EPF: Klang Valley Residents Face 6.7% Rise In Cost Of Living
Klang Valley remains the most expensive place to live in Malaysia, while Alor Setar has the lowest cost of living.
By May Vin Ang — 13 Dec 2024, 03:30 PM
The Employees Provident Fund's (EPF) Belanjawanku 2024/2025 guide reveals that residents of Klang Valley faced a 6.7% rise in their cost of living over the past two years
Belanjawanku is an expenditure guide that estimates the minimum monthly expenses required for various household types in selected Malaysian cities.
According to the latest edition, Klang Valley remains the most expensive place to live in Malaysia, while Alor Setar has the lowest cost of living.
Other cities included in the guide are Melaka, Seremban, Ipoh, Georgetown, Kota Bharu, Kuantan, Kuala Terengganu, Johor Bahru, Kuching, and Kota Kinabalu.
The guide developers, EPF and Universiti Malaya's Social Wellbeing Research Centre (SWRC), emphasised that understanding these cost differences between cities is important with the increase of urban migration.
Such insights can help individuals plan for employment, career development, and retirement, while enabling employers to set fair and competitive wages.
The guide also categorises households into various groups, including single individuals who use public transport or own cars, married couples with or without children, and senior citizens
According to the guide, a single person who owns a car in Klang Valley saw a 7.7% rise in living expenses in 2024 compared to 2022, needing RM2,800 for a decent standard of living.
Meanwhile, a married couple with two children in Klang Valley now needs a monthly budget of RM7,440, marking an 8% increase from RM6,890 two years ago.
On the other hand, in Alor Setar, a single person who owns a car as well as a married couple with two children would need monthly budgets of RM2,210 and RM5,880, respectively.
During a briefing on the guide, SWRC director Professor Norma Mansor highlighted the need for Malaysians to adopt better personal and family budgeting practices
According to the New Straits Times, she highlighted rising expenses for cars, childcare, and food as key contributors to the higher cost of living.
Norma also pointed out that low financial literacy, escalating living costs, and structural wage issues remain significant challenges to the financial wellbeing of Malaysians.
Check out EPF's Belanjawanku 2024/2025 guide here.
