The Kadazandusun of Sabah are traditionally paddy cultivators. While those living in the hills and and further inland cultivate dry paddy, the inhabitants of coastal plains and valley grow the wet variety.

A Rungus Longhouse is made up of 7 to 15 family apartments. Traditional longhouse house is build from wood, bamboo and atap (palm leaves). To avoid flood and wildlife such as snake, the house is lift off the ground by stilts made of hard wood such as bogil, belian ironwood, mangrove wood and manzalangan. The roof is dry palm leaves of sago or nipah and needs to be replaced every 3 to 5 years.

Lun Bawang people are traditionally agriculturalists , rearing poultry , pigs and buffaloes. Lun Bawang are also known to be hunters & fishermen. Meat & Fish are brined or pickled using salt and is stored in hallow bamboo stalks for a duration of a month. Meat & Fish are also preserve by smoking. Salt is obtain from evaporating brine from salt springs.

Bajau are commonly known to westerners as Sea Gypsies. Originally seafarers, their are now two distinct groupsEast Coast Bajau & West Coast Bajau. The west coast Bajau has settle down and learn the art of farming & cattle rearing. Their skills in horsemanship is very known locally. They are the famous cowboys of Sabah. The east coast Bajau however still live i traditional ways. Fishing is their main activities and some are still nomadic boat dwellers. The Bajau are skilled fishermen.

The Murut were the last of Sabah ethnic group to renounce headhunting. The Murut were shifting cultivators or hill paddy & tapioca , supplementing their diet with blowpipe hunting and with some fishing. They live in communal longhouses usually near rivers , using the rivers as their highways.