Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cha-am and Ubud, Bali

For one person, living is cheaper in Cha-am: $871 a month against $1,349 in Ubud, Bali, rent and utilities included – about $5,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

42

Cost of Living Index in Cha-am
Learn more

Cha-am Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Ubud, Bali
Learn more

Ubud, Bali Living Index

Jump to prices

Cha-am

🇹🇭 Thailand

$871

/mo nomad

Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,349

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cha-am 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 Cha-am and in Ubud, Bali actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $871 in Cha-am versus $1,349 in Ubud, Bali.

Cha-am $871
Ubud, Bali $1,349

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,405 in Cha-am versus $2,305 in Ubud, Bali.

Cha-am $1,405
Ubud, Bali $2,305

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,940 in Cha-am versus $3,261 in Ubud, Bali.

Cha-am $1,940
Ubud, Bali $3,261

Living in Cha-am costs roughly 35% less than in Ubud, Bali, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.98 ฿101

$3.32 Rp 60.3K

-10.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.18 ฿748

$35.64 Rp 646.5K

-37.77%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.35 ฿248

$5.53 Rp 100.4K

32.91%

Cappuccino

$2.01 ฿68.0

$2.72 Rp 49.3K

-26.10%

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

$0.69 ฿23.33

$1.70 Rp 30.9K

-59.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.35 ฿11.68

$0.76 Rp 13.8K

-53.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.44 ฿82.3

$2.65 Rp 48.1K

-7.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.93 ฿98.9

$4.38 Rp 79.5K

-33.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.6

$1.49 Rp 27.0K

16.78%

White Bread (500g)

$1.47 ฿49.73

$2.28 Rp 41.3K

-35.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿44.92

$1.19 Rp 21.6K

11.76%

Eggs

$1.87 ฿63.2

$2.04 Rp 36.9K

-8.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.37 ฿418

$17.70 Rp 321.1K

-30.11%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.53 ฿85.2

$3.96 Rp 71.9K

-36.11%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.97 ฿336

$12.19 Rp 221.1K

-18.21%

Apples (1kg)

$3.37 ฿114

$3.66 Rp 66.3K

-7.92%

Banana (1kg)

$1.21 ฿40.99

$1.52 Rp 27.5K

-20.39%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.90 ฿64.0

$2.23 Rp 40.4K

-14.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.81 ฿61.1

$1.97 Rp 35.8K

-8.12%

Potato (1kg)

$1.74 ฿58.7

$1.85 Rp 33.5K

-5.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.08 ฿36.60

$2.42 Rp 44.0K

-55.37%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.20 ฿40.51

$0.99 Rp 18.0K

21.21%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.44 ฿14.80

$0.51 Rp 9,313

-13.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿144

$2.22 Rp 40.3K

91.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.95 ฿606

$22.24 Rp 403.4K

-19.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.67 ฿56.4

$2.26 Rp 41.0K

-26.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.86 ฿96.5

$2.97 Rp 53.9K

-3.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.91 ฿30.60

$0.25 Rp 4,553

264.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.60 ฿763

$7.82 Rp 141.9K

189.00%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.34 ฿45.26

$0.44 Rp 7,972

204.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.08 ฿36.47

$0.43 Rp 7,801

151.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.61 ฿122

$5.41 Rp 98.1K

-33.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.37 ฿46.38

$0.82 Rp 15.0K

67.07%

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

$16.3K ฿551.3K

$23.8K Rp 432.4M

-31.49%

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

$26.5K ฿892.8K

$31.7K Rp 575.9M

-16.68%

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

$80.9 ฿2,731

$79.1 Rp 1.4M

2.34%

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

$11.74 ฿396

$6.45 Rp 116.9K

82.02%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.19 ฿783

$18.58 Rp 337.0K

24.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$23.97 ฿809

$49.48 Rp 897.5K

-51.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.88 ฿198

$17.65 Rp 320.1K

-66.69%

Cinema Ticket

$6.70 ฿226

$4.27 Rp 77.5K

56.91%

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

$615 ฿20.8K

$491 Rp 8.9M

25.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.6K ฿358.6K

$5,674 Rp 102.9M

87.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.0 ฿1,721

$44.64 Rp 809.7K

14.20%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.67 ฿968

$34.95 Rp 634.0K

-17.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.2 ฿2,437

$79.9 Rp 1.4M

-9.64%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$53.1 ฿1,790

$79.4 Rp 1.4M

-33.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$368 ฿12.4K

$1,125 Rp 20.4M

-67.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$267 ฿9,015

$671 Rp 12.2M

-60.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$752 ฿25.4K

$3,565 Rp 64.7M

-78.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$651 ฿22.0K

$1,723 Rp 31.3M

-62.24%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,732 Rp 49.5M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,284 Rp 41.4M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$362 ฿12.2K

$164 Rp 3.0M

120.66%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.96

13.78

-56.75%

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

Last update for Cha-am: October 27, 2026

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cha-am

$267 30.7%

Ubud, Bali

$672 49.8% 151% $404

Groceries & Markets

Cha-am

$233 26.7%

Ubud, Bali

$288 21.4% 23.9% $56

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cha-am

$116 13.3%

Ubud, Bali

$104 7.7% 10.2% $12

Eating Out

Cha-am

$92 10.6%

Ubud, Bali

$108 8% 16.7% $15

Clothing & Footwear

Cha-am

$92 10.6%

Ubud, Bali

$108 8% 16.6% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Cha-am

$37 4.3%

Ubud, Bali

$58 4.3% 55.2% $21

Getting Around

Cha-am

$33 3.8%

Ubud, Bali

$11 0.9% 65.4% $22

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $368 in Cha-am and $1,125 in Ubud, Bali. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cha-am pays about 2.2 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $22 in Cha-am vs $36 in Ubud, Bali for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $233 vs $288 per month, with Cha-am cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Cha-am

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🕒 Local time

11:51 11:51 AM

12:51 12:51 PM

1 h ahead of Cha-am

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

31,354

74,800

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.68 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18,138 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD). 1 EUR = 20,252 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cha-am Ubud, Bali 2,910 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Cha-am
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

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $871 in Cha-am and $1,349 in Ubud, Bali, so Cha-am is about 35% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Cha-am is about 2.2 times higher, 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: $368 in Cha-am versus $1,125 in Ubud, Bali. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $871 per month in Cha-am versus $1,349 in Ubud, Bali – Cha-am is about 35% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Ubud, Bali runs roughly 65% less than in Cha-am. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

At $871 in Cha-am versus $1,349 in Ubud, Bali, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Cha-am but tight or insufficient in Ubud, Bali. The gap between the two cities makes Cha-am 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, Cha-am and Ubud, Bali are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.