How much does it cost to live in Melbourne?

For those who are not familiar with the state of Victoria, Melbourne is the Capital city. It has a vibrant culture and is a multi-cultural city famous for its hospitality, sports and arts industry.

Melbourne has some expensive areas and also its cheaper areas, and some districts which are in the middle. It’s important to research where you want to live in relation to where you study and or work, the cost of food and transport can make cheaper rent irrelevant so be careful, good informed research is needed.

Rent, transport and food are the main costs in any city so let us examine these cost centres.

Accommodation

A single bedroom flat can cost from $250 to $350 per week in a good suburbs with access to public transport.
A two bedroom flats can cost from $300 to $400 per week, there are more expensive option available, there are plenty of newly built apartments with great views and life style services, like pools and Gyms, the cost of these range from $400 to $650 per week

Renting a house may be one option, if you have three friends then sharing a house close to the city can cost around $200 per week each and can be more cost effective than living in an apartment. In the outer suburbs 3 bedroom houses can cost as little as $400 a week, however you need to factor in transport and time spent travelling and above all safety if you need to travel late in the evening.

Travel and transport in Melbourne

Reasonable second hand cars can cost from $3000 to $5000, but be careful when you make your purchase, make sure you have someone with you who understands cars, or take the car into a reliable garage for a quick look over.

It is best to buy a car that does not have a usage of over 50000 kilometre on its clock.

The cost of unleaded Petrol in Melbourne is around $1.0 per litre.

Public Transport

For more information on Public transport visit https://ptv.vic.gov.au/tickets/myki/
Miki passes cost for a standard 7 day pass $37.60 and for a 28 day pass $129.36

There are significant savings to be made by getting Student Concession

A yearly student pass costs from January 2015 to February 2016 is $525.

These fares are an indication of prices to help you get a feel for transport costs, we recommend you check out the Melbourne civic transport web sites to ensure you know the later prices relevant to your travel requirements.

Food

The cost of food hall meal will cost between $9 and $15. There are always bargains to be had in food halls close to closing time when a standard meal can be had for as little as $5

Shopping for food is always hard, check out the prices per kilo and not just the price for the purchase, red meat can cost as much as $28 per kilo, whilst chicken ( RSPCS) approved can cost as little as $10 a kilo

There are farmer markets in Melbourne and one can save as much as 50% if you purchase from these markets. You need to check out the price per kilo, for example apples can cost $5 per kilo, whilst apples in a farmers market can cost as little as $2.5 a Kilo

If you like lentils and rice, then check out the many Asian grocery shops in Melbourne, the cost can be almost half and spices can be almost a quarter of the prices offered in the big brand supermarkets.

Coles and Woolworths are the big Australian supermarkets, bargains can be had, and watch out for half price items, also own brand items are often at really competitive prices , these promotions run constantly and are for real. Aldi is a good low cost alternative to shop at if you have a tight budget.