Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Delhi and Balikpapan

For one person, living is cheaper in Delhi: $522 a month against $668 in Balikpapan, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

25

Cost of Living Index in Delhi
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Delhi Living Index
32

Cost of Living Index in Balikpapan
Learn more

Balikpapan Living Index

Jump to prices

Delhi

🇮🇳 India

$522

/mo nomad

Balikpapan

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$668

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Delhi and in Balikpapan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $522 in Delhi versus $668 in Balikpapan.

Delhi $522
Balikpapan $668

Estimated couple costs with rent: $872 in Delhi versus $1,048 in Balikpapan.

Delhi $872
Balikpapan $1,048

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,222 in Delhi versus $1,428 in Balikpapan.

Delhi $1,222
Balikpapan $1,428

Living in Delhi costs roughly 22% less than in Balikpapan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Delhi 61% lower, Balikpapan 51% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.70 ₹351

$1.39 Rp 25.0K

166.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$21.05 ₹1,999

$10.95 Rp 197.1K

92.24%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.73 ₹354

$3.05 Rp 55.0K

22.30%

Cappuccino

$2.35 ₹223

$1.36 Rp 24.5K

72.79%

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

$0.37 ₹35.21

$0.37 Rp 6,712

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.15 ₹13.93

$0.38 Rp 6,871

-60.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.14 ₹203

$2.25 Rp 40.4K

-4.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.06 ₹291

$3.33 Rp 59.9K

-8.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.69 ₹65.1

$1.13 Rp 20.3K

-38.94%

White Bread (500g)

$0.53 ₹50.0

$1.07 Rp 19.2K

-50.47%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.77 ₹73.1

$1.16 Rp 20.8K

-33.62%

Eggs

$1.11 ₹105

$2.54 Rp 45.8K

-56.30%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.63 ₹440

$7.38 Rp 132.8K

-37.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.52 ₹334

$2.92 Rp 52.6K

20.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.04 Rp 144.7K

Apples (1kg)

$2.00 ₹190

$2.25 Rp 40.5K

-11.11%

Banana (1kg)

$0.74 ₹70.5

$1.30 Rp 23.4K

-43.08%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.97 ₹92.6

$1.76 Rp 31.7K

-44.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.53 ₹49.92

$1.27 Rp 22.8K

-58.27%

Potato (1kg)

$0.30 ₹28.61

$1.26 Rp 22.7K

-76.19%

Onion (1kg)

$0.40 ₹37.82

$1.90 Rp 34.2K

-78.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.42 ₹39.62

$0.78 Rp 14.0K

-46.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.31 ₹29.81

$0.72 Rp 13.0K

-56.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.94 ₹469

$1.89 Rp 34.0K

161.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.21 ₹779

$20.83 Rp 374.9K

-60.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 ₹150

$1.87 Rp 33.7K

-15.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.69 ₹255

$3.02 Rp 54.3K

-10.93%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$6.19 ₹588

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.46 ₹43.46

$0.29 Rp 5,219

58.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$15.78 ₹1,498

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.07 ₹102

$1.15 Rp 20.7K

-6.96%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.27 ₹25.66

$0.38 Rp 6,777

-28.95%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.58 ₹150

$2.59 Rp 46.7K

-39.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.07 ₹101

$0.77 Rp 13.8K

38.96%

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

$10.7K ₹1.0M

$23.4K Rp 420.6M

-54.38%

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

$18.9K ₹1.8M

$31.0K Rp 558.8M

-38.99%

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

$42.37 ₹4,024

$67.5 Rp 1.2M

-37.21%

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

$4.03 ₹383

$4.36 Rp 78.4K

-7.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$6.95 ₹660

$29.86 Rp 537.4K

-76.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$19.18 ₹1,821

$23.74 Rp 427.4K

-19.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.92 ₹752

$8.46 Rp 152.2K

-6.38%

Cinema Ticket

$5.27 ₹500

$2.84 Rp 51.1K

85.56%

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

$100 ₹9,525

$93.1 Rp 1.7M

7.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,247 ₹213.4K

$8,570 Rp 154.3M

-73.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$24.11 ₹2,290

$38.14 Rp 686.6K

-36.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.85 ₹2,645

$18.66 Rp 335.9K

49.25%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$52.4 ₹4,977

$141 Rp 2.5M

-62.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$42.90 ₹4,074

$70.9 Rp 1.3M

-39.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$267 ₹25.4K

$203 Rp 3.7M

31.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$156 ₹14.8K

$148 Rp 2.7M

5.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$734 ₹69.7K

$537 Rp 9.7M

36.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$394 ₹37.5K

$361 Rp 6.5M

9.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,507 ₹238.0K

$1,258 Rp 22.6M

99.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,020 ₹96.8K

$818 Rp 14.7M

24.67%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$608 ₹57.7K

$238 Rp 4.3M

155.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.33

9.46

-11.95%

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

Last update for Delhi: October 12, 2026

Last update for Balikpapan: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Delhi

$156 29.9%

Balikpapan

$148 22.1% 5.2% $8.1

Groceries & Markets

Delhi

$109 20.9%

Balikpapan

$206 30.9% 89.5% $98

Eating Out

Delhi

$88 16.8%

Balikpapan

$57 8.6% 34.6% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Delhi

$66 12.7%

Balikpapan

$121 18.1% 82.2% $54

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Delhi

$53 10.2%

Balikpapan

$102 15.2% 90.6% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Delhi

$30 5.7%

Balikpapan

$29 4.4% 0.9% $0.3

Getting Around

Delhi

$20 3.8%

Balikpapan

$4.2 * 0.6% 79.1% $16

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 $267 in Delhi and $203 in Balikpapan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Delhi pays 156% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $21.00 in Delhi vs $11.00 in Balikpapan. Groceries flip the comparison at $109 vs $206, with Delhi cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇮🇳 Delhi

🇮🇩 Balikpapan

🕒 Local time

13:31 1:31 PM

16:01 4:01 PM

2 h 30 min ahead of Delhi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

16,787,941 Capital

701,066

💱 Currency

Indian Rupee INR ₹

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 INR = 10.53 USD

1,000 INR = 9.37 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, USD, EUR to INR – Indian Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇳 Indian Rupee (₹)

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 94.96 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 107 INR (1,000 INR = 9.37 EUR).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 19, 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 INR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Delhi Balikpapan 5,370 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Delhi
Balikpapan

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

Delhi vs Balikpapan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Delhi and Balikpapan differ by about 28% in total monthly costs ($522 vs $668 including rent). Delhi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 156% higher in Delhi, 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: $267 in Delhi versus $203 in Balikpapan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $100 in Delhi versus $93.1 in Balikpapan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Delhi – a meal for two runs $21.00 versus $11.00 in Balikpapan. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Delhi 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.

Safety-wise, Delhi and Balikpapan 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 Delhi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 28% less than in Balikpapan. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.