An international single student living in Sydney requires approximately AU$14,000-$18,000 for living expenses each year (this figure does not include tuition fees).
Remember that your cost of living in Sydney will vary according to your lifestyle. For example, eating out at restaurants all the time will increase your living costs a lot, as will driving a car (you will have to pay for petrol, registration, maintenance and insurance, as well as the car itself). However, there are many ways to save money in Sydney, and still be able to make the most of your time living there.
Also, check out the prices of some of the more common shopping items.
Housing |
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|---|---|
| One of the most important decisions to make is where to live. The cost of housing varies according to the type of accommodation and location you want. We suggest you visit our accommodation section to learn more about the options we offer. It is also important to consider the cost of electricity, gas and water. Some accommodation options include these expenses in the monthly rent. Generally, when you live in an apartment, you only pay for gas and electricity. In a house, you will pay for water as well. |
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| Estimated Cost | |
| 1 bedroom apartment Rent only |
$180- $220 per week |
| 2 bedroom apartment (per bedroom) Rent only |
$120-$150 per week |
| House 2/3 bedroom (per bedroom) Rent only |
$125 - $200 per week |
| Utility Cost (Electricity and Gas) | $5 - $8 per week |
Telephone |
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|---|---|
| Expenses related to phone communications depend on your desire of using a phone at home, mobile phone or both. If you want to have a phone at home you will need to pay a monthly line rental fee. This fee can be share between all the members of the house. With mobile phones it is recommended that you look for a plan or pre-paid card that best suits your needs. To call overseas, students usually find it much cheaper to use pre-paid cards (available for purchase at most convenience stores and newsagents) |
|
| Estimated Cost | |
| Home Phone (line rental) | $5 per week |
| Mobile Phone Calls | $5 - $25 per week |
| Pre-Paid Overseas Phone Cards | $5 - $10 per week |
Internet |
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|---|---|
| There are several options for internet users living in Sydney. You can choose between dial-up or broadband service, and high or low usage. It is important to check if your broadband service is on a fix plan or not. You can also use the computer labs or wireless internet areas on campus for free. |
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| Estimated Cost | |
| $5 - $20 per week. |
Health Cover |
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|---|---|
| Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC) is a requirement of entry into Australia for all international students and accompanying dependants. This means that you MUST have your OSHC for the full duration of your stay in Australia. Students are free to choose their own health cover provider but Macquarie University’s preferred provider is Worldcare Assist. For more information on OSHC please click here. |
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| Estimated Cost | |
| Single Rate $349 per year Family/Couple Rate $698 per year These are Worldcare Assist rates. Please click here for full terms, conditions and up-to-date fees. |
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| Food and Groceries | |
|---|---|
| The cost of food and groceries depends on your shopping preferences. We recommend you to visit the shopping section on this page to get information on main items. | |
| Estimated Cost | |
| $40 - $70 per week. |
| Car Costs |
|---|
| If you want to get a car in Australia you need to consider the cost of buying the car as well as the cost to maintain it and purchase petrol. The average weekly cost of having a car is $50. This includes petrol, compulsory car insurance, registration and maintenance. For information on this category please visit www.carsguide.com.au |
| Public Transport |
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| The cost of public transport depends on how far away you live from Macquarie University and how often you use it. The average cost per week on public transport is $17. We recommend considering this cost when you decided where to live. For information please visit Sydney Transport Infoline website. |
| Entertainment and Recreation | Estimated Cost |
|---|---|
| Movies | $13 |
| Eating Out | $30+ |
| Take away food | $10 - $15 |
| Lunch on campus | $5 - $10 |
| Lunch in a café | $8 - $10 |
| Cup of coffee | $2.50 |
| Fast food (McDonalds, KFC, food courts) | $5 - $10 |
| Course Related Expenses | |
|---|---|
| You need to consider that during the duration of your program you will make additional expenses like stationary, photocopies, purchase a computer, textbooks, newspapers, and paying library fines. | |
| Estimated Cost | |
| Stationery | $1 per week |
| Photocopying | $2 per week |
| Text books | $11 per week |
| Newspapers/magazines | $1 per week |
| Other course related expenses | $2 per week |
| Other Expenses | |
|---|---|
| Every now and then you will incur other expenses like hair cuts, postal charges and gifts. | |
| Estimated Cost | |
| Post Charges – For more information visit www.post.com.au | $2 per week |
| Hairdresser | $10 - $35 |
There is a wide range of shopping facilities in Sydney that offer a large variety of goods at a range of prices. Prices are often competitive and it can pay you to shop around to find the 'best buys'. Senior students often have the best advice on where to find the best bargains!
Supermarkets stock a good variety of variety of foods and other items at competitive prices, but not necessarily the cheapest. Fruit and vegetables are a lot cheaper when in season and it is often cheaper to purchase goods in larger quantities. Most supermarkets carry their own 'home brands' which are always cheaper.
The following list of food items is based on the "March Quarter 2006 Average Retail Prices of Selected Items for Sydney" published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
| Category | Product | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Dairy products | ||
| Milk (2 litre) | $2.96 | |
| Cheese (500g) | $4.27 | |
| Butter (500g) | $3.12 | |
| Bread and cereal products | ||
| Bread white loaf, sliced (650g) | $2.89 | |
| Biscuits, dry (250 g) | $1.85 | |
| Breakfast cereal, corn based (525 g) | $3.45 | |
| Flour, self raising (2 kg) | $3.32 | |
| Rice, long grain (1 kg) | $1.93 | |
| Meat and seafood | ||
| Beef Roast Beef (1 kg) | $11.23 | |
| Beef Rump steak (1 kg) | $18.40 | |
| Beef T-bone steak, with fillet (1 kg) | $20.09 | |
| Beef Chuck steak (1 kg) | $9.73 | |
| Lamb Leg (1 kg) | $9.49 | |
| Lamb Loin chops (1 kg) | $16.60 | |
| Lamb Forequarter chops (1 kg) | $8.39 | |
| Pork Leg (1 kg) | $6.92 | |
| Pork Loin chops (1 kg) | $13.99 | |
| Chicken, frozen (1 kg) | $3.64 | |
| Bacon, middle rashers (250 g pkt) | $3.78 | |
| Sausages (1 kg) | $5.31 | |
| Salmon, pink (210 g can) | $2.51 | |
| Fresh fruit and vegetables | ||
| Oranges (1 kg) | $2.51 | |
| Bananas (1 kg) | $2.48 | |
| Potatoes (1 kg) | $1.60 | |
| Tomatoes (1 kg) | $4.03 | |
| Carrots (1 kg) | $2.19 | |
| Onions (1 kg) | $2.63 | |
| Processed fruit and vegetables | ||
| Peaches (825 g can) | $2.75 | |
| Pineapple, sliced (450 g can) | $1.52 | |
| Peas, frozen (500 g pkt) | $1.44 | |
| Snacks and confectionery | ||
| Chocolate, milk, block (250 g) | $3.62 | |
| Other food | ||
| Eggs (1 dozen) | $3.16 | |
| Sugar, white (2 kg) | $1.90 | |
| Jam, strawberry (500 g jar) | $3.04 | |
| Teabags (180 g pkt) | $3.84 | |
| Coffee, instant (150 g jar) | $6.33 | |
| Tomato sauce (600 ml) | $1.87 | |
| Margarine, poly-unsaturated (500 g) | $2.61 | |
| Baked beans, in tomato sauce (420 g) | $1.40 | |
| Baby food (120 g can) | $0.80 | |
| Household supplies | ||
| Laundry detergent (1 kg) | $5.37 | |
| Dishwashing detergent (450 ml) | $3.39 | |
| Facial tissues (pkt 180) | $2.08 | |
| Toilet paper (8 x 190 sheet rolls) | $6.62 | |
| Pet food (400 g) | $1.13 | |
| Private motoring | ||
| Petrol, unleaded (1 litre) | $1.19 | |
| Alcoholic drinks | ||
| Case of beer, low alcohol (24 x 355 ml - 375 ml bottles) | $23.97 | |
| Case of beer, full strength (24 x 375 ml bottles) | $37.17 | |
| Glass of draught beer, low alcohol, public bar (285 ml glass) | $2.17 | |
| Glass of draught beer, full strength, public bar (285 ml glass) | $2.47 | |
| Scotch nip, public bar (30 ml) | $4.35 | |
| Personal care products | ||
| Toilet soap (4 x 125g) | $2.83 | |