Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bali and Surfers Paradise

For one person, living is cheaper in Bali: $1,236 a month against $2,824 in Surfers Paradise, rent and utilities included – about $19,100 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
136

Cost of Living Index in Surfers Paradise
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Surfers Paradise Living Index

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Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,236

/mo nomad

Surfers Paradise

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,824

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bali and in Surfers Paradise

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

A single person spends $1,236 per month in Bali vs $2,824 in Surfers Paradise, rent included.

Bali $1,236
Surfers Paradise $2,824

A couple spends around $2,086 per month in Bali vs $4,398 in Surfers Paradise, rent included.

Bali $2,086
Surfers Paradise $4,398

A family of three spends $2,937 per month in Bali vs $5,973 in Surfers Paradise, rent included.

Bali $2,937
Surfers Paradise $5,973

Bali is about 56% cheaper than Surfers Paradise, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Bali sits 8% below the global median, while Surfers Paradise is 109% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.76 Rp 49.4K

$17.36 A$24.87

-84.10%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.80 Rp 533.2K

$105 A$150

-71.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.63 Rp 82.8K

$10.85 A$15.55

-57.33%

Cappuccino

$2.32 Rp 41.4K

$4.10 A$5.87

-43.41%

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

$1.40 Rp 25.0K

$2.81 A$4.03

-50.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.64 Rp 11.4K

$2.40 A$3.44

-73.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.19 Rp 39.2K

$7.86 A$11.26

-72.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.58 Rp 64.1K

$7.87 A$11.27

-54.51%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.49 Rp 26.6K

$1.66 A$2.38

-10.24%

White Bread (500g)

$2.21 Rp 39.6K

$2.70 A$3.87

-18.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.17 Rp 21.0K

$2.41 A$3.45

-51.45%

Eggs

$2.02 Rp 36.2K

$4.90 A$7.02

-58.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.52 Rp 295.6K

$8.68 A$12.43

90.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.68 Rp 65.8K

$9.09 A$13.01

-59.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.67 Rp 208.7K

$14.47 A$20.73

-19.35%

Apples (1kg)

$3.44 Rp 61.6K

$3.92 A$5.62

-12.24%

Banana (1kg)

$1.46 Rp 26.1K

$3.08 A$4.41

-52.60%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.24 Rp 40.0K

$3.37 A$4.83

-33.53%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.82 Rp 32.6K

$4.84 A$6.93

-62.40%

Potato (1kg)

$1.79 Rp 32.0K

$2.82 A$4.04

-36.52%

Onion (1kg)

$2.27 Rp 40.7K

$2.44 A$3.49

-6.97%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.99 Rp 17.7K

$2.39 A$3.43

-58.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 Rp 9,131

$2.07 A$2.97

-75.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.15 Rp 38.5K

$37.58 A$53.8

-94.28%

Wine (Bottle)

$21.44 Rp 383.6K

$14.26 A$20.43

50.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.29 Rp 40.9K

$5.97 A$8.55

-61.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.86 Rp 51.1K

$5.12 A$7.33

-44.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 Rp 4,685

$0.34 A$0.49

-23.53%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.97 Rp 142.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.48 Rp 8,594

$2.10 A$3.01

-77.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 Rp 7,659

$1.62 A$2.32

-73.46%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.64 Rp 101.0K

$35.24 A$50.5

-84.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.82 Rp 14.8K

$1.30 A$1.86

-36.92%

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

$23.7K Rp 424.0M

$27.0K A$38.7K

-12.32%

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

$31.7K Rp 567.9M

$28.3K A$40.6K

11.96%

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

$81.3 Rp 1.5M

$212 A$304

-61.69%

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

$6.53 Rp 116.9K

$29.92 A$42.87

-78.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.31 Rp 327.7K

$55.4 A$79.4

-66.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.85 Rp 838.3K

$66.1 A$94.6

-29.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.05 Rp 269.2K

$14.45 A$20.70

4.15%

Cinema Ticket

$3.69 Rp 66.1K

$17.42 A$24.95

-78.82%

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

$445 Rp 8.0M

$1,944 A$2,785

-77.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,218 Rp 93.4M

$12.4K A$17.7K

-57.84%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.66 Rp 763.2K

$83.1 A$119

-48.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.40 Rp 597.6K

$55.1 A$78.9

-39.34%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.0 Rp 1.3M

$111 A$159

-32.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.7 Rp 1.3M

$121 A$174

-39.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$996 Rp 17.8M

$1,912 A$2,739

-47.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$596 Rp 10.7M

$1,570 A$2,250

-62.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,054 Rp 54.6M

$3,770 A$5,400

-18.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,511 Rp 27.0M

$3,067 A$4,393

-50.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,430 Rp 43.5M

$5,895 A$8,444

-58.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,963 Rp 35.1M

$4,954 A$7,096

-60.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$220 Rp 3.9M

$3,288 A$4,710

-93.30%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.78

5.81

137.18%

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

Last update for Bali: October 10, 2026

Last update for Surfers Paradise: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bali

$596 48.2%

Surfers Paradise

$1.6K 55.6% 164% $974

Groceries & Markets

Bali

$277 22.4%

Surfers Paradise

$380 13.5% 37.3% $103

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bali

$106 8.6%

Surfers Paradise

$298 10.5% 180% $191

Clothing & Footwear

Bali

$101 8.2%

Surfers Paradise

$167 5.9% 64.7% $65

Eating Out

Bali

$90 7.3%

Surfers Paradise

$297 10.5% 230% $207

Sport & Entertainment

Bali

$54 4.4%

Surfers Paradise

$101 3.6% 86% $47

Getting Around

Bali

$12 0.9%

Surfers Paradise

$12 * 0.4% 0.7% $0.1

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 $1,912 in Surfers Paradise. 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 1393% higher in Surfers Paradise, 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 $105 in Surfers Paradise. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $277 vs $380 – making Bali the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Bali

🇦🇺 Surfers Paradise

🕒 Local time

08:16 8:16 AM

10:16 10:16 AM

2 h ahead of Bali

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

19,668

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.99 EUR

1 AUD = 0.698 USD

1 AUD = 0.624 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 17,892 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD). 1 EUR = 20,022 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.99 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.698 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.624 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bali Surfers Paradise 4,550 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Bali
Surfers Paradise

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 Surfers Paradise: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Surfers Paradise costs about 128% 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 $1,854 per month in Bali and $4,235 in Surfers Paradise. 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 $1,236 in Bali and $2,824 in Surfers Paradise. That's a gap of about 128%.

Kindergarten costs $445 per month in Bali and $1,944 in Surfers Paradise. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Bali, where all-in costs run around $1,236, than in Surfers Paradise at $2,824. In Bali it covers expenses comfortably, while in Surfers Paradise it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Bali costs $1,236 versus $2,824 in Surfers Paradise. 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, Surfers Paradise makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.