A social media post has sparked debate over whether eating in Malaysia—particularly Kuala Lumpur—is now pricier than in Singapore.
@lamalama.jadibukit shared his thoughts on Threads, claiming that a meal at a food stall in KL costs more than in Singapore.
“A single food stall meal in Kuala Lumpur is more expensive than in Singapore. With RM4.90, you can’t really get much—maybe just white rice and vegetables.
“In Singapore, with S$4.90, you have more options, like chicken rice or fish noodles,” he wrote.
He also pointed out that cooking at home isn’t necessarily a cheaper alternative, especially for singles.
“The ironic part is that cooking at home can be much, much more expensive, especially if you’re cooking for one.”
The post quickly sparked a debate, with some netizens disagreeing with his comparison.
@hafeezjamil argued that Singapore’s economy plays a major role in food affordability: “How to compare la bro? Singapore’s GDP per capita is almost seven times higher than Malaysia’s—one of the highest in the world. Singapore is lucky to be surrounded by lower-GDP countries. Not even worth arguing.”
Meanwhile, @aziebeebs commented, “If you’re gonna use PPP (purchasing power parity), you need to compare all the goods and that should include housing and car ownership. In Indonesia, basic public goods like healthcare and even primary education costs a hefty sum. There’s more to the cost of life than just food.”
Others pointed out that KL isn’t representative of the entire country’s cost of living.
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@fazrenaaziz commented: “I don’t get why people compare KL prices as the standard for Malaysia. Yes, KL is expensive, but it’s also one of the highest-earning cities besides Selangor. If you compare KL/Klang Valley to Singapore, that’s fair. But Malaysia has 14 states, and the cost of living outside KL, Selangor, JB, and Penang is much lower.”
In response to the debate, @lamalama.jadibukit clarified that his comparison was specifically between KL and Singapore, not the entire country.
“I did compare KL and SG and not the whole country. But I find in general, our food is expensive. You can compare us with Indonesia and Thailand.”
