Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Batam and Sungai Petani

For one person, living is cheaper in Batam: $586 a month against $804 in Sungai Petani, rent and utilities included – about $2,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

28

Cost of Living Index in Batam
Learn more

Batam Living Index
39

Cost of Living Index in Sungai Petani
Learn more

Sungai Petani Living Index

Jump to prices

Batam

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$586

/mo nomad

Sungai Petani

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$804

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Batam and in Sungai Petani

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $586 in Batam versus $804 in Sungai Petani.

Batam $586
Sungai Petani $804

Estimated couple costs with rent: $984 in Batam versus $1,203 in Sungai Petani.

Batam $984
Sungai Petani $1,203

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,382 in Batam versus $1,602 in Sungai Petani.

Batam $1,382
Sungai Petani $1,602

Living in Batam costs roughly 27% less than in Sungai Petani, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Batam 57% lower, Sungai Petani 41% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.95 Rp 35.3K

$2.51 MYR 10.19

-22.31%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$8.07 Rp 146.3K

$17.12 MYR 69.5

-52.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.90 Rp 70.7K

$4.49 MYR 18.23

-13.14%

Cappuccino

$2.05 Rp 37.1K

$2.47 MYR 10.03

-17.00%

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

$0.61 Rp 11.0K

$0.75 MYR 3.06

-18.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 Rp 5,449

$0.39 MYR 1.56

-23.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.47 Rp 44.7K

$3.53 MYR 14.30

-30.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 Rp 66.4K

$4.44 MYR 18.03

-17.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 Rp 20.3K

$1.79 MYR 7.28

-37.43%

White Bread (500g)

$1.09 Rp 19.8K

$1.10 MYR 4.47

-0.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.81 Rp 14.7K

$1.69 MYR 6.85

-52.07%

Eggs

$1.22 Rp 22.1K

$2.26 MYR 9.18

-46.02%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.45 Rp 135.0K

$9.98 MYR 40.49

-25.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.47 Rp 44.8K

$4.52 MYR 18.34

-45.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$4.31 Rp 78.1K

$8.89 MYR 36.06

-51.52%

Apples (1kg)

$2.17 Rp 39.2K

$3.02 MYR 12.24

-28.15%

Banana (1kg)

$2.00 Rp 36.2K

$1.62 MYR 6.56

23.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.97 Rp 35.8K

$2.71 MYR 11.01

-27.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.03 Rp 18.7K

$1.40 MYR 5.68

-26.43%

Potato (1kg)

$0.95 Rp 17.2K

$1.09 MYR 4.44

-12.84%

Onion (1kg)

$1.96 Rp 35.5K

$1.07 MYR 4.35

83.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.29 Rp 23.4K

$1.13 MYR 4.60

14.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.44 Rp 8,036

$0.59 MYR 2.38

-25.42%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.72 Rp 49.3K

$4.31 MYR 17.48

-36.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.78 Rp 249.8K

$19.25 MYR 78.1

-28.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.68 Rp 30.4K

$2.86 MYR 11.61

-41.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 Rp 42.3K

$5.15 MYR 20.90

-54.76%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.41 Rp 7,419

$0.70 MYR 2.84

-41.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.26 MYR 49.74

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.13 Rp 20.5K

$1.75 MYR 7.08

-35.43%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.58 Rp 10.6K

$0.38 MYR 1.53

52.63%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.42 Rp 62.0K

$7.49 MYR 30.38

-54.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.84 Rp 15.2K

$0.48 MYR 1.97

75.00%

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

$27.6K Rp 499.6M

$44.6K MYR 181.1K

-38.23%

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

$24.6K Rp 445.8M

$35.0K MYR 141.9K

-29.68%

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

$67.8 Rp 1.2M

$36.69 MYR 149

84.79%

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

$4.09 Rp 74.2K

$9.93 MYR 40.28

-58.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.58 Rp 409.2K

$19.96 MYR 81.0

13.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$27.03 Rp 489.9K

$24.41 MYR 99.0

10.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.66 Rp 102.5K

$14.42 MYR 58.5

-60.75%

Cinema Ticket

$2.66 Rp 48.3K

$2.86 MYR 11.62

-6.99%

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

$83.0 Rp 1.5M

$397 MYR 1,609

-79.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,186 Rp 57.7M

$10.6K MYR 42.8K

-69.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$31.46 Rp 570.0K

$59.4 MYR 241

-47.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$17.99 Rp 326.0K

$34.60 MYR 140

-48.01%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$64.4 Rp 1.2M

$74.4 MYR 302

-13.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$23.72 Rp 429.9K

$69.8 MYR 283

-66.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$265 Rp 4.8M

$180 MYR 731

47.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$145 Rp 2.6M

$241 MYR 976

-39.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$796 Rp 14.4M

$480 MYR 1,947

65.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$499 Rp 9.0M

$365 MYR 1,481

36.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$542 Rp 9.8M

$1,202 MYR 4,877

-54.95%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$480 MYR 1,948

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$334 Rp 6.0M

$490 MYR 1,986

-31.83%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.17

4.04

225.99%

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

Last update for Batam: October 26, 2026

Last update for Sungai Petani: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Batam

$172 29.3%

Sungai Petani

$247 30.7% 43.7% $75

Accommodation & Living

Batam

$145 24.8%

Sungai Petani

$241 29.9% 65.8% $96

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Batam

$94 16.1%

Sungai Petani

$67 8.3% 29.5% $28

Eating Out

Batam

$75 12.8%

Sungai Petani

$94 11.7% 25.6% $19

Clothing & Footwear

Batam

$62 10.6%

Sungai Petani

$107 13.3% 73.2% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Batam

$32 5.5%

Sungai Petani

$30 3.8% 6.9% $2.2

Getting Around

Batam

$5.7 * 1%

Sungai Petani

$19 2.3% 229% $13

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 $265 in Batam and $180 in Sungai Petani. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sungai Petani pays 47% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $8 in Batam vs $17 in Sungai Petani for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $172 vs $247 per month, with Batam cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Batam

🇲🇾 Sungai Petani

🕒 Local time

16:38 4:38 PM

17:38 5:38 PM

1 h ahead of Batam

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,196,396

545,053

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.52 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

1 MYR = 0.246 USD

1 MYR = 0.221 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MYR, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 18,120 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.52 USD). 1 EUR = 20,232 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 4.06 MYR (1 MYR = 0.246 USD). 1 EUR = 4.53 MYR (1 MYR = 0.221 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Batam Sungai Petani 640 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Batam
Sungai Petani

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 Sungai Petani: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Batam is about 27% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 32% lower in Batam. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $265 in Batam versus $180 in Sungai Petani. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 44% higher in Sungai Petani. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $586 per month in Batam versus $804 in Sungai Petani – Batam is about 27% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Batam 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.

It comes down to priorities – Batam wins on affordability, Sungai Petani on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.