Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Ubud, Bali

For one person, living is cheaper in Ubud, Bali: $1,349 a month against $1,516 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $2,000 less a year. The total is higher in Istanbul despite lower rent and utilities.

73

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Ubud, Bali
Learn more

Ubud, Bali Living Index

Jump to prices

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,516

/mo nomad

Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,349

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,516 per month in Istanbul vs $1,349 in Ubud, Bali, rent included.

Istanbul $1,516
Ubud, Bali $1,349

A couple spends around $2,356 per month in Istanbul vs $2,305 in Ubud, Bali, rent included.

Istanbul $2,356
Ubud, Bali $2,305

A family of three spends $3,197 per month in Istanbul vs $3,261 in Ubud, Bali, rent included.

Istanbul $3,197
Ubud, Bali $3,261

Istanbul costs about 12% more than Ubud, Bali, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.59 ₺579

$3.32 Rp 60.2K

249.10%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.7 ₺2,730

$35.64 Rp 645.8K

53.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.39 ₺469

$5.53 Rp 100.3K

69.80%

Cappuccino

$4.23 ₺211

$2.72 Rp 49.3K

55.51%

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

$1.72 ₺85.8

$1.70 Rp 30.8K

1.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.57 ₺28.31

$0.76 Rp 13.8K

-25.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.65 ₺232

$2.65 Rp 48.1K

75.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.84 ₺341

$4.38 Rp 79.4K

56.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.20 ₺60.1

$1.49 Rp 27.0K

-19.46%

White Bread (500g)

$0.94 ₺47.06

$2.28 Rp 41.2K

-58.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.24 ₺112

$1.19 Rp 21.6K

88.24%

Eggs

$2.42 ₺121

$2.04 Rp 36.9K

18.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.24 ₺511

$17.70 Rp 320.8K

-42.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.38 ₺268

$3.96 Rp 71.8K

35.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.19 ₺1,058

$12.19 Rp 220.9K

73.83%

Apples (1kg)

$1.89 ₺94.4

$3.66 Rp 66.2K

-48.36%

Banana (1kg)

$2.22 ₺111

$1.52 Rp 27.5K

46.05%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.26 ₺62.8

$2.23 Rp 40.4K

-43.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.81 ₺90.2

$1.97 Rp 35.7K

-8.12%

Potato (1kg)

$0.70 ₺34.91

$1.85 Rp 33.5K

-62.16%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺32.19

$2.42 Rp 43.9K

-73.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.22 ₺61.0

$0.99 Rp 17.9K

23.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ₺27.41

$0.51 Rp 9,303

7.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.32 ₺116

$2.22 Rp 40.3K

4.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.31 ₺665

$22.24 Rp 403.0K

-40.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.33 ₺116

$2.26 Rp 41.0K

3.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.46 ₺173

$2.97 Rp 53.8K

16.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.91 ₺45.27

$0.25 Rp 4,548

264.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.3 ₺3,312

$7.82 Rp 141.8K

748.34%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.29 ₺64.3

$0.44 Rp 7,964

193.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.86 ₺42.74

$0.43 Rp 7,793

100.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.09 ₺554

$5.41 Rp 98.0K

104.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 ₺70.9

$0.82 Rp 14.9K

73.17%

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

$49.2K ₺2.5M

$23.8K Rp 432.0M

106.31%

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

$42.8K ₺2.1M

$31.7K Rp 575.3M

34.82%

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

$87.7 ₺4,381

$79.1 Rp 1.4M

10.98%

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

$11.28 ₺563

$6.45 Rp 116.8K

74.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.89 ₺793

$18.58 Rp 336.7K

-14.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$75.9 ₺3,790

$49.48 Rp 896.7K

53.40%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.04 ₺1,150

$17.65 Rp 319.8K

30.54%

Cinema Ticket

$8.20 ₺410

$4.27 Rp 77.4K

92.04%

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

$1,028 ₺51.3K

$491 Rp 8.9M

109.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$26.0K ₺1.3M

$5,674 Rp 102.8M

357.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.3 ₺2,663

$44.64 Rp 808.9K

19.47%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.69 ₺1,982

$34.95 Rp 633.4K

13.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.8 ₺4,982

$79.9 Rp 1.4M

24.87%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.5 ₺4,670

$79.4 Rp 1.4M

17.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,003 ₺50.1K

$1,125 Rp 20.4M

-10.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$628 ₺31.4K

$671 Rp 12.2M

-6.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,963 ₺98.0K

$3,565 Rp 64.6M

-44.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,122 ₺56.0K

$1,723 Rp 31.2M

-34.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,075 ₺153.5K

$2,732 Rp 49.5M

12.56%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,753 ₺87.5K

$2,284 Rp 41.4M

-23.26%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,180 ₺58.9K

$164 Rp 3.0M

619.99%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.69

13.78

195.28%

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

Last update for Istanbul: 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

Istanbul

$628 41.5%

Ubud, Bali

$672 49.8% 6.9% $43

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$258 17%

Ubud, Bali

$288 21.4% 11.7% $30

Eating Out

Istanbul

$218 14.4%

Ubud, Bali

$108 8% 50.5% $110

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$129 8.5%

Ubud, Bali

$108 8% 16.6% $21

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$115 7.6%

Ubud, Bali

$104 7.7% 9.4% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$92 6.1%

Ubud, Bali

$58 4.3% 37.1% $34

Getting Around

Istanbul

$76 5%

Ubud, Bali

$11 0.9% 84.9% $64

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,003 in Istanbul versus $1,125 in Ubud, Bali. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Istanbul are about 7.2 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $55 in Istanbul versus $36 in Ubud, Bali. Groceries tell a different story – $258 in Istanbul vs $288 in Ubud, Bali – so Istanbul wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🕒 Local time

09:15 9:15 AM

14:15 2:15 PM

5 h ahead of Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

74,800

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2 USD

100 TRY = 1.79 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.52 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, USD, EUR to TRY – Turkish Lira Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇷 Turkish Lira (₺)

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 49.93 TRY (100 TRY = 2 USD). 1 EUR = 55.75 TRY (100 TRY = 1.79 EUR).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18,120 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.52 USD). 1 EUR = 20,232 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Istanbul Ubud, Bali 10,320 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
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

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

Yes – Istanbul is pricier by about 12%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,274 per month in Istanbul and $2,023 in Ubud, Bali. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Istanbul, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,003 there versus $1,125 in Ubud, Bali.

Kindergarten costs $1,028 per month in Istanbul and $491 in Ubud, Bali. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 11% cheaper in Istanbul – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,516 in Istanbul and $1,349 in Ubud, Bali. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Ubud, Bali costs $1,349 versus $1,516 in Istanbul. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

If budget matters most, go with Ubud, Bali. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Istanbul makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.