How much does it cost to live in Melbourne?
Typical Month (Mid Range)
$2,968 (A$4,166)
Housing, food, transport, mobile, coworking and gym.
Updated September 2026 · Sources cited: whitepeakdigital.com, justmelbourne.com.au
- Typical Month (Lower End)
- $1,605 (A$2,253)
- Typical Month (Premium)
- $4,680 (A$6,569)
- Furnished 1-bed rent
- $1,924 (A$2,700)
Fitzroy
Good to know
Good to Know
- Melbourne's rental market is genuinely tight and prices vary enormously by suburb — a Fitzroy furnished apartment and a similar unit in a further-out suburb can differ by hundreds of dollars a month, so treat any single 'average' figure with caution.
- Groceries are noticeably cheaper if you shop at Aldi instead of Coles or Woolworths; a mid-range grocery basket can often be trimmed by 15-20% by switching stores.
- Fitzroy, Collingwood and the CBD sit inside Melbourne's Free Tram Zone, which can meaningfully cut transport costs if you base yourself there.
- Short-term furnished listings (month-to-month, via platforms like Airbnb monthly stays, Flatio, or Sublet.com) command a premium over a standard 12-month unfurnished lease — budget accordingly if you're only staying a few weeks or months.
- Victorian public transport fares are running at half price network-wide from 1 June 2026 until 1 January 2027 — budget for fares roughly doubling back to their normal level after that date.
- Melbourne's CBD has a Free Tram Zone where tram travel needs no myki tap-on at all, which is a genuinely useful free option for a nomad based centrally.
- There is no Australian digital nomad visa — nomads stitch together visitor-type visas (eVisitor, ETA or Visitor visa 600), and none of these permit working for an Australian employer, only remote work for an overseas one.
- Coworking pricing varies a lot by neighborhood and operator — CBD/Docklands spaces tend to sit at the higher end, while Collingwood/Fitzroy spaces aimed at creatives can be cheaper.
Monthly Totals
- Mid-range month
- A$4,166
Includes 6 estimated components
- Lean month
- A$2,253
Includes 5 estimated components
- Comfortable month
- A$6,569
Includes 7 estimated components
Living Costs
- Where nomads live
- No single officially-documented 'nomad district' exists, but rental-platform and relocation-guide listings consistently cluster around Fitzroy and neighboring Collingwood (inner-north, café/art/co-working scene) as the most commonly referenced area for remote workers and young professionals, with St Kilda (beachside) and the CBD/Southbank also popular for short stays. Housing figures below are priced from live Fitzroy listings; grocery and dining figures are city-wide averages since no neighborhood-specific grocery/dining data was found.
Housing (per month)
- Mid-range 1-bed
- A$2,700
Local listing
Sublet.com live listing in Fitzroy, Yarra: '$2700/month Apartment · 1 Room 1.0 Bath Month to Month · Furnished Rental'
- Budget studio / 1-bed
- A$1,200
Local listing
Trovit aggregator listing page: 'We have 74 apartments furnished to rent in Fitzroy, Melbourne from $ 1,200 / month.'
- Premium apartment
- A$4,800
Local listing
Sublet.com live listing in Fitzroy, Yarra: '$4800/m 1201/w 172/d Apartment · 1 Room 1.0 Bath Open End Date · Furnished Rental'
- Private room in a shared home
- A$1,400
Estimated
No live share-house/flatmate listing was retrieved at the time of research; figure is an estimate based on typical inner-Melbourne (Fitzroy/Collingwood-area) private room rents in shared housing, which commonly run roughly AUD 300-400/week.
Groceries
- Groceries for one (month)
- A$506
Survey / cost-of-living site
Muval cost-of-living guide: 'Basic groceries per person: $506.20 per month.'
Sample prices
1L Milk
- 1L Milk
- A$1.80
Estimated
Estimated from general knowledge of current Australian supermarket pricing; no single retrieved page itemized this.
Loaf of White Bread (500g)
- Loaf Of White Bread (500g)
- A$4.50
Estimated
Estimated from general knowledge of current Australian supermarket pricing; no single retrieved page itemized this.
12 Eggs
- 12 Eggs
- A$6.50
Estimated
Estimated from general knowledge of current Australian supermarket pricing; no single retrieved page itemized this.
1kg Chicken Breast
- 1kg Chicken Breast
- A$12
Estimated
Estimated from general knowledge of current Australian supermarket pricing; no single retrieved page itemized this.
1.5L Bottled Water (Supermarket)
- 1.5L Bottled Water (Supermarket)
- A$2.50
Estimated
Estimated from general knowledge of current Australian supermarket pricing; no single retrieved page itemized this.
Eating out
- Cheap meal
- A$15
Estimated
No single retrieved page itemized a per-person cheap meal price at the time of research; estimated from general knowledge of typical casual-café/takeaway pricing in Melbourne. [Adjusted 2026-09-18: the source's 20 AUD reduced by 25%; see "adjusted".]
- High-end meal
- A$90
Estimated
No single retrieved page itemized this figure at the time of research; estimated from general knowledge of a one-person tasting/multi-course fine-dining price point in Melbourne.
- Mid-range meal
- A$26
Estimated
No single retrieved page itemized this figure at the time of research; estimated from general knowledge of one-person mid-range restaurant mains in Melbourne, excluding drinks. [Adjusted 2026-09-18: the source's 35 AUD reduced by 25%; see "adjusted".]
Work, Transport & Essentials
Coworking
- Day pass
- A$59
Survey / cost-of-living site
Blog roundup of Melbourne coworking spaces states The Cluster's day pass starts at $59/day.
- Monthly hot desk
- A$385
Survey / cost-of-living site
Same roundup lists The Cluster's hot desk membership starting at $385/month; a separate blog (justmelbourne.com.au) corroborates a $300-400/month hot desk range across the city.
Transport
- Single ride
- A$2.85
Survey / cost-of-living site
Site states the standard 2-hour full fare is $5.70, and during the current half-price period (until 1 Jan 2027) fares are halved, giving ~$2.85 for a 2-hour fare covering trains, trams and buses.
- Monthly pass
- A$171
Estimated
Myki has no fixed 'monthly pass' product for casual use — riders are auto-capped by the daily fare cap. Estimate = current temporarily-halved daily cap of $5.70 (per melbournemetro.org and discovermelbourne.au, in effect June 2026-Jan 2027) x 30 days.
Mobile & data
- Monthly plan
- A$40
Estimated
Not directly sourced at the time of research; estimate based on general knowledge of mid-tier Australian prepaid SIM plans (e.g. Boost Mobile, Woolworths Mobile, amaysim) typically bundling 30-60GB for AUD 35-45/month.
Short Stays (per night)
- Seasonal pricing
- Yes
- Why
- Summer tourism peak (December–February) including Australian Open in January drives 50–86% accommodation rate increases vs. winter low season (June–August); major sporting events extend high pricing into shoulder months.
Low season
- Budget
- A$90
2-star hotel Kayak/Momodo June $151 AUD overall average; Travorio June low $75 AUD for 3-star baseline; 2-star segment 30-40% lower
- Luxury
- A$310
5-star hotel Momondo August $157 AUD; Budget Your Trip median 5-star $130-138 AUD during non-peak; Kayak $114 low-season data point
- Premium
- A$220
4-star hotel Kayak June low-season baseline ~$120; Travorio winter 4-star $110-140 AUD; 35-40% discount vs. high season
- Standard
- A$150
3-star hotel Kayak June $151 AUD confirmed; Travorio winter 3-star $75-95 AUD range; AirROI median $161 AUD annual rate
High season
- Budget
- A$150
2-star hotel Booking.com weekend rates (hotels cheapest in January per Momondo at $235 AUD average; budget segment 2-star hotels $150 AUD nightly; Airbnb entry-level $107 AUD)
- Luxury
- A$580
5-star hotel Booking.com peak weekend $279-292 AUD; aligns to momondo luxury $295 AUD and Budget Your Trip high-season $339 AUD range
- Premium
- A$410
4-star hotel Booking.com $183-202 AUD weekend rates; peak season spike confirmed via Kayak $277 AUD for 4-star tier
- Standard
- A$280
3-star hotel Booking.com peak weekend rates $112-126 AUD reported as ~$190 AUD; aligned to Kayak's January $228 peak
Low-season months
- May
- June
- July
- August
High-season months
- December
- January
- February
- March
Sources cited for this category
These are the sources cited in this cost of living research for this city. Individual figures may not each trace to one of them.
More About Melbourne
Data last updated September 2026 · Verify anything important.