Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Denpasar, Bali

For one person, living is cheaper in Denpasar, Bali: $897 a month against $1,599 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Denpasar, Bali
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Denpasar, Bali Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,599

/mo nomad

Denpasar, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$897

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cape Town and in Denpasar, Bali

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

A single person spends $1,599 per month in Cape Town vs $897 in Denpasar, Bali, rent included.

Cape Town $1,599
Denpasar, Bali $897

A couple spends around $2,460 per month in Cape Town vs $1,498 in Denpasar, Bali, rent included.

Cape Town $2,460
Denpasar, Bali $1,498

A family of three spends $3,320 per month in Cape Town vs $2,099 in Denpasar, Bali, rent included.

Cape Town $3,320
Denpasar, Bali $2,099

Cape Town costs about 78% more than Denpasar, Bali, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Cape Town sits 18% above the global median, while Denpasar, Bali is 34% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.07 R 199

$2.17 Rp 39.0K

456.22%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.65 R 769

$23.40 Rp 421.2K

99.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.20 R 102

$3.85 Rp 69.2K

61.04%

Cappuccino

$2.50 R 41.13

$1.75 Rp 31.5K

42.86%

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

$1.35 R 22.28

$1.09 Rp 19.6K

23.85%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.00 R 16.47

$0.55 Rp 9,843

81.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.06 R 50.4

$1.80 Rp 32.5K

70.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 R 60.5

$3.00 Rp 53.9K

22.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 R 21.45

$1.23 Rp 22.1K

5.69%

White Bread (500g)

$1.27 R 20.89

$1.80 Rp 32.5K

-29.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.17 R 35.68

$1.00 Rp 18.1K

117.00%

Eggs

$3.09 R 50.9

$1.67 Rp 30.1K

85.03%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.98 R 148

$13.75 Rp 247.5K

-34.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.99 R 115

$3.10 Rp 55.7K

125.48%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.67 R 159

$9.82 Rp 176.7K

-1.53%

Apples (1kg)

$1.87 R 30.78

$2.97 Rp 53.4K

-37.04%

Banana (1kg)

$1.93 R 31.72

$1.22 Rp 22.0K

58.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.77 R 29.13

$1.88 Rp 33.9K

-5.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 R 35.86

$1.59 Rp 28.6K

37.11%

Potato (1kg)

$1.52 R 25.07

$1.52 Rp 27.3K

Onion (1kg)

$1.56 R 25.63

$1.95 Rp 35.0K

-20.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.32 R 21.74

$0.84 Rp 15.0K

57.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 R 18.97

$0.44 Rp 7,874

161.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.72 R 61.4

$1.75 Rp 31.5K

112.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.01 R 99.0

$18.50 Rp 333.0K

-67.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.34 R 22.13

$1.91 Rp 34.4K

-29.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.13 R 35.11

$2.35 Rp 42.3K

-9.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.55 R 25.53

$0.23 Rp 4,158

573.91%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.3 R 1,010

$7.46 Rp 134.4K

721.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.60 R 9.85

$0.42 Rp 7,507

42.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.54 R 25.36

$0.43 Rp 7,696

258.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.01 R 82.5

$3.09 Rp 55.6K

62.14%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.60 R 26.33

$0.75 Rp 13.5K

113.33%

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

$35.4K R 583.4K

$21.4K Rp 385.2M

65.48%

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

$34.7K R 570.9K

$29.8K Rp 535.9M

16.39%

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

$119 R 1,955

$74.0 Rp 1.3M

60.29%

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

$29.42 R 485

$5.66 Rp 101.9K

419.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.81 R 656

$16.94 Rp 304.9K

135.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.8 R 836

$38.92 Rp 700.5K

30.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.93 R 180

$12.66 Rp 227.8K

-13.67%

Cinema Ticket

$8.99 R 148

$2.99 Rp 53.8K

200.67%

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

$261 R 4,303

$373 Rp 6.7M

-30.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,966 R 114.8K

$4,351 Rp 78.3M

60.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.1 R 925

$38.22 Rp 687.9K

46.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.26 R 548

$30.44 Rp 547.9K

9.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 R 1,999

$68.0 Rp 1.2M

78.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 R 1,779

$67.9 Rp 1.2M

59.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,028 R 16.9K

$586 Rp 10.5M

75.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$720 R 11.9K

$348 Rp 6.3M

106.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,835 R 30.2K

$1,866 Rp 33.6M

-1.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,360 R 22.4K

$892 Rp 16.1M

52.49%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,407 R 39.6K

$1,429 Rp 25.7M

68.37%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,504 R 24.8K

$1,199 Rp 21.6M

25.51%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,649 R 27.2K

$274 Rp 4.9M

502.14%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.97

13.78

-20.39%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 20, 2026

Last update for Denpasar, Bali: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$720 45%

Denpasar, Bali

$348 38.8% 51.6% $372

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$226 14.2%

Denpasar, Bali

$233 26% 3.1% $6.9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$188 11.8%

Denpasar, Bali

$97 10.8% 48.6% $91

Eating Out

Cape Town

$177 11.1%

Denpasar, Bali

$71 8% 59.7% $106

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$143 9%

Denpasar, Bali

$92 10.3% 35.8% $51

Getting Around

Cape Town

$76 4.7%

Denpasar, Bali

$11 1.2% 85.6% $65

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.3%

Denpasar, Bali

$45 5% 34.7% $24

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,028 in Cape Town versus $586 in Denpasar, Bali. 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 502% higher in Cape Town, 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 $47.00 in Cape Town versus $23.00 in Denpasar, Bali. Groceries tell a different story – $226 in Cape Town vs $233 in Denpasar, Bali – so Cape Town wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇮🇩 Denpasar, Bali

🕒 Local time

11:07 11:07 AM

17:07 5:07 PM

6 h ahead of Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

788,445

💱 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 21, 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 21, 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

Cape Town Denpasar, Bali 10,090 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Denpasar, 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

Cape Town vs Denpasar, Bali: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 78% more than Denpasar, 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 $2,398 per month in Cape Town and $1,346 in Denpasar, Bali. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Denpasar, 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 $1,599 in Cape Town and $897 in Denpasar, Bali. That's a gap of about 78%.

Public transport costs about 722% less in Denpasar, Bali. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Denpasar, Bali, where all-in costs run around $897, than in Cape Town at $1,599. In Denpasar, Bali it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cape Town it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Denpasar, Bali costs $897 versus $1,599 in Cape Town. 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 Denpasar, Bali. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Cape Town makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.