Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dhaka and Ambon

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $426 a month against $625 in Ambon, rent and utilities included – about $2,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

21

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
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Dhaka Living Index
31

Cost of Living Index in Ambon
Learn more

Ambon Living Index

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Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$426

/mo nomad

Ambon

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$625

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dhaka and in Ambon

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $426 in Dhaka versus $625 in Ambon.

Dhaka $426
Ambon $625

Estimated couple costs with rent: $735 in Dhaka versus $997 in Ambon.

Dhaka $735
Ambon $997

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,043 in Dhaka versus $1,368 in Ambon.

Dhaka $1,043
Ambon $1,368

Living in Dhaka costs roughly 32% less than in Ambon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Dhaka 68% lower, Ambon 53% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.49 ৳306

$1.10 Rp 19.6K

126.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$13.06 ৳1,605

$13.77 Rp 246.4K

-5.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.83 ৳594

$3.82 Rp 68.4K

26.44%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.93 ৳606

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.10 ৳504

Cappuccino

$2.34 ৳287

$1.47 Rp 26.3K

59.18%

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

$0.30 ৳37.39

$0.43 Rp 7,718

-30.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.16 ৳19.96

$0.29 Rp 5,160

-44.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.29 Rp 40.9K

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.46 Rp 61.9K

Milk (1 liter)

$0.80 ৳98.1

$1.07 Rp 19.2K

-25.23%

White Bread (500g)

$0.65 ৳79.3

$0.99 Rp 17.6K

-34.34%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.71 ৳87.3

$0.80 Rp 14.4K

-11.25%

Eggs

$1.21 ৳149

$1.37 Rp 24.5K

-11.68%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.67 ৳1,065

$7.33 Rp 131.2K

18.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.21 ৳395

$2.93 Rp 52.4K

9.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.70 ৳823

$7.72 Rp 138.1K

-13.21%

Apples (1kg)

$2.73 ৳335

$2.23 Rp 40.0K

22.42%

Banana (1kg)

$0.88 ৳109

$1.29 Rp 23.1K

-31.78%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.37 ৳291

$1.70 Rp 30.3K

39.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.65 ৳79.6

$1.27 Rp 22.6K

-48.82%

Potato (1kg)

$0.24 ৳29.20

$1.29 Rp 23.1K

-81.40%

Onion (1kg)

$0.49 ৳60.7

$1.99 Rp 35.7K

-75.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.32 ৳38.88

$0.73 Rp 13.1K

-56.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.30 ৳37.31

$0.43 Rp 7,718

-30.23%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$12.07 ৳1,483

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.51 ৳677

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.66 ৳819

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.23 ৳396

$2.29 Rp 40.9K

41.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$21.10 Rp 377.4K

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.81 Rp 32.4K

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.05 Rp 54.5K

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.42 ৳52.1

$0.26 Rp 4,723

61.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.54 ৳2,770

$16.64 Rp 297.7K

35.46%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.19 ৳147

$0.52 Rp 9,380

128.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 ৳48.60

$0.36 Rp 6,408

11.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.35 ৳411

$2.69 Rp 48.1K

24.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.15 ৳141

$0.81 Rp 14.5K

41.98%

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

$30.3K ৳3.7M

$21.1K Rp 377.6M

43.53%

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

$33.0K ৳4.1M

$27.3K Rp 487.5M

21.22%

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

$46.32 ৳5,692

$57.5 Rp 1.0M

-19.44%

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

$4.33 ৳532

$5.48 Rp 98.0K

-20.99%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.63 ৳1,306

$18.88 Rp 337.7K

-43.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$16.37 ৳2,012

$18.58 Rp 332.3K

-11.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.14 ৳1,983

$7.69 Rp 137.6K

109.88%

Cinema Ticket

$4.13 ৳508

$1.37 Rp 24.5K

201.46%

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

$90.7 ৳11.1K

$95.1 Rp 1.7M

-4.56%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,649 ৳325.5K

$6,994 Rp 125.1M

-62.13%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$16.48 ৳2,025

$42.94 Rp 768.1K

-61.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$21.00 ৳2,580

$32.09 Rp 574.1K

-34.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$50.3 ৳6,175

$73.0 Rp 1.3M

-31.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$36.46 ৳4,480

$71.7 Rp 1.3M

-49.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$152 ৳18.6K

$207 Rp 3.7M

-26.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$73.6 ৳9,044

$127 Rp 2.3M

-41.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$436 ৳53.6K

$477 Rp 8.5M

-8.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$214 ৳26.3K

$405 Rp 7.2M

-47.20%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,622 ৳199.3K

$1,004 Rp 18.0M

61.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$761 ৳93.5K

$915 Rp 16.4M

-16.82%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$249 ৳30.6K

$125 Rp 2.2M

99.51%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.48

9.46

10.78%

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

Last update for Dhaka: October 4, 2026

Last update for Ambon: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Dhaka

$123 28.5%

Ambon

$194 32.3% 58.6% $72

Accommodation & Living

Dhaka

$74 17.1%

Ambon

$127 21.1% 72.4% $53

Eating Out

Dhaka

$64 15%

Ambon

$59 9.8% 8% $5.1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dhaka

$61 14.3%

Ambon

$82 13.6% 33.6% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Dhaka

$56 13%

Ambon

$99 16.4% 76.9% $43

Getting Around

Dhaka

$27 6.4%

Ambon

$20 3.3% 27% $7.4

Sport & Entertainment

Dhaka

$25 5.7%

Ambon

$21 3.5% 13.5% $3.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $152 in Dhaka and $207 in Ambon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dhaka pays 100% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $13.00 in Dhaka vs $14.00 in Ambon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $123 vs $194 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🇮🇩 Ambon

🕒 Local time

13:10 1:10 PM

16:10 4:10 PM

3 h ahead of Dhaka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

21,741,000 Capital

275,888

💱 Currency

Bangladeshi Taka BDT ৳

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 BDT = 8.14 USD

1,000 BDT = 7.26 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, USD, EUR to BDT – Bangladeshi Taka Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇩 Bangladeshi Taka (৳)

Bangladeshi Taka exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 123 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.14 USD). 1 EUR = 138 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.26 EUR).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 17,890 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD). 1 EUR = 20,065 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.98 EUR).

USD to BDT in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Dhaka Ambon 5,100 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Dhaka
Ambon

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

Dhaka vs Ambon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka wins on cost – living expenses run 47% lower than in Ambon. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Dhaka the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 100% higher in Dhaka, 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: $152 in Dhaka versus $207 in Ambon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $426 per month in Dhaka versus $625 in Ambon – a 47% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Dhaka runs roughly 35% less than in Ambon. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Dhaka 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, Dhaka and Ambon 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 Dhaka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 47% less than in Ambon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.