Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Batam and Dhaka

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $426 a month against $596 in Batam, rent and utilities included – about $2,000 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

29

Cost of Living Index in Batam
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Batam Living Index
21

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
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Dhaka Living Index

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Batam

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$596

/mo nomad

Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$426

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Batam and in Dhaka

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $596 in Batam versus $426 in Dhaka.

Batam $596
Dhaka $426

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,010 in Batam versus $735 in Dhaka.

Batam $1,010
Dhaka $735

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,424 in Batam versus $1,043 in Dhaka.

Batam $1,424
Dhaka $1,043

Living in Batam is roughly 40% more expensive than in Dhaka, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Batam 56% lower, Dhaka 68% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.97 Rp 35.3K

$2.49 ৳305

-20.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$8.33 Rp 148.9K

$13.06 ৳1,604

-36.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.01 Rp 71.7K

$4.83 ৳594

-16.98%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.93 ৳606

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.10 ৳504

Cappuccino

$2.12 Rp 37.9K

$2.34 ৳287

-9.40%

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

$0.65 Rp 11.6K

$0.30 ৳37.38

116.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 Rp 5,612

$0.16 ৳19.96

93.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.53 Rp 45.2K

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 Rp 65.5K

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 Rp 20.5K

$0.80 ৳98.1

43.75%

White Bread (500g)

$1.11 Rp 19.8K

$0.65 ৳79.3

70.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.81 Rp 14.5K

$0.71 ৳87.2

14.08%

Eggs

$1.24 Rp 22.1K

$1.21 ৳149

2.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.40 Rp 132.3K

$8.67 ৳1,065

-14.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.40 Rp 43.0K

$3.21 ৳395

-25.23%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$4.35 Rp 77.7K

$6.70 ৳823

-35.07%

Apples (1kg)

$2.25 Rp 40.3K

$2.73 ৳335

-17.58%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 Rp 35.3K

$0.88 ৳108

123.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.02 Rp 36.2K

$2.37 ৳291

-14.77%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.00 Rp 18.0K

$0.65 ৳79.5

53.85%

Potato (1kg)

$0.97 Rp 17.4K

$0.24 ৳29.19

304.17%

Onion (1kg)

$1.93 Rp 34.4K

$0.49 ৳60.6

293.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.32 Rp 23.6K

$0.32 ৳38.87

312.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.44 Rp 7,945

$0.30 ৳37.30

46.67%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$12.07 ৳1,483

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.51 ৳677

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.66 ৳818

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.74 Rp 48.9K

$3.23 ৳396

-15.17%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.91 Rp 248.7K

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 Rp 30.3K

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.44 Rp 43.6K

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.37 Rp 6,661

$0.42 ৳52.1

-11.90%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.54 ৳2,769

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.15 Rp 20.5K

$1.19 ৳147

-3.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.63 Rp 11.3K

$0.40 ৳48.58

57.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.55 Rp 63.4K

$3.35 ৳411

5.97%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.82 Rp 14.6K

$1.15 ৳141

-28.70%

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

$28.3K Rp 506.4M

$30.3K ৳3.7M

-6.48%

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

$24.4K Rp 435.8M

$33.0K ৳4.1M

-26.19%

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

$68.6 Rp 1.2M

$46.32 ৳5,690

48.14%

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

$4.08 Rp 72.9K

$4.33 ৳531

-5.77%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.00 Rp 411.2K

$10.63 ৳1,306

116.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.70 Rp 477.3K

$16.37 ৳2,011

63.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.69 Rp 101.7K

$16.14 ৳1,982

-64.75%

Cinema Ticket

$2.62 Rp 46.9K

$4.13 ৳508

-36.56%

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

$82.4 Rp 1.5M

$90.7 ৳11.1K

-9.18%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,273 Rp 58.5M

$2,649 ৳325.4K

23.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$31.39 Rp 561.2K

$16.48 ৳2,024

90.47%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$18.43 Rp 329.5K

$21.00 ৳2,579

-12.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$65.2 Rp 1.2M

$50.3 ৳6,173

29.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$24.41 Rp 436.3K

$36.46 ৳4,478

-33.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$270 Rp 4.8M

$152 ৳18.6K

78.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$148 Rp 2.7M

$73.6 ৳9,041

101.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$818 Rp 14.6M

$436 ৳53.5K

87.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$496 Rp 8.9M

$214 ৳26.3K

132.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$559 Rp 10.0M

$1,622 ৳199.2K

-65.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$761 ৳93.5K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$343 Rp 6.1M

$249 ৳30.6K

37.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.17

10.48

25.67%

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

Last update for Batam: October 4, 2026

Last update for Dhaka: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Batam

$173 29.1%

Dhaka

$123 28.5% 29.1% $50

Accommodation & Living

Batam

$148 25%

Dhaka

$74 17.1% 50.4% $75

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Batam

$96 16.1%

Dhaka

$61 14.3% 36% $34

Eating Out

Batam

$77 13%

Dhaka

$64 15% 16.6% $13

Clothing & Footwear

Batam

$63 10.6%

Dhaka

$56 13% 10.9% $6.9

Sport & Entertainment

Batam

$32 5.4%

Dhaka

$25 5.7% 22.9% $7.3

Getting Around

Batam

$5.8 * 1%

Dhaka

$27 6.4% 373% $22

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $270 in Batam and $152 in Dhaka. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Batam pays 38% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $8.00 in Batam vs $13.00 in Dhaka. Groceries flip the comparison at $173 vs $123, with Dhaka cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Batam

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🕒 Local time

09:48 9:48 AM

08:48 8:48 AM

1 h behind Batam

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,196,396

21,741,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Bangladeshi Taka BDT ৳

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.99 EUR

1,000 BDT = 8.14 USD

1,000 BDT = 7.26 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BDT, 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 = 20,048 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.99 EUR).

Bangladeshi Taka exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 123 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.14 USD). 1 EUR = 138 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.26 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Batam Dhaka 2,920 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Batam
Dhaka

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

Batam vs Dhaka: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 40% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 38% higher in Batam, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $270 in Batam versus $152 in Dhaka. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 41% higher in Batam. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $596 per month in Batam versus $426 in Dhaka – a 40% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Dhaka gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Dhaka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 40% less than in Batam. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.