Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Palembang and Denpasar, Bali

For one person, living is cheaper in Palembang: $615 a month against $901 in Denpasar, Bali, rent and utilities included – about $3,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

30

Cost of Living Index in Palembang
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Palembang Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Denpasar, Bali
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Denpasar, Bali Living Index

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Palembang

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$615

/mo nomad

Denpasar, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$901

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Palembang and in Denpasar, Bali

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $615 in Palembang versus $901 in Denpasar, Bali.

Palembang $615
Denpasar, Bali $901

Estimated couple costs with rent: $980 in Palembang versus $1,508 in Denpasar, Bali.

Palembang $980
Denpasar, Bali $1,508

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,344 in Palembang versus $2,114 in Denpasar, Bali.

Palembang $1,344
Denpasar, Bali $2,114

Living in Palembang costs roughly 32% less than in Denpasar, Bali, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Palembang 54% lower, Denpasar, Bali 33% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.14 Rp 20.4K

$2.18 Rp 39.2K

-47.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$16.00 Rp 287.9K

$23.40 Rp 421.2K

-31.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.82 Rp 50.8K

$3.76 Rp 67.7K

-25.00%

Cappuccino

$1.29 Rp 23.1K

$1.84 Rp 33.1K

-29.89%

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

$0.84 Rp 15.1K

$1.08 Rp 19.4K

-22.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.25 Rp 4,503

$0.58 Rp 10.5K

-56.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.70 Rp 30.6K

$1.73 Rp 31.1K

-1.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.27 Rp 58.9K

$2.86 Rp 51.5K

14.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 Rp 20.1K

$1.22 Rp 22.0K

-8.20%

White Bread (500g)

$1.15 Rp 20.6K

$1.87 Rp 33.6K

-38.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.82 Rp 14.7K

$0.94 Rp 16.9K

-12.77%

Eggs

$1.22 Rp 22.0K

$1.76 Rp 31.7K

-30.68%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.24 Rp 130.4K

$13.93 Rp 250.7K

-48.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.99 Rp 53.9K

$3.21 Rp 57.8K

-6.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.44 Rp 133.9K

$9.96 Rp 179.2K

-25.30%

Apples (1kg)

$2.24 Rp 40.3K

$2.84 Rp 51.1K

-21.13%

Banana (1kg)

$1.11 Rp 20.0K

$1.31 Rp 23.5K

-15.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.47 Rp 26.5K

$1.82 Rp 32.8K

-19.23%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.37 Rp 24.6K

$1.61 Rp 29.1K

-14.91%

Potato (1kg)

$1.17 Rp 21.1K

$1.48 Rp 26.6K

-20.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.95 Rp 35.0K

$1.94 Rp 34.9K

0.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.65 Rp 11.7K

$0.77 Rp 13.9K

-15.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.44 Rp 7,856

$0.44 Rp 7,874

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.21 Rp 39.8K

$1.84 Rp 33.2K

20.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$21.49 Rp 386.7K

$18.51 Rp 333.2K

16.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 Rp 33.9K

$1.92 Rp 34.6K

-2.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.94 Rp 52.9K

$2.38 Rp 42.8K

23.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.44 Rp 7,878

$0.22 Rp 3,947

100.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.14 Rp 128.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.53 Rp 9,526

$0.39 Rp 7,042

35.90%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 Rp 7,284

$0.42 Rp 7,509

-4.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.84 Rp 51.2K

$3.13 Rp 56.4K

-9.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.82 Rp 14.8K

$0.74 Rp 13.4K

10.81%

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

$23.2K Rp 417.8M

$22.1K Rp 397.2M

5.17%

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

$31.6K Rp 568.7M

$28.1K Rp 506.3M

12.33%

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

$71.6 Rp 1.3M

$74.5 Rp 1.3M

-3.93%

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

$4.39 Rp 79.0K

$5.86 Rp 105.5K

-25.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.20 Rp 345.5K

$16.81 Rp 302.6K

14.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$19.72 Rp 355.0K

$39.47 Rp 710.5K

-50.04%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.99 Rp 143.8K

$13.07 Rp 235.3K

-38.87%

Cinema Ticket

$2.85 Rp 51.4K

$3.16 Rp 56.9K

-9.81%

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

$90.1 Rp 1.6M

$373 Rp 6.7M

-75.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,423 Rp 151.6M

$4,499 Rp 81.0M

87.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.78 Rp 770.0K

$38.34 Rp 690.1K

11.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.77 Rp 517.8K

$30.00 Rp 540.1K

-4.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.6 Rp 1.3M

$68.9 Rp 1.2M

8.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$69.3 Rp 1.2M

$67.1 Rp 1.2M

3.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$230 Rp 4.1M

$589 Rp 10.6M

-60.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$147 Rp 2.6M

$349 Rp 6.3M

-57.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$532 Rp 9.6M

$1,874 Rp 33.7M

-71.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$361 Rp 6.5M

$901 Rp 16.2M

-59.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,254 Rp 22.6M

$1,429 Rp 25.7M

-12.30%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$886 Rp 15.9M

$1,194 Rp 21.5M

-25.76%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$309 Rp 5.6M

$279 Rp 5.0M

10.90%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.46

13.78

-31.35%

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

Last update for Palembang: October 11, 2026

Last update for Denpasar, Bali: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Palembang

$194 31.5%

Denpasar, Bali

$235 26.1% 21.1% $41

Accommodation & Living

Palembang

$147 23.9%

Denpasar, Bali

$349 38.8% 137% $202

Clothing & Footwear

Palembang

$97 15.8%

Denpasar, Bali

$92 10.2% 5.1% $5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Palembang

$95 15.5%

Denpasar, Bali

$97 10.8% 2.1% $2

Eating Out

Palembang

$52 8.5%

Denpasar, Bali

$72 8% 37% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Palembang

$25 4.1%

Denpasar, Bali

$46 5.1% 80.1% $20

Getting Around

Palembang

$4.3 * 0.7%

Denpasar, Bali

$10 1.2% 144% $6.2

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 $230 in Palembang and $589 in Denpasar, Bali. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Palembang pays 11% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $16.00 in Palembang vs $23.00 in Denpasar, Bali for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $194 vs $235 per month, with Palembang cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Palembang

🇮🇩 Denpasar, Bali

🕒 Local time

09:19 9:19 AM

10:19 10:19 AM

1 h ahead of Palembang

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,708,413

788,445

💱 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

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Between locations

Palembang Denpasar, Bali 1,320 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Palembang
Denpasar, 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

Palembang vs Denpasar, Bali: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Palembang and Denpasar, Bali differ by about 46% in total monthly costs ($615 vs $901 including rent). Palembang is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 11% higher in Palembang, 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: $230 in Palembang versus $589 in Denpasar, Bali. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 21% higher in Denpasar, Bali. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $615 per month in Palembang versus $901 in Denpasar, Bali – a 46% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $615 in Palembang versus $901 in Denpasar, Bali, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Palembang but tight or insufficient in Denpasar, Bali. The gap between the two cities makes Palembang the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Safety-wise, Palembang and Denpasar, Bali are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Palembang gentler on the wallet – expenses run 46% less than in Denpasar, Bali. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.