THE cost of living in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Penang and Putrajaya has been recorded as the highest in the country, according to the Decent Living Expenditure Index released by the Department of Statistics Malaysia.
Chief Statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin today said analysis of the Decent Living Expenditure Index for households in 2024, using Kuala Lumpur as the reference point at an index value of 100, showed clear disparities between states.
For single-person households, Selangor recorded the highest index at 92 points, followed by Penang at 84.2 and Putrajaya at 83.1. The lowest values were recorded in Kelantan and Sarawak at 53.7 points, and Kedah at 56.6.
“Similar patterns are observed for two-person households, with Selangor at 91.4 index points, Putrajaya and Penang each at 84.6 points, while the lowest indices are in Kelantan at 58, Kedah at 58.7 and Perlis at 58.8,” he said in a statement.
“For three-person households, the index is generally higher, with Selangor remaining the highest at 92.4 points, followed by Putrajaya at 84.8 and Penang at 83.7, while the lowest are in Sabah at 59.6, Perlis at 60.6 and Kedah at 60.8.”
“For four-person households, Selangor again recorded the highest index at 91.3 points, followed by Putrajaya at 84.7 and Melaka at 83, while the lowest indices remain in Sabah at 59.4, Kedah at 60.5 and Perlis at 60.9.”
“States with high indices such as Selangor reflect a higher cost of living, while states with lower indices such as Kelantan, Kedah and Perlis reflect lower but still reasonable living costs,” he said.
The Department of Statistics Malaysia today released its Cost of Living Indicators Malaysia 2024, which provide a comprehensive overview of household living costs and reflect the expenditure required for a decent standard of living and meaningful participation in society.
The Decent Living Expenditure Index is a new indicator introduced to measure the level of spending required to maintain a reasonable standard of living across different locations. It provides a relative measure of average expenditure at the state, administrative district and capital city levels, enabling comparisons between locations.
The index is constructed by setting Kuala Lumpur as the reference value of 100, with all other locations measured relative to that benchmark. Lower index values indicate lower expenditure requirements for a decent standard of living compared with the reference, while higher values reflect greater expenditure needs.
Elaborating further, Mohd Uzir said that based on the index analysis, the cost of a decent living for a single-person household in Kelantan is significantly lower than in Kuala Lumpur, by 46.3 per cent.
“This means that if a single-person household in Kuala Lumpur spends a Decent Living Expenditure value of RM1,000, it would only require RM537 if living in Kelantan,” he said.
“For a four-person household, the decent living expenditure in Perlis is 39.1 per cent lower than in Kuala Lumpur. This means that if a four-person household in Kuala Lumpur spends RM1,000, it would only need to spend RM609 in Perlis,” he added.
At the administrative district level, Mohd Uzir noted that only Petaling in Selangor recorded index values exceeding the Kuala Lumpur reference for all household sizes, from one to four persons.
For single-person households, Petaling recorded the highest index at 103.3 points, followed by Gombak in Selangor at 94.9 and Johor Bahru at 94.7. The lowest indices were recorded in Pantu at 27.8, Lingga at 28.3 and Sebuyau at 29.1, all in Sarawak.
“For two-person households, Petaling remains the highest at 104.8 points, followed by Timur Laut in Penang at 94.9 and Gombak at 94.6, with the lowest indices recorded in Pantu at 29.9, Lingga at 31 and Membakut in Sabah at 31.2,” he said.
“Analysis for three- and four-person households shows a similar trend, with Petaling continuing to lead while Membakut records the lowest indices. Across all household sizes, the index in Pantu is less than one-third of Petaling’s, highlighting the stark differences in living costs between administrative districts,” he added. - December 24, 2025
