Tools · Budget calculator

Can you afford it?

Tell us what lands in your account each month. We will set it against the four costs our city guides can actually source, rent, a desk, weekday lunches and getting around, and show you what is left for everything else.

Penang, a month

£330 to £968 for the basics.

Add your take-home pay above to see what is left.

RentAsking rent for a two-bed, Tanjung Bungah up to George Town and Gurney. No one-bed figure was found, and furnishing is not stated. MYR 1,300 to 4,500
£239 to £828
A deskCoworking hot desk, @CAT and Settlements, from secondary sources. MYR 300 to 320
£55 to £59
Weekday lunchesChar koay teow or nasi kandar from a hawker stall, MYR 6 to 12 each, 22 working days
£24 to £49
Getting aroundRapid Penang bus at RM 1.40 to 4.00 a ride (our arithmetic: two rides each working day, 22 working days). The Pas Mutiara pass (RM 10, then free) appears to need a Malaysian ID, according to one travel blog. MYR 61.60 to 176
£11 to £32

Malaysia's DE Rantau Nomad Pass asks for about £1,500 to £3,760 a month in income. Check your own case

The Penang guideCompare every city

What is counted. Four costs, and only four, because they are the ones every guide can source: rent, a desk, a lunch on each of 22 working days, and getting around. Food shopping, bills, a phone, insurance, tax and evenings out are not in it, which is why the answer is what is left for everything else, not what is left to save.

Where the figures come from. Each city's guide, checked against official statistics, the operators' own price pages and dated listings. Each line says what it is. Where a guide only publishes rent per square metre, the line says what size flat it assumes. Last copied from the guides on 3 October 2026.

The exchange rates. The same daily feed as the visa checker, from ExchangeRate-API, last updated 20 October 2026. Pesos are converted at the official rate.