Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bali and Shimla

For one person, living is cheaper in Shimla: $307 a month against $1,187 in Bali, rent and utilities included – about $10,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Bali
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Bali Living Index
15

Cost of Living Index in Shimla
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Shimla Living Index

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Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,187

/mo nomad

Shimla

🇮🇳 India

$307

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bali and in Shimla

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

A single person spends $1,187 per month in Bali vs $307 in Shimla, rent included.

Bali $1,187
Shimla $307

A couple spends around $2,004 per month in Bali vs $500 in Shimla, rent included.

Bali $2,004
Shimla $500

A family of three spends $2,822 per month in Bali vs $694 in Shimla, rent included.

Bali $2,822
Shimla $694

Bali costs about 286% more than Shimla, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Bali and Shimla are more affordable than the global median – Bali 12% lower, Shimla 77% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.80 Rp 50.6K

$1.61 ₹152

73.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$28.85 Rp 520.8K

$10.43 ₹985

176.61%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.76 Rp 86.0K

$3.14 ₹297

51.59%

Cappuccino

$2.23 Rp 40.3K

$0.84 ₹79.4

165.48%

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

$1.30 Rp 23.4K

$0.37 ₹35.10

251.35%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 Rp 10.2K

$0.11 ₹9.94

409.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.23 Rp 40.3K

$1.57 ₹149

42.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.55 Rp 64.1K

$2.13 ₹201

66.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 Rp 25.4K

$0.69 ₹65.3

104.35%

White Bread (500g)

$2.18 Rp 39.4K

$0.40 ₹37.63

445.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.05 Rp 18.9K

$0.59 ₹55.9

77.97%

Eggs

$1.92 Rp 34.7K

$0.84 ₹79.2

128.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.84 Rp 267.9K

$4.33 ₹409

242.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.86 Rp 69.7K

$3.18 ₹300

21.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.69 Rp 192.9K

Apples (1kg)

$3.34 Rp 60.2K

$1.81 ₹171

84.53%

Banana (1kg)

$1.46 Rp 26.4K

$0.71 ₹67.2

105.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.22 Rp 40.1K

$0.65 ₹61.1

241.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 Rp 32.6K

$0.48 ₹45.29

275.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.72 Rp 31.0K

$0.28 ₹26.10

514.29%

Onion (1kg)

$2.23 Rp 40.2K

$0.34 ₹32.35

555.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.92 Rp 16.5K

$0.20 ₹18.87

360.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.46 Rp 8,308

$0.30 ₹28.58

53.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.06 Rp 37.1K

$3.42 ₹323

-39.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.38 Rp 367.8K

$8.22 ₹777

147.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.16 Rp 39.1K

$1.49 ₹140

44.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 Rp 51.4K

$2.10 ₹198

35.71%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$3.84 ₹363

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 Rp 4,531

$0.22 ₹20.78

13.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.68 Rp 156.7K

$7.98 ₹754

8.77%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.44 Rp 7,956

$1.08 ₹102

-59.26%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 Rp 7,766

$0.34 ₹31.66

26.47%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.38 Rp 97.2K

$1.08 ₹102

398.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.85 Rp 15.3K

$1.05 ₹99.3

-19.05%

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

$23.7K Rp 428.5M

$8,473 ₹800.4K

180.21%

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

$32.9K Rp 592.9M

$17.9K ₹1.7M

83.28%

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

$76.7 Rp 1.4M

$18.37 ₹1,735

317.75%

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

$6.33 Rp 114.2K

$3.23 ₹305

95.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.93 Rp 341.6K

$7.05 ₹666

168.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.65 Rp 751.7K

$14.09 ₹1,331

195.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.78 Rp 266.7K

$10.67 ₹1,008

38.52%

Cinema Ticket

$3.58 Rp 64.6K

$3.09 ₹292

15.86%

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

$437 Rp 7.9M

$42.31 ₹3,997

932.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.0K Rp 199.2M

$2,170 ₹205.0K

408.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.09 Rp 777.7K

$24.95 ₹2,357

72.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.51 Rp 604.8K

$21.61 ₹2,042

55.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.0 Rp 1.4M

$38.77 ₹3,662

93.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.9 Rp 1.3M

$25.88 ₹2,445

185.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$957 Rp 17.3M

$87.8 ₹8,296

989.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$570 Rp 10.3M

$52.3 ₹4,941

989.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,028 Rp 54.6M

$204 ₹19.3K

1380.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,446 Rp 26.1M

$124 ₹11.8K

1062.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,096 Rp 37.8M

$561 ₹53.0K

273.62%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,885 Rp 34.0M

$558 ₹52.7K

237.88%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$215 Rp 3.9M

$617 ₹58.3K

-65.12%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.78

8.25

67.03%

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

Last update for Bali: October 31, 2026

Last update for Shimla: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bali

$570 48%

Shimla

$52 17% 90.8% $518

Groceries & Markets

Bali

$263 22.2%

Shimla

$98 31.9% 62.8% $165

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bali

$102 8.6%

Shimla

$29 9.3% 71.9% $73

Clothing & Footwear

Bali

$101 8.6%

Shimla

$50 16.3% 50.7% $51

Eating Out

Bali

$89 7.5%

Shimla

$46 15.1% 48% $43

Sport & Entertainment

Bali

$49 4.1%

Shimla

$20 6.6% 58.5% $29

Getting Around

Bali

$12 1%

Shimla

$12 3.8% 5.4% $0.7

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $957 in Bali versus $88 in Shimla. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Shimla are about 2.9 times higher, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $29 in Bali versus $10 in Shimla. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $263 vs $98 – making Shimla the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Bali

🇮🇳 Shimla

🕒 Local time

18:58 6:58 PM

16:28 4:28 PM

2 h 30 min behind Bali

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

170,000

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.54 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.93 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.59 USD

1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 18,049 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.54 USD). 1 EUR = 20,271 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.93 EUR).

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 94.47 INR (100 INR = 1.06 USD). 1 EUR = 106 INR (1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bali Shimla 5,980 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Bali
Shimla

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 Shimla: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bali costs about 286% more than Shimla, 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 $1,780 per month in Bali and $461 in Shimla. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Shimla, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $88 there versus $957 in Bali.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $29 in Bali and $10 in Shimla. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,187 in Bali and $307 in Shimla. That makes Shimla about 74% cheaper.

Families tend to lean toward Shimla – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

For expats, Shimla is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 74% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.