Cost of Living in Sandakan, 🇲🇾 Malaysia - For Locals, Nomads, and Tourists

AI estimate Updated Jun 9, 2026 About costs

Cost breakdown

Digital nomad: short-term stay (1-3 months). Furnished Airbnb or coliving near center, coworking, eating out ~3x/day, travel health insurance.

Expat: long-term resident (1+ years). Renting apartment in center, mix of cooking and dining out, local health insurance, settled lifestyle.

Family: middle-class 4-person family. 2-3 bedroom in suburbs, groceries for 4, international school, car/transport, family health plan.

Local: budget-conscious local resident. Renting outside center, cooking at home, public transport, local phone plan.

Tourist: short-stay visitor (1-14 days). Hotel/Airbnb nightly, all meals at restaurants, taxis, sightseeing.

CategoryCost

Housing $447 $223 $348 $87 $25

Utilities — $50 $70 $30 —

Internet & Mobile $30 $32 $40 $17 $2

Groceries $37 $149 $298 $124 —

Transportation $25 $50 $87 $20 $7

Dining Out $298 $149 $199 $30 $20

Leisure Activities $74 $50 $99 $12 $12

Health Insurance $50 $62 $124 — —

Visa & Legal Fees $25 $37 $50 — —

Total $986 $802 $1,315 $320 $66

Itemized prices

Local prices converted to the selected currency.

Food & Dining

Coffee $1.24 per cup

Beer $1.99 per pint

Meal (Inexpensive) $1.99 per meal

Fast Food Combo $2.98 per meal

Apples $1.49 per kg

Bread $0.74 per loaf

Milk $1.37 per liter

Rice $0.87 per kg

Chicken Fillets $2.98 per kg

Beef $6.21 per kg

Wine (Mid-range) $11.17 per bottle

Meal (Mid-range, 2 people) $14.90 per meal

Water (1.5L bottle) $0.37 per bottle

Transportation

Taxi Start $1.24 per trip

Taxi per km $0.62 per km

Monthly Transport Pass $14.90 per month

Gasoline $0.51 per liter

Ride-hailing (5km) $2.48 per trip

Scooter Rental $6.21 per month

Services

Mobile Plan $7.45 per month

Internet (60 Mbps+) $22.10 per month

Gym Membership $24.83 per month

Tennis Court (Weekend) $6.21 per hour

SIM Card (Tourist, prepaid) $3.72 one-time

Entertainment

Cinema Ticket $2.98 per ticket

Clothing

Jeans $29.80 per pair

Summer Dress $19.86 per dress

Running Shoes $49.66 per pair

Housing

Airbnb (1 month) $446.93 per month

Coliving Space $198.63 per month

Apartment (1 bedroom) $124.15 per month

Coworking Space $74.49 per month

Personal Care

Haircut $3.72 per visit

Laundry $2.48 per kg

Healthcare

Doctor Visit (GP) $12.41 per visit

Pharmacy (basic meds) $3.72 per purchase

About these costs

Method: AI estimate
Last updated: Jun 9, 2026
Generated by: deepseek-v4-flash · cost run 44
Last changed: None yet
Exchange rate: 1 USD = 4.0275 MYR

Generated by an AI model without cited sources and not yet checked by research. A research pass replaces these values with sourced ones, compared with similar cities.

Sandakan cost of living