Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bali and Mahé

For one person, living is cheaper in Bali: $1,224 a month against $1,799 in Mahé, rent and utilities included – about $6,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

60

Cost of Living Index in Bali
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Bali Living Index
91

Cost of Living Index in Mahé
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Mahé Living Index

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Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,224

/mo nomad

Mahé

🇸🇨 Seychelles

$1,799

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bali and in Mahé

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Bali and in Mahé actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,224 per month in Bali vs $1,799 in Mahé, rent included.

Bali $1,224
Mahé $1,799

A couple spends around $2,064 per month in Bali vs $2,618 in Mahé, rent included.

Bali $2,064
Mahé $2,618

A family of three spends $2,904 per month in Bali vs $3,438 in Mahé, rent included.

Bali $2,904
Mahé $3,438

Bali is about 32% cheaper than Mahé, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Bali sits 9% below the global median, while Mahé is 34% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.74 Rp 49.0K

$17.55 SCR 254

-84.39%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.64 Rp 529.8K

$108 SCR 1,564

-72.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.74 Rp 84.7K

$5.66 SCR 82.0

-16.25%

Cappuccino

$2.22 Rp 39.7K

$6.59 SCR 95.4

-66.31%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.37 Rp 24.5K

$1.62 SCR 23.47

-15.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.66 Rp 11.8K

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.21 Rp 39.4K

$12.68 SCR 184

-82.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.62 Rp 64.7K

$9.10 SCR 132

-60.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 Rp 25.8K

$1.58 SCR 22.84

-8.86%

White Bread (500g)

$2.17 Rp 38.7K

$1.09 SCR 15.83

99.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.12 Rp 20.0K

$1.84 SCR 26.66

-39.13%

Eggs

$1.97 Rp 35.2K

$4.29 SCR 62.1

-54.08%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.41 Rp 293.2K

$15.89 SCR 230

3.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.63 Rp 65.0K

$8.28 SCR 120

-56.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.53 Rp 206.2K

$12.96 SCR 188

-11.03%

Apples (1kg)

$3.37 Rp 60.2K

$2.07 SCR 29.93

62.80%

Banana (1kg)

$1.46 Rp 26.0K

Oranges (1kg)

$2.15 Rp 38.4K

$2.42 SCR 35.04

-11.16%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.90 Rp 34.0K

$6.59 SCR 95.4

-71.17%

Potato (1kg)

$1.80 Rp 32.2K

$1.06 SCR 15.33

69.81%

Onion (1kg)

$2.24 Rp 40.0K

$1.05 SCR 15.23

113.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.94 Rp 16.8K

$1.09 SCR 15.81

-13.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.48 Rp 8,577

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.14 Rp 38.2K

$14.50 SCR 210

-85.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$21.94 Rp 392.2K

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 Rp 40.4K

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.77 Rp 49.6K

$2.19 SCR 31.75

26.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 Rp 4,661

$0.76 SCR 11.03

-65.79%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.08 Rp 144.4K

$35.50 SCR 514

-77.24%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.44 Rp 7,853

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.42 Rp 7,491

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.66 Rp 101.1K

$14.40 SCR 209

-60.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.90 Rp 16.0K

$1.48 SCR 21.40

-39.19%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$24.2K Rp 433.4M

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$31.5K Rp 563.1M

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$80.1 Rp 1.4M

$49.22 SCR 713

62.64%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$6.63 Rp 118.5K

$21.81 SCR 316

-69.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.33 Rp 327.6K

$105 SCR 1,523

-82.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.56 Rp 814.4K

$52.9 SCR 766

-13.91%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.24 Rp 272.4K

Cinema Ticket

$3.71 Rp 66.4K

$6.26 SCR 90.6

-40.73%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$442 Rp 7.9M

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,246 Rp 93.8M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.18 Rp 789.6K

$29.88 SCR 433

47.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.13 Rp 610.1K

$11.99 SCR 174

184.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.2 Rp 1.4M

$47.18 SCR 683

63.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$75.0 Rp 1.3M

$58.8 SCR 851

27.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$994 Rp 17.8M

$871 SCR 12.6K

14.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$588 Rp 10.5M

$842 SCR 12.2K

-30.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,084 Rp 55.1M

$1,772 SCR 25.7K

74.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,496 Rp 26.7M

$1,058 SCR 15.3K

41.38%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,383 Rp 42.6M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,015 Rp 36.0M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$223 Rp 4.0M

$855 SCR 12.4K

-73.92%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.78

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Bali: October 4, 2026

Last update for Mahé: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Bali

$588 48%

Mahé

$842 47.9% 43.1% $253

Groceries & Markets

Bali

$274 22.4%

Mahé

$246 * 14% 10.3% $28

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bali

$105 8.6%

Mahé

$176 10% 67.8% $71

Clothing & Footwear

Bali

$104 8.5%

Mahé

$67 3.8% 35.9% $37

Eating Out

Bali

$89 7.3%

Mahé

$324 * 18.5% 264% $235

Sport & Entertainment

Bali

$53 4.3%

Mahé

$65 3.7% 23.5% $12

Getting Around

Bali

$12 1%

Mahé

$39 * 2.2% 231% $27

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $994 in Bali versus $871 in Mahé. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 283% higher in Mahé, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $30.00 in Bali versus $108 in Mahé. Groceries tell a different story – $274 in Bali vs $246 in Mahé – so Mahé wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Bali

🇸🇨 Mahé

🕒 Local time

20:38 8:38 PM

16:38 4:38 PM

4 h behind Bali

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

78,539

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Seychellois Rupee SCR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.99 EUR

100 SCR = 6.91 USD

100 SCR = 6.16 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SCR, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 17,875 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD). 1 EUR = 20,030 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.99 EUR).

Seychellois Rupee exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 14.48 SCR (100 SCR = 6.91 USD). 1 EUR = 16.23 SCR (100 SCR = 6.16 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Bali Mahé 6,610 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Bali
Mahé

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Bali vs Mahé: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mahé costs about 47% more than Bali, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,836 per month in Bali and $2,698 in Mahé. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Bali, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,224 in Bali and $1,799 in Mahé. That's a gap of about 47%.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $30.00 in Bali and $108 in Mahé. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Bali, where all-in costs run around $1,224, than in Mahé at $1,799. In Bali it covers expenses comfortably, while in Mahé it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Bali costs $1,224 versus $1,799 in Mahé. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Bali. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Mahé makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.