ | |
| 1 Pair of Men Leather Business Shoes | 196.53 A$ | |
Rent Per Month | Edit |
|
| Apartment (1 bedroom) in City Centre | 3,327.88 A$ | |
| Apartment (1 bedroom) Outside of Centre | 2,306.01 A$ | |
| Apartment (3 bedrooms) in City Centre | 6,785.49 A$ | |
| Apartment (3 bedrooms) Outside of Centre | 4,079.83 A$ | |
Buy Apartment Price | Edit |
|
| Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment in City Centre | 1,954.15 A$ | |
| Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment Outside of Centre | 1,139.44 A$ | |
Salaries And Financing | Edit |
|
| Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax) | 6,554.72 A$ | |
| Mortgage Interest Rate in Percentages (%), Yearly, for 20 Years Fixed-Rate | 6.35 |
Prices in Sydney
This city had 2323 entries in the past 12 months by 315 different contributors.
Last update: May 2025
Last update: May 2025
Sources and References
Moving to Sydney? Explore:
Distribution of Expenses Using Our Statistical Model:
Nearby Cities:| Cost of Living in Gosford | 46.31 miles |
| Cost of Living in Wollongong | 51.90 miles |
| Cost of Living in Canberra | 178.59 miles |
| Cost of Living in Forster | 188.67 miles |
This Page in Other Languages:
 DeutschLebenshaltungskosten in Sydney
|
 PortuguêsCusto de Vida em Sydney
|
 ItalianoCosto della Vita a Sydney
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 FrançaisCoût de la Vie à Sydney
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 EspañolCosto de Vida en Sídney
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Is it hard - yes and no - but you need to think of what is the purpose of saving also. Living in the USA, Suzie Orman the finance guru always spoke about having a 5 month fund to cover unexpected job losses or health costs. Good advice but don't necessarily need this in Australia because of the different way society and costs are structured - there is less risk:
* Healthcare - may need to make a modest part payment but will not receive not a catastrophic bill. You will always have access to Healthcare
* Retirement Savings - 10.5% is paid by your employer and may be accessed in extreme emergency - you will be aiming to have about $500K or more when retiring
* Kid's College Funds - not needed as costs are less and covered by a tax payment plan
* Job Loss - less likely with secure employment and if you are made redundant you may receive say a tax free redundancy of say $50k to find another job
* Illness - you retirement fund may have insurance or you may have months or years of employer benefits accumulated as well as months of holiday leave to get you through this period
* Mortgages - usually a 6 months freeze or switch to interest only is available
* Assets - the average person will have greater assets which may be accessed if needed
* Unemployment and Pensions - modest but better than many other countries
* Wages - average wages and unskilled wages much higher than USA
On average you are likely to accumulate greater wealth in Australia and better off - better salaries, education, heath care, assets. The article below shows that Australians are #1 for median wealth. But if you are going to be one of the 1% that make it big, then America might be for you.
With job security and 4-8 weeks vacation a year (standard or jobs with flex time) Australians are some of the worlds biggest travelers. America has a low level of overseas travel for the population as a whole with limited vacation, many low wages, and "at will" employment.
"Despite the cost-of-living crisis, Aussies are now the richest people on the planet, according to a new report. The Credit Suisse Global Wealth Report found that the median personal wealth per Australian adult was a massive $409,055 (US$273,900) - making Aussies the richest people on the planet"
https://au.news.yahoo.com/australians-are-now-the-richest-people-in-the-world-001758078.html
I dont see people saying how much the end up saving..Is it easy to save?
Very important increases coming each month
As at 30 July 2022, 5 years fixed rate is 6.84%
(Commonwealth bank of Australia)
Expected to be 7.5% on 5 August 2022
Tax rates are high, higher than a lot of other countries. Average people are paying close to 32.5% per year. Rent will cost you close to 30%-35% of your AFTER-TAX income. These two already take your income down by 60%. The rest is spent on food, bills, and fuel.
0 – $18,200 Nil
$18,201 – $45,000 19 cents for each $1 over $18,200
$45,001 – $120,000 $5,092 plus 32.5 cents for each $1 over $45,000
$120,001 – $180,000 $29,467 plus 37 cents for each $1 over $120,000
Our expenses are:-
Mortgage $ 800/month(we purchased our home for $305,000 but had a $150,000 deposit due to a compensation payout. House is now valued at $1,000,000.)
Food $50/week each = $150 x 4 weeks = $600/month
Electricity $650/month
Gas $180/month
Water $160/month
Petrol for one car $80 x 4 weeks = $320/month
3 x mobile phones $200
Medication $120/month (With a Health Care Card for our son)
Life insurance $45/ month
Income protection insurance $ 60/ month
Clothing...very minimal as we rarely shop for clothes, usually just work uniform for husband and school uniform for son. Underwear and pyjamas for all three as well. I wear same outfit all week so only need to do laundry once a month. I have all the clothes I need (I built a "time capsule" wardrobe over the years and as I don't work my clothing needs are VERY minimal!) My son fits into his uniform for 2 years at a time. Uniforms total $300. My husband only buys uniform when on sale. 5x long- sleeve high-viz shirts, 5 x cargo/drill pants, 2 x high- viz jumpers...about $ 150 for the shirts, $230 for the pants and $ 180 for the jumpers. His uniform lasts 3-4 year's. Work boots $250/ year. Total for underwear/ pyjamas = $230 @ x 3 $690 a year, total for husband for regular everyday clothes $600/year and $450/year for our son.
We don't drink alcohol, smoke, gamble or party, or go out to eat. We get the occasional Macdonald's/ KFC every 2-3 months @ $ 30 for all three of us x 4-6 = $ 120-$180/year
Our vice is watching movies. We have a dedicated home theatre room and husband prefers to buy Blu-rays. We have over 3,000 collection. These are only ever purchased on sale, during deals etc. Each movie must be under $15 max. We buy about 5 each month x $15= $75/month.
Furniture = I bought lots of stuff over with me from my parents and we used $40,000 left over from the compensation payout to get the rest plus renovate one bathroom, paint whole inside (2 storey, 5 bedrooms), put in new carpet, install window shutters, resand/resurface ceramic tiles and install new interior and exterior wooden doors and mesh screen doors.
We live quite comfortably on our small income. We can afford to live in an expensive city like Sydney thanks to some homework by me when researching when and where to buy, a boost by a compensation payout and my dedication to simple living. For example, our son was in cloth diapers, I use wee- wipes, I only ever purchased his clothes from thrift stores and always bought a few years ahead when something was discounted and I kept to a wardrobe template so I always knew what he needed. This meant he didn't need much clothing because I could mix and match his outfits as they coordinated with each other.
The numbers are pretty accurate, a 6 figure income (thats just on 100-120K) is considered mid range and while not everyone makes 6 figures A combined income for most families/couples will be 6 figures. It's very rare to see a single income family in Sydney unless one person is making very good money even still, the higher the income the higher you'll be taxed. Taxes are a lot higher than the US. Wages are pretty high but so is the cost of living so you can't say Aussies are richer than American's just based on wages.