If you are the one who is planning to stay longer period in Yangon, here is the useful information for you. We collected some online information about cost of living in Myanmar in 2018. As you know that Myanmar is facing inflation every year, so this post will be need to update everyone to get the latest information to reflect actual cost of living.
In order to read the post easily, I am going to describe living cost in Yangon by questions by questions. And for each question, there will be two answers (one for a single person and one for small family).
And please also keep in mind that living cost may be different for individual person depends on their living style. If you are fancy of night outing very often, your living cost may be higher. Most of our questions are only reflected for basic needs for living in Yangon.
How much does it cost to rent an apartment or a house in Myanmar?
For a single person and if you are not going to live in Downtown, you can have a nice apartment in some good location with around 400 USD per month. Good location to choose is Sanchaung, Hlaing, Kamayut township. But you also need to think the place near to your work and it will save your travel fare to your work. You can also have an apartment lower than 400 USD per month if you have time to find with the help of the local. But most of the Expat stay at the price around 600-700 USD.
If you have a family, renting an apartment is not a good option for you. You should start at least with a Condo and the price will be go up to around 1200 USD per month. If you are looking for a house with compound, it will be lover 2000 USD per month.
Renting price for local is cheaper than Expat even for the same apartment. Because as a land owner, if they want to rent their property to Expat, they have to go through some process with local administration.
Please also keep in mind that you have to pay money for 6 months in advance to rent a property in Myanmar. And plus, you need to pay a real estate fee which will be one month renting amount. This is the normal process in Myanmar which you cannot avoid. Crazy hahh??
How much do you pay on average for public transportation (bus, subway, train, tram, taxi)?
Bus and train starts at 200 MMK. For a Taxi, I would like to recommend you to take Grab so that you can avoid price negotiation. Grab price is a little bit higher (around 400 Kyats) for certain place and certain period (especially peak hour), but if you can use promotion code, it will be fine for you.
Taxi price will start with 1500 Kyats. Last year, we can go nearby place with 1000 Kyats, but because of increase in fuel cost, nowadays the lowest taxi fare starts at 1500 Kyats.
It is wise to have your place near to your work and it will save your travel fare. But on the other thought, it is not very good to live close to your work. You should have different environment for your living away from your workplace.
Riding a motorbike and scooter in Yangon is prohibited. But some of the Expat use scooter if you are the one working at Embassy. But I don’t want to recommend to use scooter or motorbike in Yangon. You can choose bicycle instead but use helmet everytime you ride a bicycle.
How much do you pay for basic food items such as rice, bread, and pasta?
You can get fresh food with reasonable price if you buy directly from local market. For every wards and townships, there are local markets selling fresh food. If you buy food from supermarket like City Mart, Ocean, the price may be high.
Average food cost ranges from 100 USD (for a single) to 400-500 USD (For a family). This cost is for the person who prepare food at your home.
If you go out for food very often at Restaurant, your monthly food cost may be higher upto 500 USD for single person. It also depends the restaurant you choose.
What is your monthly budget for groceries?
For household items, it will be ranged from 100 USD to 200 USD depends on your style of living and choice of the products and brands.
How much do you pay for electricity/gas/water etc., per month?
Most of the your electricity bill will be drained by air condition. If you use air condition heavily, your electricity bill will be around 50 USD. Gas and water is not very expensive in Myanmar.
How much do you pay for your internet and phone subscription?
Nowadays, internet is becoming cheap in Myanmar, but still expensive than Bangkok. But mobile internet speed is amazing very fast in Myanmar. You have a several choice over internet package. If you are staying for longer period, you should choose cable internet like 5BB and the minimum monthly package will cost around 30 USD.
You can also try Ananda Live more mobile internet package which will cost around 27 USD per month for unlimited 4G internet.
How much do you pay for your lunch pack on weekdays?
5 to 7 USD depending on the restaurants you choose.
How much does a gym membership cost in Myanmar?
Depends on the gym you choose. With a well facilitated gym with quality equipment, it will cost around 150 USD per month. For a regular one in your local area, it will not too expensive. You can get a monthly member fee with around 70 USD or less.
Health and related illness
Mosquito borne diseases including malaria, dengue and Japanese encephalitis are all present in Myanmar as are TB and rabies. Yellow fever does not exist in Myanmar. You are advised to drink only bottled water. Water can be purchased in high capacity containers for a low price which is around 1 USD per one container.
You should also be wary of salads, which may have been washed in tap water. Otherwise, common sense about where to eat should prevent food poisoning, which remains the number one affliction for visitors to Myanmar. Every Expat will likely at some point be afflicted with diarrhoea – it’s worth stocking up on some rehydration treatments in advance, but these are also available quite cheaply in-country.
Access to pharmaceutical drugs Basic medication is available within Myanmar, but should be purchased from some recommended pharmacies, as counterfeit drugs can be an issue. Always check expiry dates.
If you are taking any regular medication bring at least 3 months supply with you. Enquire beforehand if it is available in Myanmar. If necessary arrange a supply from home while you are away.