Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nelson and Ubud, Bali

For one person, living is cheaper in Ubud, Bali: $1,349 a month against $1,865 in Nelson, rent and utilities included – about $6,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

90

Cost of Living Index in Nelson
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Nelson Living Index
65

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

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Nelson

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,865

/mo nomad

Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,349

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,865 in Nelson versus $1,349 in Ubud, Bali.

Nelson $1,865
Ubud, Bali $1,349

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,872 in Nelson versus $2,305 in Ubud, Bali.

Nelson $2,872
Ubud, Bali $2,305

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,879 in Nelson versus $3,261 in Ubud, Bali.

Nelson $3,879
Ubud, Bali $3,261

Living in Nelson is roughly 38% more expensive than in Ubud, Bali, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.72 NZ$24.40

$3.32 Rp 60.3K

313.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$64.8 NZ$115

$35.64 Rp 646.5K

81.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.27 NZ$14.71

$5.53 Rp 100.4K

49.55%

Cappuccino

$3.19 NZ$5.66

$2.72 Rp 49.3K

17.28%

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

$1.82 NZ$3.23

$1.70 Rp 30.9K

7.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.65 NZ$2.94

$0.76 Rp 13.8K

117.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.61 NZ$13.52

$2.65 Rp 48.1K

187.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.84 NZ$10.38

$4.38 Rp 79.5K

33.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.93 NZ$3.43

$1.49 Rp 27.0K

29.53%

White Bread (500g)

$2.19 NZ$3.89

$2.28 Rp 41.3K

-3.95%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.96 NZ$3.48

$1.19 Rp 21.6K

64.71%

Eggs

$5.85 NZ$10.40

$2.04 Rp 36.9K

186.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.13 NZ$16.22

$17.70 Rp 321.1K

-48.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.62 NZ$13.54

$3.96 Rp 71.9K

92.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.65 NZ$24.26

$12.19 Rp 221.1K

11.98%

Apples (1kg)

$3.15 NZ$5.61

$3.66 Rp 66.3K

-13.93%

Banana (1kg)

$2.15 NZ$3.82

$1.52 Rp 27.5K

41.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.00 NZ$5.33

$2.23 Rp 40.4K

34.53%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.63 NZ$10.01

$1.97 Rp 35.8K

185.79%

Potato (1kg)

$2.07 NZ$3.68

$1.85 Rp 33.5K

11.89%

Onion (1kg)

$1.23 NZ$2.19

$2.42 Rp 44.0K

-49.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.02 NZ$3.60

$0.99 Rp 18.0K

104.04%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 NZ$1.92

$0.51 Rp 9,313

111.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$25.87 NZ$45.99

$2.22 Rp 40.3K

1065.32%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.94 NZ$17.66

$22.24 Rp 403.4K

-55.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.14 NZ$5.58

$2.26 Rp 41.0K

38.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 NZ$5.00

$2.97 Rp 53.9K

-5.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.20 NZ$3.92

$0.25 Rp 4,553

780.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.82 Rp 141.9K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.83 NZ$3.25

$0.44 Rp 7,972

315.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.79 NZ$3.18

$0.43 Rp 7,801

316.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.80 NZ$60.1

$5.41 Rp 98.1K

524.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.56 NZ$2.77

$0.82 Rp 15.0K

90.24%

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

$17.1K NZ$30.3K

$23.8K Rp 432.4M

-28.45%

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

$22.4K NZ$39.7K

$31.7K Rp 575.9M

-29.60%

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

$130 NZ$231

$79.1 Rp 1.4M

64.67%

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

$32.93 NZ$58.5

$6.45 Rp 116.9K

410.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.70 NZ$77.7

$18.58 Rp 337.0K

135.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$101 NZ$179

$49.48 Rp 897.5K

103.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.48 NZ$61.3

$17.65 Rp 320.1K

95.35%

Cinema Ticket

$11.14 NZ$19.81

$4.27 Rp 77.5K

160.89%

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

$458 NZ$814

$491 Rp 8.9M

-6.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.1K NZ$23.3K

$5,674 Rp 102.9M

131.12%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.9 NZ$94.1

$44.64 Rp 809.7K

18.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.57 NZ$50.8

$34.95 Rp 634.0K

-18.25%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 NZ$185

$79.9 Rp 1.4M

30.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$143 NZ$254

$79.4 Rp 1.4M

79.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 NZ$1,819

$1,125 Rp 20.4M

-9.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$813 NZ$1,445

$671 Rp 12.2M

21.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,755 NZ$3,120

$3,565 Rp 64.7M

-50.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,455 NZ$2,586

$1,723 Rp 31.3M

-15.60%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,396 NZ$2,482

$2,732 Rp 49.5M

-48.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$852 NZ$1,514

$2,284 Rp 41.4M

-62.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,043 NZ$3,632

$164 Rp 3.0M

1147.03%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.39

13.78

-60.89%

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

Last update for Nelson: October 24, 2026

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nelson

$813 43.6%

Ubud, Bali

$672 49.8% 17.4% $141

Groceries & Markets

Nelson

$319 17.1%

Ubud, Bali

$288 21.4% 9.5% $30

Eating Out

Nelson

$236 12.7%

Ubud, Bali

$108 8% 54.5% $129

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nelson

$207 11.1%

Ubud, Bali

$104 7.7% 49.7% $103

Clothing & Footwear

Nelson

$148 7.9%

Ubud, Bali

$108 8% 27.2% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Nelson

$123 6.6%

Ubud, Bali

$58 4.3% 52.8% $65

Getting Around

Nelson

$20 * 1.1%

Ubud, Bali

$11 0.9% 41.7% $8.2

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 $1,023 in Nelson and $1,125 in Ubud, Bali. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nelson pays about 12 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $65 in Nelson vs $36 in Ubud, Bali for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $319 vs $288 per month, with Ubud, Bali cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇿 Nelson

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🕒 Local time

17:04 5:04 PM

12:04 12:04 PM

5 h behind Nelson

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

51,100

74,800

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.563 USD

1 NZD = 0.504 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, USD, EUR to NZD – New Zealand Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇿 New Zealand Dollar ($)

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1.78 NZD (1 NZD = 0.563 USD). 1 EUR = 1.98 NZD (1 NZD = 0.504 EUR).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18,138 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD). 1 EUR = 20,252 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

USD to NZD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Nelson Ubud, Bali 6,740 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Nelson
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

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

Ubud, Bali wins on cost – living expenses run 28% lower than in Nelson. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Ubud, Bali the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Nelson is about 12 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: $1,023 in Nelson versus $1,125 in Ubud, Bali. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $458 in Nelson versus $491 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 $36 versus $65 in Nelson. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Ubud, Bali is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Safety-wise, Nelson and Ubud, Bali are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Ubud, Bali wins on affordability, Nelson on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.