Hi all,

Recently I got a job pre-offer from an international company based in HK. I never thought of going HK for work but was recommended by a manager from this company. Then I started to think about it.

I know very little about HK living and working culture so hopefully I can get some info from fellow forumers who have HK working experience. Major aspect include living cost in terms of rental/food, working culture. And of course, is it possible to save money? lets say $300k per annum.


Thanks in advance.

what position you got and in what salary range?

well Hi! first things i have to say is hk living is quite higher than malaysia a lot but have to see how much your manager offer you salary in hk but confirm cant same salary in Malaysia because staying place rent is very expensive for a month

It is a senior position and was told they will let me know the detail of contract, salary will be higher so I expect around HKD $300k-$350k per annum

Thanks. I am actually working in Singapore. Do you know what is the average rental of 1 apartment (not high cost)?

Try your best to save $100k in 1 year lol. (Approx. RM50k)

Living space limited = high rental
Everybody is fashionable = high clothing cost
Relatively high living standard = higher nominal expenses
Entertainment = Very High (If u like clubbing everynight)
Courting female --> Huge expense = Leng Lui (LOL)

Most important when u order take away, remember dun say "dabao"
Dabao in HK means dabao corpse.

but recent years, this word seem acceptable in HK..
as i accidentally say that word(habit )..and they say OK...without black face though...
and nowadays alot china people working in food industry..so it is ok i guess

$300K HKD no saving. $300K USD then yes. Food there is cheap, street food wise. Restaurants are affordable with your salary. Accommodation is expensive. I was on business trip for a month so my accommodation are paid by company in a hotel, it cost few thousand HKD per night. The normal apartment unit there are VERY VERY small and rental is expensive from my HK colleague. Air quality is bad. Traffic is ok. Heard from colleague hard to get cab during the rush hours. MTR is convenient though, the bus and mini van are nice. Working culture is ok since we spoke the same language and we are familiar with their culture from TVB's dramas. Don't look like a PRC though, they hate PRC by a lot. Always speak Cantonese on the streets and in the office. They will know we are MY Chinese and treat you better.

If you work in Singapore then the most things are very similar except the apartment is really SMALL, even when comparing to SG's.

I guess you need to take into considerations on certain factors, rental, transportation, food, etc. See your package if it can cover these.

Relative working in HK paid +-10k HKD/month for a 2 bed-room apartment at Hong Hum so ya its like at least 1/3 of your salary already.

Meals+transport at least HKD100/day?

may I get an idea on how much is the average salary for senior position in HK? Industry, can be categorized under renovation but more into providing marketing and branding strategy. if salary offered is below average I probably can request more.

This post has been edited by jungyu: Feb 14 2014, 12:00 PM

of course you have to see your company sent you to hk island or TST Tsim Sai Tzui area.. still have to know where is your working area then onli i can advise you of course TST area is cheaper if far a bit will be at kowloon lo.. or new territory there still back to my question where is your company plus you have to count the MRT cost and also bus travel anyhow the MRT is very good can compare with sg hehe

but then if your salary is example 20K permonth hkd in hk i can say just ngam ngam onli...

The office is located at TST.

To think of a fair compensation in HK is to think in USD.

Despite what you might consider Hong Kong to be, its cost of living is like any major American or European city.

Essentially, a junior to mid-level managerial role would expect at least US$7-10k per month. About HK$ 50-80K a month.

Basic apartments start from about HK$10k per month. So you can see why a 50k-80k figure is logical given a mid-level post. Hong Kong people typically suggests to spend 1/3 on rental, 1/3 on expense and 1/3 for savings. If you can somehow squeeze to 1/4 rental, it would be fantastic.

I had a false call to work in HK, so I did a bit of research.

For a senior position of HKD300k - HKD350k per annum in HK I think it's on the low side. I personally wouldn't work and live in HK if I'm not getting at least HKD50k a month. An AVP in a Global Investment Bank easily makes HKD60k a month. Having said that, I think it's still realistic to save HKD10-15k a month depending on whether you're a high spender. But life in HK is fun if you like partying and shopping.

If you're just there for short term maybe to save up money, then I think it's worth a go. It's always nice to add overseas experience in your resume. But if you want to stay long term, depending on your age now, it may not be a wise decision because I personally don't like the living conditions there.


Don't agree with what you said.

1. Agree on limited living space but no necessarily high rental. But if you are measuring value for money, space vs cost, then yes it's high cost. I used to stay at Kennedy Town (quite Central), rented a 2 bedroom apartment at HKD 7,000 a month. Probably around 400-500 square feet. That was 3 years ago

2. High clothing cost? Definitely no. Prices are quite standard in Asia. A pair of Levis will cost around RM300 (in Msia), SGD150 (in SG) and HKD900 (in HK). But definitely need to spend more in winter. Since you usually wear one piece in SG or Msia but during winter maybe 3 pieces.

3. The food price is very similar to SG. You won't feel any difference. But there are still reasonable priced food even in Central area for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I know places in Central where you can get set lunches for HKD20-HKD40. With the rising cost in Msia, lunches at RM10-RM15 is very normal. So the difference is minimal as well.

4. Can't remember the entertainment cost, but I do recall that alcohol is cheaper in HK compared to SG.

5. Movie cost on average HKD100 and need to book in advance. Considering the food price is similar to SG, I don't think TS will have much issue with dating expenses. But maybe HK girls are more materialistic. I've dated girls in HK who requested me to get LV bags for them

This post has been edited by nick_lim88117: Feb 14 2014, 02:33 PM

I think you kena con already. HKD 350k p.a. is for junior positiin. It only amounts to HKD 30k p.m. If not mistaken fresh grad start with HKD 20-25k p.m. so HKD30k p.m. only slightly better. Rental for 1 studio 300-400 sqft is already 8k-15k p.m.plus food transport etc and drinking probably just enough.

HKD25k per month is very low
rental is around 10-15k.
depending on where you stay and work, the MRT cost is also ...
eat leh, easily HKD20 and up per meal

for your own comparison, my friend went to work as a senior exec level (non-management)
gets paid for around 35k per month

so if you said your's is manager level then it should be higher than that amount IMHO

but i heard that is being used in HK TVB drama before...

Expect to deduct a few years of your live cos of pollution from China.

I am from HK. I saw this topic and wonder if there are any HK people working in Malysia? I am a designer btw.

If working in Hong kong, do we incur double income taxation ie paying to Malaysia and Hong Kong.

No only America does that. HK rent is high (KL is increasing as well) and pollution is bad but taxes are low. I just can't tahan the air quality there though.

i think there is. not many. HK people wouldnt want to choose malaysia as a place to work

Hi Jungyu, if your already in HK (welcome), if you're not, then you should consider coming for experience sake. Indeed HK is very expensive but your salary range of approx 30k hkd per month will suffice.

rental - if you really want to save up, rent a room and not a whole apartment, room rental starts at 6k hkd per month only.
food - is relatively cheap for what you're earning here. dont compare to malaysia. but if you go high end restaurant, be prepare to fork out alot. (estimate cheap eats at 50-100hkd per meal x3 = 300 x 30 = 9000hkd
drinks - again relatively cheap, pints and shots are comparable with Singapore prices. (ie: 60hkd per pint)
working culture - really depends on your company, but most will adopt a british culture (get your work done and you're all good) i can even facebook/lowyat/steam/youtube at work
saving - with 30k hkd p/m you can plan to save 5k hkd per month which will equals 24k ringgit which is great for the first year or people in the 20s.
air quality - not good but breathable, still better than china. i have asthma but im still breathing fine here without any attacks (touchwood).
travel - mtr is cheap, busses is cheap, taxi is cheap (metered).. flights home to kl, every tuesday Cathay pacific has fanfares which gives you cheap deals to 10 different airports each week, KL is sometimes in there with prices around 1500hkd for return tickets.

however, to start off in hk requires alot of money. deposit for rental is 2 months deposit, 1 month advance, 1/2 month agent fee (if u hire agent) + approx 1k for stamp duty and stuff.

if you're still in you're 20s, take the leap of faith and come and experience and enjoy hk. 30k/month is still good money to earn and once you set foot in hk, set up your linkedin account and alot headhunter will approach you and you can carve your own career from there.

again if you're here already, join me for casual football if you're keen, sign up at www.casualfootball.net

any recommended web site for renting room/ studio in HK?

join a facebook group called "FindYourRoomInHongKong"

has many room deals mostly without agents.