This is your GUIDE: Cost of Living in Australia (updated: Sep’2018)

Whether you are planning to move to Australia for studies, work or simply visiting Australia for few days, In this guide you will find various costs related to living in Australia. 

For your reference, here are some of the costs associated with living and studying in Australia. (All costs are in Australian dollars.)

Accommodation Costs

  • Hotels and Backpackers – Usually you can book a backpacker in around $30 per night. Hotels are expensive and are minimum $100- $130 per night. 
  • Shared house – There are plenty of shared houses in Australia. International students or work holiday travellers in Australia mostly live in shared accommodations. For instance, 5 students in a house though each would have their own room. These kind of accommodations are cheaper than living in your own apartment. A room in shared house would cost you between $130- $200 per week depending on the room size, facilities, location etc. Close to city is usually more expensive. Most of them are including bills like internet, water and electricity. 
  • On campus – University on campus accommodations are little more expensive than usual shared houses outside campus but many students find them safer, more convenient and good place to network with other students. It can cost you between $200- $280 per week including bills.
  • Homestay – Some prefer homestay where all your bills and even food is included in the rent and you get to live in a family environment. Rent of homestay can be between $190 to $270 per week
  • Own Apartment– If you rent out your own apartment for better privacy then it is of course much more expensive than most other accommodations. Getting a 1 room apartment will cost you between $250- $400 per week in rent depending on space and location. Usually smaller and older units are cheaper around $280 per week rent. 

Other Living Costs

  • Groceries and eating out – To give you a rough idea about food , around $4 = 2 litre milk, $3 Bread loaf, $3 = 1Kg rice, $3.5 = 1 veg frozen pack.  For more details, just Google and checkout woolworths and coles Australia website. These are two biggest grocery stores in Australia and you can find all the grocery costs on their website. 
  • Gas, electricity – $35 to $140 per week
  • Phone and Internet – Around $30 per month mobile plan should give you good talk time and internet. 
  • Public transport – Around $3 one way for a short 10-15 mins bus ride. Get “Go Card”, it is much faster and cheaper. Overall journey cost depends on how many zones you travel. Checkout Translink website for exact and latest prices. Students get discount. 
  • Car (after purchase) – $150 to $260 per week
  • Entertainment – movie tickets are around $8 at southbank cinemas and $15+ in event cinemas. You can get lots of discount with student card. 

We try to keep this blog updated.