Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lake Macquarie and Ubud, Bali

For one person, living is cheaper in Ubud, Bali: $1,349 a month against $2,218 in Lake Macquarie, rent and utilities included – about $10,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

108

Cost of Living Index in Lake Macquarie
Learn more

Lake Macquarie Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Ubud, Bali
Learn more

Ubud, Bali Living Index

Jump to prices

Lake Macquarie

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,218

/mo nomad

Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,349

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,218 per month in Lake Macquarie vs $1,349 in Ubud, Bali, rent included.

Lake Macquarie $2,218
Ubud, Bali $1,349

A couple spends around $3,563 per month in Lake Macquarie vs $2,305 in Ubud, Bali, rent included.

Lake Macquarie $3,563
Ubud, Bali $2,305

A family of three spends $4,907 per month in Lake Macquarie vs $3,261 in Ubud, Bali, rent included.

Lake Macquarie $4,907
Ubud, Bali $3,261

Lake Macquarie costs about 64% more than Ubud, Bali, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.44 A$24.79

$3.32 Rp 60.4K

425.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$120

$35.64 Rp 647.8K

137.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.50 A$14.92

$5.53 Rp 100.6K

89.87%

Cappuccino

$3.52 A$5.00

$2.72 Rp 49.4K

29.41%

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

$3.15 A$4.47

$1.70 Rp 30.9K

85.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 A$2.90

$0.76 Rp 13.8K

168.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.20 A$10.23

$2.65 Rp 48.2K

171.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.91 A$9.81

$4.38 Rp 79.6K

57.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 A$1.64

$1.49 Rp 27.1K

-22.82%

White Bread (500g)

$1.50 A$2.13

$2.28 Rp 41.4K

-34.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.59 A$2.26

$1.19 Rp 21.6K

33.61%

Eggs

$3.26 A$4.64

$2.04 Rp 37.0K

59.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.87 A$11.18

$17.70 Rp 321.7K

-55.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.47 A$10.62

$3.96 Rp 72.0K

88.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.54 A$17.82

$12.19 Rp 221.6K

2.87%

Apples (1kg)

$2.95 A$4.19

$3.66 Rp 66.4K

-19.40%

Banana (1kg)

$2.56 A$3.64

$1.52 Rp 27.6K

68.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.56 A$3.64

$2.23 Rp 40.5K

14.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.76 A$5.34

$1.97 Rp 35.9K

90.86%

Potato (1kg)

$2.38 A$3.38

$1.85 Rp 33.6K

28.65%

Onion (1kg)

$2.06 A$2.92

$2.42 Rp 44.1K

-14.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.70 A$2.42

$0.99 Rp 18.0K

71.72%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 A$2.20

$0.51 Rp 9,332

203.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$29.27 A$41.59

$2.22 Rp 40.4K

1218.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.38 A$11.90

$22.24 Rp 404.2K

-62.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.89 A$4.11

$2.26 Rp 41.1K

27.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 A$3.25

$2.97 Rp 54.0K

-23.23%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.68 A$3.81

$0.25 Rp 4,562

972.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$82.9 A$118

$7.82 Rp 142.2K

959.59%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.02 A$2.87

$0.44 Rp 7,989

359.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.18 A$4.52

$0.43 Rp 7,817

639.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$58.4 A$83.0

$5.41 Rp 98.3K

979.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 A$1.90

$0.82 Rp 15.0K

63.41%

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

$28.4K A$40.3K

$23.8K Rp 433.3M

18.98%

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

$24.3K A$34.5K

$31.7K Rp 577.0M

-23.52%

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

$236 A$335

$79.1 Rp 1.4M

198.53%

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

$11.39 A$16.19

$6.45 Rp 117.2K

76.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.79 A$59.4

$18.58 Rp 337.7K

124.92%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.7 A$79.1

$49.48 Rp 899.4K

12.49%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.12 A$25.75

$17.65 Rp 320.8K

2.66%

Cinema Ticket

$9.57 A$13.59

$4.27 Rp 77.7K

124.12%

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

$1,489 A$2,115

$491 Rp 8.9M

203.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.6K A$26.4K

$5,674 Rp 103.1M

228.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.3 A$99.9

$44.64 Rp 811.4K

57.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.06 A$52.7

$34.95 Rp 635.3K

6.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 A$140

$79.9 Rp 1.5M

23.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$111 A$158

$79.4 Rp 1.4M

40.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,380 A$1,961

$1,125 Rp 20.4M

22.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,040 A$1,478

$671 Rp 12.2M

54.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,288 A$3,251

$3,565 Rp 64.8M

-35.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,267 A$3,222

$1,723 Rp 31.3M

31.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,477 A$7,782

$2,732 Rp 49.6M

100.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,415 A$7,694

$2,284 Rp 41.5M

137.08%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,072 A$7,207

$164 Rp 3.0M

2995.86%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.35

13.78

-68.43%

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

Last update for Lake Macquarie: October 26, 2026

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lake Macquarie

$1K 46.9%

Ubud, Bali

$672 49.8% 35.4% $368

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lake Macquarie

$289 13%

Ubud, Bali

$104 7.7% 64% $185

Eating Out

Lake Macquarie

$284 12.8%

Ubud, Bali

$108 8% 62.1% $176

Groceries & Markets

Lake Macquarie

$276 12.5%

Ubud, Bali

$288 21.4% 4.5% $12

Clothing & Footwear

Lake Macquarie

$143 6.4%

Ubud, Bali

$108 8% 24.7% $35

Getting Around

Lake Macquarie

$112 5%

Ubud, Bali

$11 0.9% 89.8% $100

Sport & Entertainment

Lake Macquarie

$75 3.4%

Ubud, Bali

$58 4.3% 22.4% $17

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,380 in Lake Macquarie 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 Lake Macquarie are about 31 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $85 in Lake Macquarie versus $36 in Ubud, Bali. Groceries tell a different story – $276 in Lake Macquarie vs $288 in Ubud, Bali – so Lake Macquarie wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Lake Macquarie

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🕒 Local time

10:09 10:09 AM

07:09 7:09 AM

3 h behind Lake Macquarie

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,059

74,800

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.704 USD

1 AUD = 0.632 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.5 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 AUD (1 AUD = 0.704 USD). 1 EUR = 1.58 AUD (1 AUD = 0.632 EUR).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18,175 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.5 USD). 1 EUR = 20,233 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lake Macquarie Ubud, Bali 4,610 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Lake Macquarie
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

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

Yes – Lake Macquarie is pricier by about 64%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,327 per month in Lake Macquarie 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 Ubud, Bali, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,125 there versus $1,380 in Lake Macquarie.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,218 in Lake Macquarie and $1,349 in Ubud, Bali. That makes Ubud, Bali about 39% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 91% less in Ubud, Bali. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $2,218 in Lake Macquarie and $1,349 in Ubud, Bali. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward Ubud, Bali – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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, Lake Macquarie makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.