Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Johor Bahru and Ubud, Bali

For one person, living is cheaper in Johor Bahru: $1,080 a month against $1,349 in Ubud, Bali, rent and utilities included – about $3,200 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Ubud, Bali outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

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Cost of Living Index in Johor Bahru
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Johor Bahru Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Ubud, Bali
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Ubud, Bali Living Index

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Johor Bahru

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$1,080

/mo nomad

Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,349

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,080 in Johor Bahru versus $1,349 in Ubud, Bali.

Johor Bahru $1,080
Ubud, Bali $1,349

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,611 in Johor Bahru versus $2,305 in Ubud, Bali.

Johor Bahru $1,611
Ubud, Bali $2,305

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,141 in Johor Bahru versus $3,261 in Ubud, Bali.

Johor Bahru $2,141
Ubud, Bali $3,261

Living in Johor Bahru costs roughly 20% less than in Ubud, Bali, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.57 MYR 14.52

$3.32 Rp 60.3K

7.53%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.54 MYR 75.5

$35.64 Rp 646.7K

-47.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.03 MYR 20.47

$5.53 Rp 100.4K

-9.04%

Cappuccino

$3.00 MYR 12.20

$2.72 Rp 49.3K

10.29%

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

$0.85 MYR 3.45

$1.70 Rp 30.9K

-50.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 MYR 2.30

$0.76 Rp 13.8K

-26.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.54 MYR 18.48

$2.65 Rp 48.2K

71.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.27 MYR 25.50

$4.38 Rp 79.5K

43.15%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 MYR 6.92

$1.49 Rp 27.1K

14.09%

White Bread (500g)

$1.05 MYR 4.28

$2.28 Rp 41.3K

-53.95%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MYR 5.77

$1.19 Rp 21.6K

19.33%

Eggs

$1.73 MYR 7.03

$2.04 Rp 36.9K

-15.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.23 MYR 74.2

$17.70 Rp 321.2K

2.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.57 MYR 18.60

$3.96 Rp 71.9K

15.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.51 MYR 42.77

$12.19 Rp 221.2K

-13.78%

Apples (1kg)

$3.28 MYR 13.37

$3.66 Rp 66.3K

-10.38%

Banana (1kg)

$1.74 MYR 7.09

$1.52 Rp 27.5K

14.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.91 MYR 15.93

$2.23 Rp 40.4K

75.34%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.64 MYR 6.67

$1.97 Rp 35.8K

-16.75%

Potato (1kg)

$1.41 MYR 5.72

$1.85 Rp 33.5K

-23.78%

Onion (1kg)

$1.65 MYR 6.70

$2.42 Rp 44.0K

-31.82%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.37 MYR 5.56

$0.99 Rp 18.0K

38.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 MYR 2.26

$0.51 Rp 9,316

9.80%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.19 MYR 17.05

$2.22 Rp 40.3K

88.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.20 MYR 57.8

$22.24 Rp 403.6K

-36.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.92 MYR 11.90

$2.26 Rp 41.0K

29.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.03 MYR 12.32

$2.97 Rp 53.9K

2.02%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.70 MYR 2.83

$0.25 Rp 4,555

180.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.36 MYR 50.3

$7.82 Rp 142.0K

58.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.94 MYR 3.84

$0.44 Rp 7,975

113.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.75 MYR 3.07

$0.43 Rp 7,804

74.42%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.95 MYR 40.50

$5.41 Rp 98.2K

83.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.83 MYR 3.37

$0.82 Rp 15.0K

1.22%

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

$43.9K MYR 178.6K

$23.8K Rp 432.6M

84.03%

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

$35.7K MYR 145.4K

$31.7K Rp 576.1M

12.54%

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

$52.7 MYR 214

$79.1 Rp 1.4M

-33.38%

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

$11.01 MYR 44.82

$6.45 Rp 117.0K

70.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.28 MYR 115

$18.58 Rp 337.1K

52.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.28 MYR 168

$49.48 Rp 897.9K

-16.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.80 MYR 23.59

$17.65 Rp 320.2K

-67.14%

Cinema Ticket

$4.81 MYR 19.59

$4.27 Rp 77.6K

12.65%

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

$239 MYR 974

$491 Rp 8.9M

-51.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,518 MYR 18.4K

$5,674 Rp 103.0M

-20.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.6 MYR 222

$44.64 Rp 810.0K

22.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$16.53 MYR 67.3

$34.95 Rp 634.2K

-52.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$81.3 MYR 331

$79.9 Rp 1.4M

1.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.3 MYR 400

$79.4 Rp 1.4M

23.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$523 MYR 2,130

$1,125 Rp 20.4M

-53.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$416 MYR 1,692

$671 Rp 12.2M

-38.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$983 MYR 4,000

$3,565 Rp 64.7M

-72.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$707 MYR 2,879

$1,723 Rp 31.3M

-58.96%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,002 MYR 8,147

$2,732 Rp 49.6M

-26.73%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,214 MYR 4,940

$2,284 Rp 41.4M

-46.86%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,076 MYR 4,378

$164 Rp 3.0M

556.51%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.06

13.78

-70.54%

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

Last update for Johor Bahru: October 25, 2026

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Johor Bahru

$416 38.5%

Ubud, Bali

$672 49.8% 61.6% $256

Groceries & Markets

Johor Bahru

$269 24.9%

Ubud, Bali

$288 21.4% 7.4% $20

Eating Out

Johor Bahru

$120 11.2%

Ubud, Bali

$108 8% 10.6% $13

Clothing & Footwear

Johor Bahru

$113 10.4%

Ubud, Bali

$108 8% 4.7% $5.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Johor Bahru

$92 8.5%

Ubud, Bali

$104 7.7% 13.2% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Johor Bahru

$51 4.7%

Ubud, Bali

$58 4.3% 14% $7.1

Getting Around

Johor Bahru

$20 1.8%

Ubud, Bali

$11 0.9% 42.5% $8.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $523 in Johor Bahru and $1,125 in Ubud, Bali. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Johor Bahru pays about 6.6 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $19 in Johor Bahru vs $36 in Ubud, Bali for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $269 vs $288 per month, with Johor Bahru cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Johor Bahru

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🕒 Local time

02:27 2:27 AM

Same time as Johor Bahru

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

858,118

74,800

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.246 USD

1 MYR = 0.22 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, USD, EUR to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 4.07 MYR (1 MYR = 0.246 USD). 1 EUR = 4.54 MYR (1 MYR = 0.22 EUR).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18,145 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD). 1 EUR = 20,249 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Johor Bahru Ubud, Bali 1,690 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Johor Bahru
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

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,080 in Johor Bahru and $1,349 in Ubud, Bali, so Johor Bahru is about 20% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Johor Bahru is about 6.6 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: $523 in Johor Bahru versus $1,125 in Ubud, Bali. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Johor Bahru – a meal for two runs $19 versus $36 in Ubud, Bali. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,080 per month in Johor Bahru versus $1,349 in Ubud, Bali – Johor Bahru is about 20% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Johor Bahru 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, Johor Bahru and Ubud, Bali are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.