Australia, one of the world's most popular yet third leading study abroad destinations, offers quality education to hundreds of thousands of students every year. Apart from its academic excellence, the country attracts a large sum of money internationally for various reasons. The cost of living in Australia is one of the major concerns when studying abroad. But the good news is that, if you manage it effectively, the living expenses in Australia for Indian students and other international students will be easy to bear.
As an international student in Australia, if you have planned your expenses, your expenses would be around AUD 2,000 per month. Therefore, smartly plan your costs before travelling to the country. If you are facing any confusion about the study abroad journey, then you are at the right place. Explore Yocket Premium today to get complete personalised guidance on the admissions process!
Read ahead, as we have curated a complete guide on Australia's living costs for international students and everything related to them.
Overview of Australia Living Cost for International Students
The estimated cost of living in Australia for international students is typically around 20,000 AUD. However, this can vary based on several factors, such as your kind of lifestyle, accommodation, transportation, etc., while studying in Australia. Before discussing each of these factors, here's an overview of the monthly expenses in Australia for an international student:
|
Factors |
Average Cost Per Month |
|
Accommodation |
297 AUD – 743 AUD (INR 16,000 - INR 41,000) |
|
Food & Groceries |
208 AUD – 416 AUD (INR 11,000 - INR 22,000) |
|
Transportation |
44 AUD – 89 AUD (INR 2400 - INR 5000) |
|
Household Bills |
14 AUD – 29 AUD (INR 770 - INR 1600) |
|
Shopping |
118 AUD – 223 AUD (INR 6500 - INR 12,000) |
|
Miscellaneous |
22 AUD – 29 AUD (INR 1200 - INR 1600) |
The costs mentioned above do not include tuition fees or any kind of education fee. To understand better, look at each of these expenses:
Types of Australia Living Expenses for Students
Living expenses in Australia are based on your accommodation type and the number of times you have explored the location. As an international student, you obviously travel to different corners, taste their dishes, etc. To spend on this, you must have at least 2,000 AUD monthly in your pocket. Thus, keeping these things in mind, let's discuss each of the types of expenses to study in Australia in detail:
Accommodation
The main living costs come from the students' accommodation costs. The cost of accommodation in Australia for international students varies based on the type of room you want to stay in. You can choose from a lot of accommodation options, such as hall of residence shared housing, local homestays, etc. Among them, the hall of residence is the most popular for international students.
Here is a look at the monthly cost of living in Australia for different accommodation options:
|
Type of Accommodation |
Average Cost |
|
Homestays |
450 AUD - 1,200 AUD (INR 24,000 - INR 66,000) |
|
Halls of residence |
440 AUD - 1,100 AUD (INR 24,000 - INR 60,000) |
|
Apartment |
750 AUD - 1,700 AUD (INR 41,000 - INR 93,000) |
|
Shared apartment |
650 AUD - 950 AUD (INR 35,000 - INR 52,000) |
Apart from this, your average cost of living in Australia is also affected by the location you want to stay. For example, living expenses in Sydney are much more expensive for international students in comparison to living in cities like Gold Coast and Canberra.
Have a look at the difference between the expenses of various cities in Australia for an international student:
|
City |
Average Cost of Living |
|
Gold Coast |
20,600 AUD (INR 11,36,000) |
|
Canberra |
22,400 AUD (INR 12,35,000) |
|
Adelaide |
24,500 AUD (INR 13,51,000) |
|
Melbourne |
24,500 AUD (INR 13,51,000) |
|
Brisbane |
25,600 AUD (INR 14,10,000) |
|
Perth |
25,700 AUD (INR 14,17,000) |
Food and Groceries
Food is typically an important part that you must include in your monthly living expenses in Australia. This should be affordable for you if you manage to cook your food on your own instead of going out to fancy restaurants. Eating out on a regular basis can simply increase your cost and can be quite expensive.
The best thing for you is to search for your native groceries in Australia that provide all the ingredients for your native meals, as most of the international students find it easy to cook their food. Hence, student living expenses in Australia can be managed very well.
The costs of some basic food and groceries are given below:
|
Particulars |
Costs |
|
White rice, 1 kg |
2.64 AUD (INR 145) |
|
A Dozen Eggs |
5.36 AUD (INR 295) |
|
White Fat Milk, 1 Litre |
1.24 AUD (INR 68) |
|
Fast Food Combo Meal |
12 AUD (INR 660) |
|
1 kg / Apples |
4.32 AUD (INR 240) |
|
500 gr. Local Cheese |
9 AUD (INR 490) |
|
Tomatoes, 1 kg |
5.08 AUD (INR 280) |
|
1.5 Litres of Water |
2.20 AUD (INR 121) |
|
Potatoes, 1 kg |
3.35 AUD (INR 184) |
|
Bread (for 2 people) |
2.78 AUD (INR 153) |
Transportation
The cost of living in Australia for students also includes commuting around the cities. Mostly, if you are living far from your university, you will have to travel a lot to reach your destination. But to manage these expenses, you can avail yourself of some of the student discounts available for ten international students in the country.
You can also choose to travel via public transport, as the public transport is very well connected within the city and is also very convenient. Taking a bus, or train or simply using a bicycle for transportation can be a very affordable option as compared to using taxis.
An overview of some of the transport costs is:
|
Mode of Transport |
Average Cost |
|
One-way local transport ticket |
3 - 6 AUD (INR 165 - INR 330) |
|
Taxi Tariff |
3.60 AUD - 7 AUD (INR 200 - INR 380) |
|
Gasoline (1 litre) |
1.19 AUD - 1.60 AUD (INR 65 - INR 88) |
|
Taxi (1 km) |
1.62 AUD - 3.20 AUD (INR 90 - INR 177) |
|
Monthly Pass |
90 AUD - 220.70 AUD (INR 4900 - INR 12,100) |
Household Bills
The household bills of a student also come into the picture while living in Australia. The bills for electricity, water, internet, etc. are important and should be paid on time. Most of the accommodation costs contain these basic utilities, but if they don't, you have to consider them in your Australian living cost per month. Take a look at the average cost of your household expenses in the country:
|
Bills |
Average Cost Per Month |
|
Internet |
70 AUD (INR 3800) |
|
Basic Utilities such as Electricity, Heating, Cooling, Water, garbage, etc |
200 AUD (INR 11,000) |
|
Prepaid Mobile Tariff Local |
0.10-1 AUD (INR 5 -INR 55) |
Miscellaneous
Lastly, some miscellaneous expenses include a wide range of things, from stationery items to leisure activities or any other extra living expenditure you come across. You must make sure that these types of expenses can vary from person to person and will mostly depend on the lifestyle you choose.
Therefore, you should plan it accordingly. It is also recommended that you maintain a distance from the luxury items to plan out a budget based on the average expenses in Australia. Take a look at some of the miscellaneous costs:
|
Miscellaneous Items |
Average Costs |
|
Household Items |
80 AUD (INR 4400) |
|
Books & Stationery |
10 AUD (INR 550) |
|
Toiletries |
11 AUD (INR 600) |
|
Other |
50 AUD (INR 2700) |
Living Expenses in Australia for International Students: Based on Cities and Suburbs
The location of your stay matters a lot for the living expenses in Australia for international students. For instance, if you are living in cities like Sydney, Canberra, and Melbourne, the average cost of living in Australia would be much higher than in suburban cities such as St. Kilda West, South Brisbane, Spring Hill and many others.
Let's have a look at the difference between the cost of living for Australian cities and suburban areas popular for well-recognised universities in the country:
|
Factors of Living |
Sydney |
Spring Hill |
|
Rent |
540 AUD (INR 29,700) |
250 AUD (INR 13,700) |
|
Food & groceries |
151 AUD (INR 8300) |
137 AUD (INR 7550) |
|
Utilities |
80 AUD (INR 4400) |
67 AUD (3600) |
|
Transportation |
38.46 AUD (INR 2095) |
25 AUD (INR 1300) |
|
Stationary |
7 AUD (INR 380) |
7 AUD (INR 380) |
|
Others |
50 AUD (2700) |
50 AUD (INR 2700) |
Now you know the difference between the cost of living in Australia for students in different areas. Let us look at the average cost of living in Australia while studying at different universities:
Australia Living Expenses for Students: Public vs Private Universities
The cost of living in Australia for Indian students is also affected by the type of university, whether it is a public or private university. The public universities in Australia are funded by the state government or through some subsidies, whereas Private Universities are funded by investors and require tuition fees from students.
Here is a difference between the tuition fees of both types of universities included in the cost of living in Australia for students:
|
University Name |
Type of University |
Average Annual Fees |
|
Public |
31,870 AUD (INR 17,57,000) |
|
|
Public |
23,140 AUD (INR 12,76,000) |
|
|
Public |
44,500 AUD (INR 24,54,000) |
|
|
Public |
34,960 AUD (INR 19,28,000) |
|
|
Public |
31,628 AUD (INR 17,44,000) |
|
|
Private |
43,200 AUD (INR 23,82,000) |
|
|
Private |
58,000 AUD (INR 31,98,000) |
|
|
Torrents University |
Private |
34,480 AUD (INR 19,01,000) |
|
Avolande University |
Private |
34,736 AUD (INR 19,15,000) |
So to plan your average monthly expenses in Australia effectively, some of the crucial parameters include:
Tips to Reduce Cost of Living In Australia For International Students
The cost of living in Australia for international students can be reduced using the following steps. Let's have a look at these:
- First, you may compare the cost of living in Australia per month based on the university and the state you live in.
- Sometimes, while living in a different country, you need to convert your money into the available currency. Banks usually charge some hidden charges for converting the money. Therefore, it is better to choose any transparent money exchange provider in the country.
- The average living expenses in Australia can also be maintained using some saving steps, such as switching off extra electrical appliances, making homemade food, using public transport or cycling, etc.
- A part-time job or work while studying is another option to decrease living expenses in Australia for Indian students and international students.
- Some of the universities also offer scholarships for managing the expenses of an international student in Australia.
Application Requirements to Study in Australia
From the Desk of Yocket
With this, we can say that managing the cost of living in Australia for Indian students and international students is a game of planning. The simple tricks discussed above will surely overhaul your finances and assist you in spending less on other expenses.
If you are still confused and are ambitious enough to start your study abroad journey, you are in the right place! With Yocket Premium, you not only get your profile built by our top-of-the-field counsellors, but you also get guidance for making a strong application that will get you the admission you are looking for.
