Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Denpasar, Bali and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Denpasar, Bali: $901 a month against $1,586 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $8,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

44

Cost of Living Index in Denpasar, Bali
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Denpasar, Bali Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Denpasar, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$901

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,586

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $901 per month in Denpasar, Bali vs $1,586 in Cape Town, rent included.

Denpasar, Bali $901
Cape Town $1,586

A couple spends around $1,508 per month in Denpasar, Bali vs $2,425 in Cape Town, rent included.

Denpasar, Bali $1,508
Cape Town $2,425

A family of three spends $2,114 per month in Denpasar, Bali vs $3,263 in Cape Town, rent included.

Denpasar, Bali $2,114
Cape Town $3,263

Denpasar, Bali is about 43% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Denpasar, Bali sits 33% below the global median, while Cape Town is 17% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.18 Rp 39.2K

$12.14 R 200

-82.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.40 Rp 421.2K

$45.34 R 747

-48.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.76 Rp 67.7K

$5.88 R 96.9

-36.05%

Cappuccino

$1.84 Rp 33.1K

$2.50 R 41.18

-26.40%

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

$1.08 Rp 19.4K

$1.27 R 20.94

-14.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.58 Rp 10.5K

$0.98 R 16.14

-40.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.73 Rp 31.1K

$2.99 R 49.33

-42.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.86 Rp 51.5K

$3.72 R 61.4

-23.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.22 Rp 22.0K

$1.30 R 21.40

-6.15%

White Bread (500g)

$1.87 Rp 33.6K

$1.25 R 20.68

49.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.94 Rp 16.9K

$2.23 R 36.76

-57.85%

Eggs

$1.76 Rp 31.7K

$3.11 R 51.2

-43.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.93 Rp 250.7K

$9.06 R 149

53.75%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.21 Rp 57.8K

$6.92 R 114

-53.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.96 Rp 179.2K

$9.30 R 153

7.10%

Apples (1kg)

$2.84 Rp 51.1K

$1.84 R 30.25

54.35%

Banana (1kg)

$1.31 Rp 23.5K

$1.96 R 32.29

-33.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.82 Rp 32.8K

$1.67 R 27.45

8.98%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 Rp 29.1K

$2.17 R 35.70

-25.81%

Potato (1kg)

$1.48 Rp 26.6K

$1.57 R 25.81

-5.73%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 Rp 34.9K

$1.48 R 24.45

31.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.77 Rp 13.9K

$1.30 R 21.41

-40.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.44 Rp 7,874

$1.13 R 18.60

-61.06%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.84 Rp 33.2K

$3.60 R 59.3

-48.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.51 Rp 333.2K

$6.15 R 101

200.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.92 Rp 34.6K

$1.38 R 22.66

39.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.38 Rp 42.8K

$2.14 R 35.20

11.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.22 Rp 3,947

$1.50 R 24.65

-85.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.14 Rp 128.5K

$60.8 R 1,001

-88.25%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.39 Rp 7,042

$0.59 R 9.71

-33.90%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.42 Rp 7,509

$1.50 R 24.65

-72.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.13 Rp 56.4K

$5.11 R 84.2

-38.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.74 Rp 13.4K

$1.55 R 25.50

-52.26%

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

$22.1K Rp 397.2M

$36.2K R 596.5K

-39.05%

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

$28.1K Rp 506.3M

$31.2K R 514.8K

-9.98%

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

$74.5 Rp 1.3M

$114 R 1,883

-34.83%

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

$5.86 Rp 105.5K

$28.91 R 476

-79.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.81 Rp 302.6K

$39.73 R 654

-57.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.47 Rp 710.5K

$49.01 R 808

-19.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.07 Rp 235.3K

$10.99 R 181

18.93%

Cinema Ticket

$3.16 Rp 56.9K

$9.15 R 151

-65.46%

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

$373 Rp 6.7M

$259 R 4,264

44.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,499 Rp 81.0M

$6,794 R 111.9K

-33.77%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$38.34 Rp 690.1K

$56.2 R 926

-31.76%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.00 Rp 540.1K

$32.41 R 534

-7.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.9 Rp 1.2M

$121 R 1,987

-42.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$67.1 Rp 1.2M

$108 R 1,781

-37.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$589 Rp 10.6M

$1,021 R 16.8K

-42.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$349 Rp 6.3M

$717 R 11.8K

-51.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,874 Rp 33.7M

$1,824 R 30.1K

2.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$901 Rp 16.2M

$1,327 R 21.9K

-32.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,429 Rp 25.7M

$2,391 R 39.4K

-40.22%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,194 Rp 21.5M

$1,542 R 25.4K

-22.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$279 Rp 5.0M

$1,639 R 27.0K

-82.99%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.78

10.97

25.62%

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

Last update for Denpasar, Bali: October 11, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Denpasar, Bali

$349 38.8%

Cape Town

$717 45.2% 105% $368

Groceries & Markets

Denpasar, Bali

$235 26.1%

Cape Town

$225 14.2% 4.2% $9.9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Denpasar, Bali

$97 10.8%

Cape Town

$183 11.5% 88.3% $86

Clothing & Footwear

Denpasar, Bali

$92 10.2%

Cape Town

$143 9% 55.2% $51

Eating Out

Denpasar, Bali

$72 8%

Cape Town

$176 11.1% 146% $104

Sport & Entertainment

Denpasar, Bali

$46 5.1%

Cape Town

$67 4.2% 47% $22

Getting Around

Denpasar, Bali

$10 1.2%

Cape Town

$75 4.7% 613% $64

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $589 in Denpasar, Bali versus $1,021 in Cape Town. 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 488% 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 $23.00 in Denpasar, Bali versus $45.00 in Cape Town. Groceries tell a different story – $235 in Denpasar, Bali vs $225 in Cape Town – so Cape Town wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Denpasar, Bali

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

12:11 12:11 PM

06:11 6:11 AM

6 h behind Denpasar, Bali

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

788,445

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

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).

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).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

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

From you

Denpasar, Bali
Cape Town

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

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

Cape Town costs about 76% 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 $1,352 per month in Denpasar, Bali and $2,379 in Cape Town. 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 $901 in Denpasar, Bali and $1,586 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 76%.

Public transport costs about 751% 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 $901, than in Cape Town at $1,586. 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 $901 versus $1,586 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.