Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Makassar and Surabaya

For one person, living is cheaper in Makassar: $632 a month against $674 in Surabaya, rent and utilities included – about $500 less a year. The total is higher in Surabaya despite lower rent and utilities.

31

Cost of Living Index in Makassar
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Makassar Living Index
33

Cost of Living Index in Surabaya
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Surabaya Living Index

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Makassar

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$632

/mo nomad

Surabaya

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$674

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Makassar and in Surabaya

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $632 in Makassar versus $674 in Surabaya.

Makassar $632
Surabaya $674

Estimated couple costs with rent: $977 in Makassar versus $1,173 in Surabaya.

Makassar $977
Surabaya $1,173

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,322 in Makassar versus $1,672 in Surabaya.

Makassar $1,322
Surabaya $1,672

Living in Makassar costs roughly 6% less than in Surabaya, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Makassar 53% lower, Surabaya 50% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.62 Rp 29.1K

$1.63 Rp 29.3K

-0.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$8.67 Rp 156.1K

$11.26 Rp 202.7K

-23.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.23 Rp 58.1K

$3.14 Rp 56.5K

2.87%

Cappuccino

$1.92 Rp 34.6K

$1.56 Rp 28.0K

23.08%

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

$0.47 Rp 8,457

$0.55 Rp 9,867

-14.55%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.33 Rp 6,013

$0.26 Rp 4,619

26.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.45 Rp 44.1K

$2.16 Rp 38.9K

13.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.13 Rp 56.4K

$4.14 Rp 74.5K

-24.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 Rp 27.6K

$1.25 Rp 22.5K

22.40%

White Bread (500g)

$0.97 Rp 17.5K

$1.27 Rp 22.9K

-23.62%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.57 Rp 10.3K

$0.83 Rp 15.0K

-31.33%

Eggs

$1.54 Rp 27.7K

$1.18 Rp 21.2K

30.51%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.42 Rp 115.5K

$7.75 Rp 139.4K

-17.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.42 Rp 61.6K

$3.08 Rp 55.5K

11.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$5.23 Rp 94.2K

$7.75 Rp 139.4K

-32.52%

Apples (1kg)

$2.45 Rp 44.1K

$2.02 Rp 36.3K

21.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.31 Rp 23.6K

$1.29 Rp 23.2K

1.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.96 Rp 35.3K

$1.89 Rp 34.0K

3.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.26 Rp 22.6K

$1.49 Rp 26.9K

-15.44%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 Rp 23.1K

$1.36 Rp 24.4K

-5.88%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 Rp 26.6K

$1.90 Rp 34.2K

-22.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.74 Rp 13.3K

$0.89 Rp 16.0K

-16.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.39 Rp 6,988

$0.39 Rp 7,029

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.60 Rp 46.9K

$1.98 Rp 35.7K

31.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$22.14 Rp 398.6K

$25.14 Rp 452.5K

-11.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 Rp 32.7K

$1.74 Rp 31.3K

4.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.87 Rp 51.7K

$2.83 Rp 50.9K

1.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.27 Rp 4,851

$0.35 Rp 6,237

-22.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$4.18 Rp 75.2K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.50 Rp 8,925

$0.46 Rp 8,282

8.70%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.37 Rp 6,710

$0.42 Rp 7,542

-11.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.67 Rp 48.0K

$2.58 Rp 46.4K

3.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.80 Rp 14.3K

$0.88 Rp 15.8K

-9.09%

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

$23.8K Rp 428.5M

$24.6K Rp 443.1M

-3.29%

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

$31.9K Rp 574.3M

$32.3K Rp 581.0M

-1.15%

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

$90.3 Rp 1.6M

$87.3 Rp 1.6M

3.36%

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

$2.61 Rp 46.9K

$4.57 Rp 82.2K

-42.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.29 Rp 455.3K

$19.05 Rp 342.9K

32.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$21.58 Rp 388.5K

$17.92 Rp 322.6K

20.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.40 Rp 151.1K

$6.66 Rp 119.9K

26.13%

Cinema Ticket

$3.36 Rp 60.5K

$2.64 Rp 47.5K

27.27%

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

$94.2 Rp 1.7M

$277 Rp 5.0M

-66.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,803 Rp 68.5M

$9,324 Rp 167.8M

-59.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$26.97 Rp 485.5K

$70.9 Rp 1.3M

-61.96%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$23.43 Rp 421.7K

$38.58 Rp 694.4K

-39.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.0 Rp 1.3M

$80.8 Rp 1.5M

-7.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$39.92 Rp 718.5K

$75.1 Rp 1.4M

-46.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$224 Rp 4.0M

$282 Rp 5.1M

-20.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$143 Rp 2.6M

$144 Rp 2.6M

-1.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$528 Rp 9.5M

$1,238 Rp 22.3M

-57.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$364 Rp 6.6M

$601 Rp 10.8M

-39.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,151 Rp 20.7M

$2,161 Rp 38.9M

-46.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$794 Rp 14.3M

$1,072 Rp 19.3M

-25.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$214 Rp 3.8M

$271 Rp 4.9M

-21.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.46

7.5

26.13%

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

Last update for Makassar: October 17, 2026

Last update for Surabaya: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Makassar

$193 30.6%

Surabaya

$209 31% 8% $15

Accommodation & Living

Makassar

$143 22.6%

Surabaya

$144 21.4% 1.1% $1.5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Makassar

$118 18.7%

Surabaya

$111 16.5% 6.1% $7.2

Clothing & Footwear

Makassar

$74 11.8%

Surabaya

$119 17.7% 60.6% $45

Eating Out

Makassar

$67 10.7%

Surabaya

$63 9.4% 5.9% $4

Sport & Entertainment

Makassar

$28 4.5%

Surabaya

$23 3.4% 18.1% $5.1

Getting Around

Makassar

$7.6 1.2%

Surabaya

$3.9 * 0.6% 48.2% $3.7

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $224 in Makassar and $282 in Surabaya. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Surabaya pays 27% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $9.00 in Makassar vs $11.00 in Surabaya for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $193 vs $209 per month, with Makassar cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Makassar

🇮🇩 Surabaya

🕒 Local time

01:45 1:45 AM

00:45 12:45 AM

1 h behind Makassar

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,427,619

2,765,487

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Makassar Surabaya 770 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Makassar
Surabaya

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

Makassar vs Surabaya: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Makassar wins on cost – living expenses run 7% lower than in Surabaya. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Makassar the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 27% lower in Surabaya. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $224 in Makassar versus $282 in Surabaya. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $94.2 in Makassar versus $277 in Surabaya. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Makassar – a meal for two runs $9.00 versus $11.00 in Surabaya. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $800 a month, though Makassar 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.

Expats usually find Makassar gentler on the wallet – expenses run 7% less than in Surabaya. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.