Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bali and Pai

For one person, living is cheaper in Pai: $881 a month against $1,236 in Bali, rent and utilities included – about $4,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

60

Cost of Living Index in Bali
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Bali Living Index
43

Cost of Living Index in Pai
Learn more

Pai Living Index

Jump to prices

Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,236

/mo nomad

Pai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$881

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bali and in Pai

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 Pai actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,236 per month in Bali vs $881 in Pai, rent included.

Bali $1,236
Pai $881

A couple spends around $2,086 per month in Bali vs $1,448 in Pai, rent included.

Bali $2,086
Pai $1,448

A family of three spends $2,937 per month in Bali vs $2,014 in Pai, rent included.

Bali $2,937
Pai $2,014

Bali costs about 40% more than Pai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Bali and Pai are more affordable than the global median – Bali 8% lower, Pai 35% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.76 Rp 49.7K

$3.12 ฿104

-11.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.80 Rp 536.4K

$24.15 ฿807

23.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.63 Rp 83.3K

$6.91 ฿231

-33.00%

Cappuccino

$2.32 Rp 41.7K

$2.01 ฿67.1

15.42%

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

$1.40 Rp 25.1K

$0.66 ฿21.96

112.12%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.64 Rp 11.5K

$0.35 ฿11.60

82.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.19 Rp 39.4K

$2.17 ฿72.6

0.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.58 Rp 64.5K

$3.71 ฿124

-3.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.49 Rp 26.7K

$1.71 ฿57.1

-12.87%

White Bread (500g)

$2.21 Rp 39.8K

$1.34 ฿44.80

64.93%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.17 Rp 21.1K

$1.31 ฿43.76

-10.69%

Eggs

$2.02 Rp 36.4K

$2.11 ฿70.4

-4.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.52 Rp 297.4K

$17.04 ฿570

-3.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.68 Rp 66.2K

$3.05 ฿102

20.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.67 Rp 210.0K

$11.08 ฿370

5.32%

Apples (1kg)

$3.44 Rp 62.0K

$2.88 ฿96.2

19.44%

Banana (1kg)

$1.46 Rp 26.2K

$1.19 ฿39.67

22.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.24 Rp 40.3K

$1.92 ฿64.1

16.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.82 Rp 32.8K

$1.55 ฿51.9

17.42%

Potato (1kg)

$1.79 Rp 32.2K

$1.54 ฿51.6

16.23%

Onion (1kg)

$2.27 Rp 40.9K

$1.26 ฿42.00

80.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.99 Rp 17.8K

$1.01 ฿33.81

-1.98%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 Rp 9,186

$0.52 ฿17.54

-1.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.15 Rp 38.7K

$4.35 ฿145

-50.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$21.44 Rp 386.0K

$18.83 ฿629

13.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.29 Rp 41.1K

$1.80 ฿60.3

27.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.86 Rp 51.5K

$2.78 ฿92.9

2.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 Rp 4,713

$0.87 ฿29.23

-70.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.97 Rp 143.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.48 Rp 8,646

$1.06 ฿35.44

-54.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 Rp 7,705

$1.19 ฿39.83

-63.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.64 Rp 101.6K

$6.30 ฿211

-10.48%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.82 Rp 14.8K

$1.26 ฿42.14

-34.92%

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

$23.7K Rp 426.6M

$27.4K ฿916.3K

-13.57%

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

$31.7K Rp 571.3M

$27.7K ฿925.4K

14.62%

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

$81.3 Rp 1.5M

$74.4 ฿2,486

9.32%

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

$6.53 Rp 117.6K

$13.21 ฿441

-50.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.31 Rp 329.7K

$18.52 ฿619

-1.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.85 Rp 843.4K

$48.79 ฿1,631

-3.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.05 Rp 270.8K

$14.14 ฿473

6.44%

Cinema Ticket

$3.69 Rp 66.5K

$6.95 ฿232

-46.91%

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

$445 Rp 8.0M

$298 ฿9,968

49.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,218 Rp 93.9M

$9,327 ฿311.7K

-44.06%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.66 Rp 767.8K

$31.59 ฿1,056

35.04%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.40 Rp 601.2K

$33.72 ฿1,127

-0.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.0 Rp 1.4M

$81.9 ฿2,738

-8.41%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.7 Rp 1.3M

$66.4 ฿2,218

11.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$996 Rp 17.9M

$451 ฿15.1K

121.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$596 Rp 10.7M

$263 ฿8,805

126.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,054 Rp 55.0M

$828 ฿27.7K

268.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,511 Rp 27.2M

$658 ฿22.0K

129.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,430 Rp 43.7M

$2,485 ฿83.0K

-2.19%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,963 Rp 35.3M

$1,833 ฿61.3K

7.06%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$220 Rp 4.0M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.78

5.45

152.84%

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

Last update for Bali: October 10, 2026

Last update for Pai: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bali

$596 48.2%

Pai

$263 29.9% 55.8% $333

Groceries & Markets

Bali

$277 22.4%

Pai

$250 28.4% 9.5% $26

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bali

$106 8.6%

Pai

$106 12% 0.1% $0.1

Clothing & Footwear

Bali

$101 8.2%

Pai

$96 10.9% 5% $5

Eating Out

Bali

$90 7.3%

Pai

$92 10.5% 2.3% $2.1

Sport & Entertainment

Bali

$54 4.4%

Pai

$63 7.1% 15.6% $8.4

Getting Around

Bali

$12 0.9%

Pai

$11 * 1.2% 9.6% $1.1

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $996 in Bali versus $451 in Pai. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $30.00 in Bali versus $24.00 in Pai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $277 vs $250 – making Pai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Bali

🇹🇭 Pai

🕒 Local time

04:41 4:41 AM

03:41 3:41 AM

1 h behind Bali

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,284

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 18,000 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD). 1 EUR = 20,238 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bali Pai 3,600 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Bali
Pai

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 Pai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bali costs about 40% more than Pai, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,854 per month in Bali and $1,322 in Pai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Pai, 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 $1,236 in Bali and $881 in Pai. That's a gap of about 40%.

Kindergarten costs $445 per month in Bali and $298 in Pai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Pai, where all-in costs run around $881, than in Bali at $1,236. In Pai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Bali it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Pai costs $881 versus $1,236 in Bali. 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 Pai. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Bali makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.