Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nuwara Eliya and Bali

For one person, living is cheaper in Nuwara Eliya: $510 a month against $1,187 in Bali, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

24

Cost of Living Index in Nuwara Eliya
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Nuwara Eliya Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Bali
Learn more

Bali Living Index

Jump to prices

Nuwara Eliya

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$510

/mo nomad

Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,187

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nuwara Eliya and in Bali

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

A single person spends $510 per month in Nuwara Eliya vs $1,187 in Bali, rent included.

Nuwara Eliya $510
Bali $1,187

A couple spends around $827 per month in Nuwara Eliya vs $2,004 in Bali, rent included.

Nuwara Eliya $827
Bali $2,004

A family of three spends $1,145 per month in Nuwara Eliya vs $2,822 in Bali, rent included.

Nuwara Eliya $1,145
Bali $2,822

Nuwara Eliya is about 57% cheaper than Bali, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both Nuwara Eliya and Bali are more affordable than the global median – Nuwara Eliya 62% lower, Bali 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.85 LKR 1,281

$2.80 Rp 50.5K

37.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.56 LKR 8,166

$28.85 Rp 519.4K

-14.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.65 LKR 2,544

$4.76 Rp 85.8K

60.71%

Cappuccino

$2.43 LKR 808

$2.23 Rp 40.2K

8.97%

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

$0.37 LKR 122

$1.30 Rp 23.3K

-71.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.25 LKR 82.5

$0.56 Rp 10.2K

-55.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.19 LKR 728

$2.23 Rp 40.2K

-1.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.03 LKR 1,008

$3.55 Rp 63.9K

-14.65%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 LKR 520

$1.41 Rp 25.3K

10.64%

White Bread (500g)

$0.53 LKR 175

$2.18 Rp 39.3K

-75.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.74 LKR 247

$1.05 Rp 18.8K

-29.52%

Eggs

$1.70 LKR 564

$1.92 Rp 34.6K

-11.46%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.44 LKR 5,134

$14.84 Rp 267.2K

4.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.10 LKR 1,695

$3.86 Rp 69.5K

32.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.42 LKR 2,466

$10.69 Rp 192.4K

-30.59%

Apples (1kg)

$6.74 LKR 2,242

$3.34 Rp 60.1K

101.80%

Banana (1kg)

$0.84 LKR 279

$1.46 Rp 26.3K

-42.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.17 LKR 1,388

$2.22 Rp 40.0K

87.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.27 LKR 422

$1.80 Rp 32.5K

-29.44%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 LKR 360

$1.72 Rp 30.9K

-37.21%

Onion (1kg)

$0.83 LKR 276

$2.23 Rp 40.1K

-62.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.21 LKR 403

$0.92 Rp 16.5K

31.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.45 LKR 150

$0.46 Rp 8,288

-2.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.43 LKR 3,470

$2.06 Rp 37.0K

406.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.78 LKR 4,581

$20.38 Rp 366.9K

-32.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.93 LKR 643

$2.16 Rp 39.0K

-10.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.97 LKR 989

$2.85 Rp 51.3K

4.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 Rp 4,519

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.68 Rp 156.3K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.37 LKR 124

$0.44 Rp 7,936

-15.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.31 LKR 103

$0.43 Rp 7,747

-27.91%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$0.86 LKR 286

$5.38 Rp 96.9K

-84.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 LKR 441

$0.85 Rp 15.3K

56.47%

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

$43.7K LKR 14.5M

$23.7K Rp 427.4M

84.13%

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

$45.6K LKR 15.2M

$32.9K Rp 591.4M

38.91%

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

$56.4 LKR 18.8K

$76.7 Rp 1.4M

-26.51%

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

$4.13 LKR 1,375

$6.33 Rp 113.9K

-34.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.61 LKR 6,852

$18.93 Rp 340.8K

8.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.65 Rp 749.9K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.78 Rp 266.0K

Cinema Ticket

$4.50 LKR 1,496

$3.58 Rp 64.4K

25.70%

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

$39.94 LKR 13.3K

$437 Rp 7.9M

-90.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.4K LKR 5.8M

$11.0K Rp 198.7M

57.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$18.00 LKR 5,986

$43.09 Rp 775.7K

-58.23%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$17.55 LKR 5,837

$33.51 Rp 603.2K

-47.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.7 LKR 26.5K

$75.0 Rp 1.4M

6.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$41.09 LKR 13.7K

$73.9 Rp 1.3M

-44.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$957 Rp 17.2M

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$570 Rp 10.3M

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,028 Rp 54.5M

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,446 Rp 26.0M

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,096 Rp 37.7M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,885 Rp 33.9M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$215 Rp 3.9M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.5

13.78

-9.29%

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

Last update for Nuwara Eliya: November 2, 2026

Last update for Bali: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Nuwara Eliya

$245 48.1%

Bali

$263 22.2% 7.4% $18

Eating Out

Nuwara Eliya

$102 20.1%

Bali

$89 7.5% 12.9% $13

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nuwara Eliya

$81 15.9%

Bali

$102 8.6% 25.7% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Nuwara Eliya

$70 13.8%

Bali

$101 8.6% 44.3% $31

Sport & Entertainment

Nuwara Eliya

$9 * 1.8%

Bali

$49 4.1% 442% $40

Getting Around

Nuwara Eliya

$1.9 * 0.4%

Bali

$12 1% 540% $10

Accommodation & Living

Nuwara Eliya

- * 0%

Bali

$570 48%

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $25 in Nuwara Eliya versus $29 in Bali. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $245 vs $263 – making Nuwara Eliya the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇱🇰 Nuwara Eliya

🇮🇩 Bali

🕒 Local time

08:14 8:14 AM

10:44 10:44 AM

2 h 30 min ahead of Nuwara Eliya

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

27,500

💱 Currency

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.55 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.97 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, USD, EUR to LKR – Sri Lankan Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇱🇰 Sri Lankan Rupee (Rs)

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of November 7, 2026: 1 USD = 333 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD). 1 EUR = 372 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of November 7, 2026: 1 USD = 18,003 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.55 USD). 1 EUR = 20,120 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.97 EUR).

USD to LKR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Nuwara Eliya Bali 4,190 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Nuwara Eliya
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

Nuwara Eliya vs Bali: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bali costs about 133% more than Nuwara Eliya, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from leisure. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $764 per month in Nuwara Eliya and $1,780 in Bali. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $510 in Nuwara Eliya and $1,187 in Bali. That makes Nuwara Eliya about 57% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $40 per month in Nuwara Eliya and $437 in Bali. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Nuwara Eliya, where all-in costs run around $510, than in Bali at $1,187. In Nuwara Eliya it covers expenses comfortably, while in Bali it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Bali has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $510 in Nuwara Eliya to $1,187 in Bali. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.