Cost of Living in Sydney

Hi guys,
Some numbers for those wandering about costs in Sydney. This is based on a couple's expenses (without children).
- Rent (1 bedroom apartment in Randwick area): $560 per week
- Private health insurance for couple: $300 per month
- Electricity bills: $45 per month (we do not use much AA or heating)
- Gas bills: $45 per month (we cook a lot at home)
- Supermarket: $650-$750 a month (again, we cook a lot at home)
- Public Transportation: just walk to work
- Car rental (car sharing): $130 a month (just used to do shopping every two weeks)
- Lunch at work: $10-$12 each lunch
- Coffee: $3.00 each coffee
- Internet at home: $59 a month
- Mobile phone: $30 each person, each month
- Gym: $80 per person, per month

Taking all expenses into account, as a couple we spend approx. $5000 per month (on average).

my friend and i are wanting to move to sutherland eaerly next year, how much is a good cost for livng there per week

I would say, 4000AUD a month should be ok for a single person. I pay 370$/week for a room in the city and spend around 300$/week for food, gym, mobile etc. If I go out for drink, 100$ is easy.

I lived in Cairns, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney.
The food prices in the supermarkets are the same, doesn't matter where you are.The prices indicated on the website are accurate.

Eating out, Cairns and Melbourne are very expensive, even the price of the daily lunch menu is way more than here.

In Sydney, I would say eating out at a normal bar/pub is quite reasonable compared to the other cities in Australia. Most places offer great deals, like $10 burgers and $12-15 steak, even at prime locations like Darling Harbour.

There are two expensive things in Sydney:

1. transportation
The first 8 rides are full prices, after the 8th the rides are at half prices. The weekly cap is around $60.
I live only 20 minutes away from work, however I have never payed less than the $60 cap.

2. Accommodation
If you are single, you need to be very well off to afford a 1 bedroom unit in the city. Below $500 per week without utilities it is impossible to find something.
Two-bedroom apartments are around $7-800 per week.

I work in an office in IT, my hourly wage is $25 which is quite average in an office environment. I work 37.5 hours a week, that equals to $937.5 per week, but this is before tax. My net wage is around $700 per week.

I rent a room in a 6 bedroom shared house for $250 including bills.
Mobile: $6 per week
Insurance: $12 per week
Transport: $60 per week

Total fix spending: $328 per week

Tax rates in 2018:
Tax rate

0–$18,200

No tax

$18,201–$37,000

19c for each $1 over $18,200

$37,001–$80,000

$3,572 plus 32.5c for each $1 over $37,000

And taxes - kind of interesting system, gradebale.
https://www.ato.gov.au/Calculators-and-tools/Host/?anchor=STC&anchor=STC#STC/questions - check here your taxes.

@#SM

Hey man, your degree may not be recognized but PMP is international and I just got hired as a developer, so good news for IT. Lots of job in the area and a degree doesn't seem to be an issue.
The package I'm seeing through some jobs on linkedin, indeed and others range from 60-90k/year for mid level, 100-180k/year for senior and management roles. Good luck! By the way, try stackoverflow jobs!

I'm single age of 35 and having of 4+ years experince in development sectors. I want to migrate in Aus for better job, may I have any chance without ielts

No jobs in Sydney or anywhere in Australia unless you're in the medical field or allied health.

hi,
i gotta offer from a company located in sydney, (Level 23, Gateway, 1 Macquarie Place, Circular Quay, Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia) salary 3925AUD,
i am single, please anyone advise me the cost of living ( rent + food)/month.

We have live in Sydney for 5 years. When we arrived it was expensive. Now property is unaffordable. It's increased by 70% in 4 years. Driven by Chinese investment and tax incentives for renting your property.
As a family we earn $250,000 per year before tAx but with 4 children cannot afford to save anything and will never be able to buy a house in a reasonable nice part of the city within 40 mins commute from the CBD.
LONDON is similar but have much better public transport infrastructure.
If you're coming from a city like London where your house is worth 1m pounds then you might be able to buy in a nice suburb. If not don't plan on staying. just come short term And enjoy the sunshine and beaches. But Sydney is not a great nightlife city. Go to Melbourne for that!

wow Vanessa, you seem to contradict yourself in what you are looking for in a place. I have never heard anyone run Sydney down like that. It is still one of the best cities in the world and absolutely beautiful. I don't know why you would make out that it is so dangerous but yet you also complain that they cleaned up places like the cross. strange. maybe you haven't travelled much.

I just spoke with my cousin who I haven't heard from for yrs said that her son in law with duo degrees in engineering makes 300k in mismanagement position. That sounds too good to be true as I searched on the avg salary in Sydney. Is that possible? What is the avg salary for electrical engineer with duo degrees like? I think my cousin was exaggerating. What u all think?

Hello..
Been offered a job in Sydney. Moving from Auckland with 2 kids (4Y and 2Y). Are living expenses cheaper in Sydney than Auckland?
How about daycare? How much would I have to pay for daycare for a week?
What eould the average pay be for an Accountant with 10+ experiance.

I worked in Sydney as a Software Engineer for almost 6 years.
One factor this website doesn't count for is Job Security.
You might get a 100K+ job in Sydney but that might not last long.
For permanent and more secure jobs these days they're offering as low as 70K-80K package, for a senior software engineer.

Hey, I am a software engineer working on SAP having 10 years of experience in the same. I am planning to migrate
Australia. Appreciate your suggestions on jobs, cost of living and other things that to consider. Thanks in advance!

Ahmed

thanks vanessa for your story.. gosh ... i suppose anywhere can be tough when you're going it alone and especially if you're on a budget

if you are wealthy then you're insulated from the drama of finding money for rent, bills, food, transport and pleasure.. the rich can live a party lifestyle in sydney, london, los angeles or new york

the thing is, whenever you go back to a place hoping it's like what it used to be years before.. usually it's a big disappointment.. everywhere is gentrified and over priced now.. and because rents are so high.. there's not the diversity on shops anymore..

what's the answer?

Sydney has it all ! From fine restaurants to the best movie cinemas and hotels. Prices differ from location to location. If your on holidays and looking for some interesting ways to spend some time, I'd recommend joining meetup.com where you will find lots of interesting groups hosted by locals. If you've just moved here and own a car, why not join the alfaclubnsw.org and join the fun. There are various events throughout the year and joining only costs $99.

Good website with lots of information which is useful for my assignment. :) thank you

Urban Camper that's ridiculous, as if we're going to live inside our car while we build a life in Sydney.. talk about uncomfortable and cramped it would be..

Even Air BnB might be a worthwhile alternative for those doing a short stay..

Hi Richard, how can you live 100% rent free? I'm just curious. I loved Sydney and would like to live and work there for a while.

Stana they are interesting comments and I will provide my take on life in Australia.

You're right about houses/flats.. mine freezes in winter and boils in summer...

1. House prices are incredibly expensive.. $750K - $3M for a reasonable house in a nice and safer area. (apartments/flats $280K - $800K are available in suburbs..)

2. Eating out at restaurants and fast food joints is costly, especially restaurants..
Expect to pay $60 - $120 per person for a medium rated restaurant .. (drinks extra).

3. Electricity and Gas is very expensive because not only do you pay a premium for the usage but you also pay between $1.20 - $1.40 per day for each of the utilities PER DAY just for the connection fee.

4. The cities can be dangerous because of a) drugs, b) mental illness, c) angry and brutal people, d) thugs & crooks e) violence for no reason

Here's what is good once you understand survival in the urban jungle.

1. Public transport in cities like Melbourne is much better than what a lot of people think ..
It's much more affordable now that there was a restructure and if you buy a yearly ticket then it works out at less than $4 per day (full fare) for Unlimited Travel.

2. Suburbs with lot's of Indian/Sri Lankan immigrants have the best value for money restaurants at the best prices..
You can get lunchtime specials for Thali, rice and curry etc for $7 - $8, masala dosa for $7.50

3. If you avoid the trouble spots and avoid the usual risks (late night wandering and gallivanting in the city and parks and other risky places..) you can enjoy your life here.. the high cost of getting by can wear you down at times but that's also true of London, Los Angeles, New York and most other developed cities.

4. Australia has a very large mixed population of cultures, particularly Chinese and Indian but also extends to other Asian countries and other regions of the world.

5. Radio Broadcasting in the 1611 - 1701 kHz AM band is available for broadcast entrepreneurs wishing to construct a non-commercial radio station. Assignments depend on frequencies available in the area they wish to operate from. Currently country/regional Australia has frequency assignments available .. especially for 1692 and 1701 kHz AM.

6. Setting up business in Australia is relatively straightforward and the main thing is to register for GST and file your tax returns.

7. If you're smart, lucky and work hard and sensible with your money you can enjoy a nice comfortable lifestyle even if it is an expensive country.

8. Hot summers and cold winters... but Australia is a big country, if you want a tropical lifestyle then you can move north and enjoy that climate.

Hi, Im moving to Sydney with an offer of 70k (including Super) along with my wife. We are looking to rent a 2BHK apartment outside the CBD, maybe inner West or a little further. We plan t use the Public transport for the first few months and will eat out maybe once a week. With this income would we be able to save something and have a comfortable life (not flamboyant or luxurious)?

J I read your comments and it made me smile... This notion of living the dream is so 70s..

Back then houses with pools and lot's of space could be had by almost anyone.. now it's a big ticket item.. I live in a 2 bedroom unit and that's a reality I am now used to.. it's no big deal.. If you want to laze in a pool then use a public one or zip down to the beach..

Switch your map of reality and learn to enjoy living in a smaller space, the big wide wonderful world is waiting for you just outside your door regardless...