STEP 6Reference

Daily living essentials

Public transport, phone plans, where to buy groceries, how the bins work and the small things nobody tells you about Melbourne.

Getting around: myki

myki is the card for all trains, trams and buses in Melbourne. Buy one at any 7-Eleven, station or the PTV Hub at Southern Cross (about $6 adult, $3 concession) and top it up at machines, retailers or the app.
Register the card online. A registered card can be replaced with its balance; an unregistered one is just lost money.
Touch on when you board and touch off when you leave (except on trams, where you only touch on). Not touching on is a fine even if the card has money on it.
Fares as listed by Transport Victoria in October 2026: 2-hour fare $2.85, daily cap $5.70, weekend and public holiday cap $4.00 (concession half). Fares change, so check the official page.
Trams inside the CBD Free Tram Zone are free; do not touch on there or you will be charged.
Commuting daily? A myki Pass (7 days or 28 to 365 days) is cheaper than paying per trip.

Phone and internet

Three networks: Telstra (best coverage outside cities, higher price), Optus and Vodafone. Budget brands run on the same towers: Boost uses Telstra, amaysim uses Optus, Kogan and Lebara use Vodafone.
Buy a prepaid starter SIM or eSIM at a supermarket, 7-Eleven or online. You need your passport to activate it.
Australia switched off 3G in 2024, so your phone must support VoLTE to make calls, including 000.
Home internet is NBN; compare plans on a site like WhistleOut. In share houses the internet is usually already connected and split between housemates.

Groceries

Woolworths and Coles are the two big chains and have the widest range. Aldi is noticeably cheaper with fewer brands. IGA is the local corner supermarket.
Asian groceries: Box Hill (Chinese, Taiwanese, Korean), Glen Waverley (Chinese, Korean, Japanese, including the large Foodle store at The Glen), Springvale and Footscray (Vietnamese and South-East Asian), Richmond's Victoria Street, and several Korean and Japanese grocers in the CBD.
Queen Victoria Market and local farmers' markets are good for fresh produce, especially late in the day.
Shops close around 5 to 6 pm except Thursday and Friday late nights; supermarkets stay open later.

Bins and recycling

Victoria is moving every council to four bins: red lid for general rubbish, yellow for recycling, green for food and garden organics (FOGO), purple for glass. The glass bin arrives by 2027 in most areas; colours and collection days differ by council, so check your council's website.
Glass goes in the purple bin only; recycling bins should never contain soft plastics or bagged items.
Container Deposit Scheme (CDS Vic): most drink containers from 150 ml to 3 L marked "10c" can be returned to a refund point (reverse vending machine or depot) for 10 cents each, paid in cash, voucher or to your bank through the app.
Hard rubbish (furniture, mattresses) is collected by the council on booked days; dumping it on the footpath otherwise is fined.

Small things that save money and stress

Electricity and gas retailers compete. Use the Victorian Energy Compare site every year; switching takes minutes.
Tipping is not expected. Prices include GST.
The UV index is extreme in summer. Sunscreen, a hat and shade are not optional.
Tap water is safe to drink everywhere in Victoria.

Getting around: myki

myki is the card for all trains, trams and buses in Melbourne. Buy one at any 7-Eleven, station or the PTV Hub at Southern Cross (about $6 adult, $3 concession) and top it up at machines, retailers or the app.

Touch on when you board and touch off when you leave (except on trams, where you only touch on). Not touching on is a fine even if the card has money on it.

Fares as listed by Transport Victoria in October 2026: 2-hour fare $2.85, daily cap $5.70, weekend and public holiday cap $4.00 (concession half). Fares change, so check the official page.

Trams inside the CBD Free Tram Zone are free; do not touch on there or you will be charged.

Commuting daily? A myki Pass (7 days or 28 to 365 days) is cheaper than paying per trip.

Phone and internet

Three networks: Telstra (best coverage outside cities, higher price), Optus and Vodafone. Budget brands run on the same towers: Boost uses Telstra, amaysim uses Optus, Kogan and Lebara use Vodafone.

Buy a prepaid starter SIM or eSIM at a supermarket, 7-Eleven or online. You need your passport to activate it.

Australia switched off 3G in 2024, so your phone must support VoLTE to make calls, including 000.

Home internet is NBN; compare plans on a site like WhistleOut. In share houses the internet is usually already connected and split between housemates.

Groceries

Woolworths and Coles are the two big chains and have the widest range. Aldi is noticeably cheaper with fewer brands. IGA is the local corner supermarket.

Asian groceries: Box Hill (Chinese, Taiwanese, Korean), Glen Waverley (Chinese, Korean, Japanese, including the large Foodle store at The Glen), Springvale and Footscray (Vietnamese and South-East Asian), Richmond's Victoria Street, and several Korean and Japanese grocers in the CBD.

Queen Victoria Market and local farmers' markets are good for fresh produce, especially late in the day.

Shops close around 5 to 6 pm except Thursday and Friday late nights; supermarkets stay open later.

Bins and recycling

Victoria is moving every council to four bins: red lid for general rubbish, yellow for recycling, green for food and garden organics (FOGO), purple for glass. The glass bin arrives by 2027 in most areas; colours and collection days differ by council, so check your council's website.

Glass goes in the purple bin only; recycling bins should never contain soft plastics or bagged items.

Container Deposit Scheme (CDS Vic): most drink containers from 150 ml to 3 L marked "10c" can be returned to a refund point (reverse vending machine or depot) for 10 cents each, paid in cash, voucher or to your bank through the app.

Hard rubbish (furniture, mattresses) is collected by the council on booked days; dumping it on the footpath otherwise is fined.