Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Margate, South Africa and Ubud, Bali

For one person, living is cheaper in Margate: $883 a month against $1,331 in Ubud, Bali, rent and utilities included – about $5,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

42

Cost of Living Index in Margate
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Margate Living Index
64

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

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Margate

🇿🇦 South Africa

$883

/mo nomad

Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,331

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $883 in Margate versus $1,331 in Ubud, Bali.

Margate $883
Ubud, Bali $1,331

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,419 in Margate versus $2,255 in Ubud, Bali.

Margate $1,419
Ubud, Bali $2,255

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,956 in Margate versus $3,180 in Ubud, Bali.

Margate $1,956
Ubud, Bali $3,180

Living in Margate costs roughly 34% less than in Ubud, Bali, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Margate 35% lower, Ubud, Bali 2% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.41 R 139

$3.38 Rp 61.3K

148.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$36.18 R 600

$34.65 Rp 628.8K

4.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 102

$5.57 Rp 101.2K

10.41%

Cappuccino

$1.86 R 30.86

$2.62 Rp 47.5K

-29.01%

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

$1.03 R 17.10

$1.54 Rp 27.9K

-33.12%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.82 R 13.65

$0.64 Rp 11.6K

28.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.44 R 40.48

$2.67 Rp 48.4K

-8.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.31 R 38.27

$4.26 Rp 77.4K

-45.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.99 R 16.37

$1.46 Rp 26.5K

-32.19%

White Bread (500g)

$0.89 R 14.79

$2.29 Rp 41.6K

-61.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.07 R 17.71

$1.11 Rp 20.1K

-3.60%

Eggs

$2.30 R 38.17

$2.10 Rp 38.1K

9.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.27 R 87.5

$15.94 Rp 289.3K

-66.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.49 R 57.9

$3.88 Rp 70.5K

-10.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$5.81 R 96.4

$11.40 Rp 206.9K

-49.04%

Apples (1kg)

$1.19 R 19.82

$3.55 Rp 64.5K

-66.48%

Banana (1kg)

$1.17 R 19.49

$1.54 Rp 27.9K

-24.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.07 R 17.71

$2.23 Rp 40.5K

-52.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.38 R 22.97

$1.97 Rp 35.8K

-29.95%

Potato (1kg)

$1.02 R 16.93

$1.86 Rp 33.7K

-45.16%

Onion (1kg)

$1.26 R 20.94

$2.42 Rp 43.9K

-47.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 R 18.88

$1.02 Rp 18.6K

11.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 R 16.11

$0.52 Rp 9,479

86.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.62 R 26.87

$2.20 Rp 39.9K

-26.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.62 R 60.0

$21.79 Rp 395.4K

-83.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.49 R 24.70

$2.33 Rp 42.2K

-36.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.96 R 32.45

$2.97 Rp 53.9K

-34.01%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.65 R 27.45

$0.25 Rp 4,544

560.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.17 Rp 148.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.40 R 6.70

$0.44 Rp 7,944

-9.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.75 R 12.51

$0.47 Rp 8,493

59.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.80 R 129

$5.60 Rp 101.6K

39.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 R 22.27

$0.83 Rp 15.0K

61.45%

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

$35.3K R 585.1K

$24.4K Rp 443.7M

44.25%

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

$34.1K R 565.3K

$31.7K Rp 575.2M

7.50%

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

$61.0 R 1,013

$77.5 Rp 1.4M

-21.23%

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

$18.22 R 302

$6.14 Rp 111.5K

196.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.75 R 543

$18.92 Rp 343.3K

73.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.51 R 523

$51.0 Rp 925.4K

-38.20%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.19 R 186

$18.25 Rp 331.2K

-38.68%

Cinema Ticket

$4.28 R 71.0

$4.38 Rp 79.5K

-2.28%

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

$316 R 5,246

$492 Rp 8.9M

-35.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,369 R 122.3K

$12.2K Rp 221.8M

-39.70%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.2 R 882

$45.16 Rp 819.6K

17.69%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$18.09 R 300

$34.89 Rp 633.2K

-48.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.0 R 1,194

$78.3 Rp 1.4M

-8.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$48.72 R 808

$77.9 Rp 1.4M

-37.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$389 R 6,448

$1,078 Rp 19.6M

-63.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$354 R 5,870

$665 Rp 12.1M

-46.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$720 R 11.9K

$3,510 Rp 63.7M

-79.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$731 R 12.1K

$1,671 Rp 30.3M

-56.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$772 R 12.8K

$2,340 Rp 42.5M

-67.02%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$671 R 11.1K

$2,236 Rp 40.6M

-69.98%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,479 R 24.5K

$166 Rp 3.0M

788.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.7

13.78

-15.09%

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

Last update for Margate: November 1, 2026

Last update for Ubud, Bali: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Margate

$354 40.1%

Ubud, Bali

$665 50% 87.9% $311

Groceries & Markets

Margate

$148 16.7%

Ubud, Bali

$279 21% 89.4% $132

Eating Out

Margate

$132 15%

Ubud, Bali

$106 8% 20% $27

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Margate

$112 12.7%

Ubud, Bali

$103 7.7% 8.5% $9.5

Clothing & Footwear

Margate

$86 9.8%

Ubud, Bali

$106 8% 23.1% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Margate

$40 4.5%

Ubud, Bali

$60 4.5% 49.1% $20

Getting Around

Margate

$11 * 1.2%

Ubud, Bali

$12 0.9% 10.8% $1.2

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 $389 in Margate and $1,078 in Ubud, Bali. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Margate pays about 8.9 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $36 in Margate vs $35 in Ubud, Bali. Groceries flip the comparison at $148 vs $279, with Margate cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Margate

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🕒 Local time

13:29 1:29 PM

19:29 7:29 PM

6 h ahead of Margate

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

34,407

74,800

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.03 USD

100 ZAR = 5.38 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.92 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 16.59 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.03 USD). 1 EUR = 18.6 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.38 EUR).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18,148 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD). 1 EUR = 20,345 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.92 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

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Between locations

Margate Ubud, Bali 9,040 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Margate
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

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

Margate wins on cost – living expenses run 34% lower than in Ubud, Bali. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Margate the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Margate is about 8.9 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: $389 in Margate versus $1,078 in Ubud, Bali. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $316 in Margate versus $492 in Ubud, Bali. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Ubud, Bali – a meal for two runs $35 versus $36 in Margate. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Margate is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.