Sarawak vs Ulu Tiram: Which City Wins for Expats in 2026?

Sarawak is one of the cheapest places on this list, with a cost of living index of 39/100 and a comfortable single lifestyle running $2,800/mo, so your money goes absurdly far. The catch is the local economy: an average net salary of $342/mo means most expats here are remote workers, retirees, or people with outside income, and the DE Rantau visa's $2,000/mo income floor confirms it. Kuching delivers a medium expat community, good healthcare, and a safety index of 78/100, though English is mostly limited to tourist areas and the equatorial rain is relentless. If you can earn foreign currency, this is a quiet, affordable base with an 82/100 expat score; if you need a local job, look elsewhere.

Ulu Tiram is a cheap place to live, with a 3-bedroom city center apartment at $222/mo and utilities at $55/mo, but the average monthly net salary of $888/mo means locals feel every ringgit while expats on foreign income live like kings. The catch is that this is a small town of 100 thousand people with limited English, fair healthcare, and a muggy equatorial climate that dumps rain from November to March. It suits remote workers who want fast internet at 101 Mbps and a $4 meal, not anyone chasing nightlife or a big-city social scene. Treat it as a budget base near JHB airport, not a destination in its own right.