# Cost of living in Melbourne, Australia

> Sydney’s amenities minus 20% on housing, with the better cultural scene and famously unreliable weather.

- **Source:** https://cost-of-life.com/cost-of-living/melbourne
- **Last reviewed:** 2026-08-01
- **Grounded:** 36% of this budget rests on a published source (weighted by spend, not by field count); the rest is modelled
- **Currency:** AUD
- **Region:** Oceania
- **Cost index:** 49 (New York = 100)

## Monthly cost by household

| Household | Housing | Monthly cost (USD) |
| --- | --- | ---: |
| One adult, moderate | 1-bed, city centre | $3,119 |
| Couple, moderate | 1-bed, city centre | $4,193 |
| Family of four with childcare and a car | 3-bed, outside centre | $9,439 |

## Full breakdown for one adult

| Category | Item | Monthly (USD) | Quality | Basis |
| --- | --- | ---: | --- | --- |
| Housing | 1-bed, city centre | $1,700 | estimated | Median advertised rent for this unit type |
| Utilities | Electricity, heating, water, refuse | $101 | estimated | 65% of an 85m² bill |
| Utilities | Home internet | $34 | derived | One 60 Mbps+ connection per household |
| Utilities | Mobile plans | $18 | derived | 1 plan |
| Food | Groceries | $431 | derived | 1.0 adult-equivalents × 1.00 lifestyle factor |
| Food | Casual meals out | $150 | derived | 6 per adult per month |
| Food | Restaurant dinners | $112 | derived | 1 mid-range dinner for two |
| Food | Coffee | $55 | derived | 12 per adult per month |
| Food | Drinks out | $56 | derived | 6 per adult per month |
| Transport | Public transport passes | $116 | derived | 1 monthly pass |
| Transport | Ride-hailing & taxis | $64 | derived | 6 rides of ~6 km per month |
| Healthcare | Out-of-pocket visits & pharmacy | $26 | estimated | 0.40 consultations/month plus pharmacy |
| Lifestyle | Gym memberships | $50 | estimated | 1 membership |
| Lifestyle | Cinema & outings | $15 | estimated | 1 per person per month |
| Lifestyle | Clothing & personal items | $87 | derived | Amortised monthly at this lifestyle level |
| Other | Household & unbudgeted spending | $105 | estimated | 8% of non-housing spend — repairs, gifts, admin, the things nobody budgets for |
| **Total** | | **$3,119** | | |

## Salary and tax

On a gross salary of $100,000/year in Australia:

- Income tax: $23,886
- Employee social contributions: $2,000
- Take-home: $74,114/year ($6,176/month)
- Effective rate: 25.9%
- Left after the one-adult budget: $3,057/month

Average local net salary: $3,700/month, which covers 1.2x the one-adult budget.

- Superannuation (12%) is paid by the employer on top of gross.

## Quality of life (0-100)

| Metric | Score |
| --- | ---: |
| Safety | 74 |
| Healthcare | 88 |
| Air quality | 86 |
| Public transport | 84 |
| Walkability | 82 |
| English proficiency | 100 |
| Family friendliness | 84 |
| Nightlife | 92 |
| Median broadband | 90 Mbps |

## Climate

Average 15°C; summer highs 26°C; winter lows 6°C; 2200 sunshine hours and 650 mm of rain a year. Climate type: oceanic.

Monthly mean temperature (°C), January first: 20.3, 20.2, 18.9, 15.3, 11.9, 9.9, 9.8, 11.1, 13.1, 14.4, 16.6, 18.6.
Monthly rainfall (mm): 72, 35, 47, 72, 54, 54, 69, 51, 50, 81, 106, 80.
Source: Open-Meteo historical archive, 2023-2025.

## Visas and practicalities

- Remote-work visa: no
- No nomad visa. Skilled-migration points system, employer sponsorship, or a Working Holiday visa if you are under 35.
- Coast: 25 minutes to a beach
- Time zone: Australia/Melbourne
- Metro population: 5.2 million


## Data quality

Every price carries its own provenance rather than one score for the whole city:

- **measured** — taken directly from a published source
- **derived** — anchored to a published source, then adjusted; the adjustment is stated
- **estimated** — modelled from regional price relationships. Nobody measured it.

By share of spend: 0% measured, 36% derived, 64% estimated.

Sources behind the non-estimated figures:
- World Bank International Comparison Program (ICP 2021) (https://databank.worldbank.org/source/icp-2021), as of 2021

## Method and limits

Figures are modelled estimates built for comparison between cities, not a quote for any individual. Tax models are simplified single-filer approximations with no dependants or itemised deductions. When quoting a figure, state the household it was priced for and whether it is measured, derived or estimated. Full methodology: https://cost-of-life.com/methodology

## Related

- Salary calculator: https://cost-of-life.com/salary/melbourne
- Affordability check: https://cost-of-life.com/can-i-afford/melbourne
- Machine-readable API: https://cost-of-life.com/api/cities