Cost of living in Adelaide
Compact South Australian capital with the lowest rents of any mainland state capital. Strong tertiary sector employment in defence and health.
The numbers
| Item | AUD | Period | Annual |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median unit rent | $460 | weekly | $23,920 |
| Median house rent | $580 | weekly | $30,160 |
| Weekly groceries (one person) | $140 | weekly | $7,280 |
| Public transport | $150 | monthly | $1,800 |
| Utilities | $240 | monthly | $2,880 |
| Essential outlay (unit rent baseline) | - | $35,880 | |
Check your budget in Adelaide
The graduate budget calculator applies the 50/30/20 framework to your take-home weekly wage. Pick Adelaide from the dropdown to see whether the $460 median weekly unit rent fits the 50 percent needs envelope on a graduate salary.
Careers that can comfortably afford median unit rent here
We define "comfortable" as weekly take-home pay at least twice the median unit rent in Adelaide. Take-home pay is estimated with the 2024-25 ATO resident tax scale, the 2% Medicare levy and HECS-HELP compulsory repayment.
$1850/week before tax
$2750/week before tax
$1250/week before tax
$2500/week before tax
$1200/week before tax
$1800/week before tax
$1300/week before tax
$1950/week before tax
$2000/week before tax
$1450/week before tax
$3000/week before tax
$1150/week before tax
$1150/week before tax
$1900/week before tax
$2200/week before tax
$1850/week before tax
$1300/week before tax
$1700/week before tax