Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Boksburg and Ubud, Bali

For one person, living is cheaper in Boksburg: $1,222 a month against $1,368 in Ubud, Bali, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Ubud, Bali outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

59

Cost of Living Index in Boksburg
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Boksburg Living Index
67

Cost of Living Index in Ubud, Bali
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Ubud, Bali Living Index

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Boksburg

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,222

/mo nomad

Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,368

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Boksburg and in Ubud, Bali

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,222 in Boksburg versus $1,368 in Ubud, Bali.

Boksburg $1,222
Ubud, Bali $1,368

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,891 in Boksburg versus $2,314 in Ubud, Bali.

Boksburg $1,891
Ubud, Bali $2,314

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,560 in Boksburg versus $3,260 in Ubud, Bali.

Boksburg $2,560
Ubud, Bali $3,260

Living in Boksburg costs roughly 11% less than in Ubud, Bali, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Boksburg is 9% below, Ubud, Bali is 1% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.15 R 200

$3.33 Rp 59.9K

264.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.01 R 709

$35.18 Rp 633.2K

22.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.40 R 88.9

$5.80 Rp 104.5K

-6.90%

Cappuccino

$2.28 R 37.62

$2.73 Rp 49.1K

-16.48%

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

$1.13 R 18.66

$1.64 Rp 29.5K

-31.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 R 13.69

$0.83 Rp 15.0K

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.25 R 37.09

$2.70 Rp 48.6K

-16.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.74 R 45.13

$4.30 Rp 77.4K

-36.28%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.35 R 22.26

$1.50 Rp 27.1K

-10.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.18 R 19.48

$2.30 Rp 41.4K

-48.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 R 29.15

$1.18 Rp 21.2K

50.00%

Eggs

$2.73 R 44.99

$2.14 Rp 38.6K

27.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.89 R 146

$17.48 Rp 314.6K

-49.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.32 R 87.6

$4.03 Rp 72.5K

32.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.86 R 146

$12.23 Rp 220.1K

-27.56%

Apples (1kg)

$1.82 R 30.01

$3.55 Rp 63.9K

-48.73%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 R 26.74

$1.57 Rp 28.3K

3.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 R 30.72

$2.24 Rp 40.2K

-16.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.79 R 29.43

$1.93 Rp 34.7K

-7.25%

Potato (1kg)

$1.68 R 27.66

$1.88 Rp 33.9K

-10.64%

Onion (1kg)

$1.81 R 29.80

$2.29 Rp 41.3K

-20.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.23 R 20.33

$0.99 Rp 17.9K

24.24%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.34 R 22.06

$0.53 Rp 9,475

152.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.38 R 55.6

$2.28 Rp 41.1K

48.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.03 R 99.4

$23.01 Rp 414.2K

-73.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.53 R 25.14

$2.34 Rp 42.2K

-34.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 R 31.20

$2.91 Rp 52.4K

-35.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.24 Rp 4,315

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.82 Rp 158.7K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.31 R 5.14

$0.48 Rp 8,684

-35.42%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 R 12.77

$0.46 Rp 8,233

69.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$14.54 R 240

$5.45 Rp 98.2K

166.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 R 24.52

$0.88 Rp 15.9K

69.32%

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

$36.3K R 597.3K

$24.6K Rp 442.2M

47.57%

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

$33.7K R 554.6K

$31.2K Rp 561.4M

7.94%

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

$231 R 3,808

$83.0 Rp 1.5M

178.44%

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

$38.32 R 631

$6.45 Rp 116.0K

494.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$36.44 R 600

$18.57 Rp 334.2K

96.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.26 R 466

$55.8 Rp 1.0M

-49.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.11 Rp 326.0K

Cinema Ticket

$7.92 R 131

$4.38 Rp 78.9K

80.82%

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

$243 R 4,006

$493 Rp 8.9M

-50.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,427 R 89.4K

$5,754 Rp 103.6M

-5.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.8 R 886

$46.19 Rp 831.4K

16.48%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.03 R 758

$35.33 Rp 636.0K

30.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 R 1,721

$79.1 Rp 1.4M

32.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 R 1,741

$78.4 Rp 1.4M

34.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$321 R 5,287

$1,142 Rp 20.6M

-71.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$352 R 5,793

$676 Rp 12.2M

-47.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$674 R 11.1K

$3,503 Rp 63.1M

-80.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$764 R 12.6K

$1,700 Rp 30.6M

-55.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,784 Rp 50.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,241 Rp 40.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$873 R 14.4K

$165 Rp 3.0M

430.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.91

13.78

-20.83%

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

Last update for Boksburg: October 11, 2026

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Boksburg

$352 28.8%

Ubud, Bali

$676 49.4% 92.1% $324

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Boksburg

$306 25%

Ubud, Bali

$108 7.9% 64.7% $198

Groceries & Markets

Boksburg

$212 17.3%

Ubud, Bali

$290 21.2% 37.3% $79

Eating Out

Boksburg

$165 13.5%

Ubud, Bali

$109 8% 34.2% $57

Clothing & Footwear

Boksburg

$140 11.4%

Ubud, Bali

$108 7.9% 22.9% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Boksburg

$44 3.6%

Ubud, Bali

$65 4.7% 46.4% $20

Getting Around

Boksburg

$4.2 * 0.3%

Ubud, Bali

$13 0.9% 200% $8.4

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 $321 in Boksburg and $1,142 in Ubud, Bali. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Boksburg pays 430% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $43.00 in Boksburg vs $35.00 in Ubud, Bali. Groceries flip the comparison at $212 vs $290, with Boksburg cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Boksburg

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🕒 Local time

06:59 6:59 AM

12:59 12:59 PM

6 h ahead of Boksburg

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

260,000

74,800

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 18,000 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD). 1 EUR = 20,236 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Boksburg Ubud, Bali 9,290 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Boksburg
Ubud, Bali

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

Boksburg vs Ubud, Bali: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Boksburg and Ubud, Bali differ by about 12% in total monthly costs ($1,222 vs $1,368 including rent). Boksburg is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 430% higher in Boksburg, 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: $321 in Boksburg versus $1,142 in Ubud, Bali. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 37% higher in Ubud, Bali. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,222 per month in Boksburg versus $1,368 in Ubud, Bali – a 12% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,222 in Boksburg versus $1,368 in Ubud, Bali, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Boksburg but tight or insufficient in Ubud, Bali. The gap between the two cities makes Boksburg the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Safety-wise, Boksburg and Ubud, Bali are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Boksburg gentler on the wallet – expenses run 12% less than in Ubud, Bali. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.