PUTRAJAYA: Selangor is the state with the highest basic expenditure for decent living when compared with Kuala Lumpur, according to the 2024 Cost of Living Indicators released yesterday by the Statistics Department.
Meanwhile, Kelantan, Kedah and Perlis had among the lowest index values.
The new index measures the minimum expenditure required to maintain a decent standard of living across states, administrative districts and state capitals.
Kuala Lumpur is used as the reference point, set at a value of 100, against which all other locations are measured.
Lower values indicate a lower required expenditure compared with the reference, while higher values reflect greater costs.
Chief Statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin said the analysis of households in 2024 showed clear disparities in the cost of living nationwide.
“For single-person households, Selangor recorded the highest index at 92.0 points, followed by Penang at 84.2 and Putrajaya at 83.1,” he said.
“The lowest were Kelantan and Sarawak at 53.7 points each, and Kedah at 56.6.”
He said a similar pattern was observed for two-, three- and four-person households, with Selangor consistently recording the highest index values, while Kelantan, Kedah, Perlis and Sabah registered lower levels.
In terms of state, the analysis showed that the reasonable cost of decent living for a single-person household in Kelantan is 46.3 per cent lower than in Kuala Lumpur, while for a four-person household, Perlis records an expenditure level 39.1 per cent lower than the capital.
At the district level, Uzir said, only Petaling in Selangor recorded values exceeding the Kuala Lumpur reference across all household sizes.
Pantu in Sarawak was identified as the district with the lowest cost of decent living.
Uzir said the cost of living for a single-person household in Pantu was 72.2 per cent lower than in Kuala Lumpur, while for a four-person household, the reasonable expenditure level in Perlis was 68.1 per cent lower.
At the state capital level, Shah Alam exceeded the Kuala Lumpur reference across all household sizes, while Kangar recorded the lowest indices.
The 2024 calculator for the index has also been updated to enable households to estimate their living expenses based on location and demographic characteristics, with the mobile application expected to be available from February 2026.
The National Action Council on Cost of Living agreed on March 19 for the Statistics Department to develop a new indicator to measure the cost of living at the district level, aimed at helping the government formulate more accurate and effective policies.
© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd
