Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Richards Bay and Bali

For one person, living is cheaper in Richards Bay: $1,022 a month against $1,187 in Bali, rent and utilities included – about $2,000 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Bali outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

49

Cost of Living Index in Richards Bay
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Richards Bay Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Bali
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Bali Living Index

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Richards Bay

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,022

/mo nomad

Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,187

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,022 per month in Richards Bay vs $1,187 in Bali, rent included.

Richards Bay $1,022
Bali $1,187

A couple spends around $1,601 per month in Richards Bay vs $2,004 in Bali, rent included.

Richards Bay $1,601
Bali $2,004

A family of three spends $2,180 per month in Richards Bay vs $2,822 in Bali, rent included.

Richards Bay $2,180
Bali $2,822

Richards Bay is about 14% cheaper than Bali, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Richards Bay and Bali are more affordable than the global median – Richards Bay 24% lower, Bali 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.66 R 144

$2.80 Rp 50.8K

209.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.89 R 631

$28.85 Rp 523.4K

31.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.57 R 92.8

$4.76 Rp 86.4K

17.02%

Cappuccino

$2.16 R 35.97

$2.23 Rp 40.5K

-3.14%

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

$1.06 R 17.62

$1.30 Rp 23.5K

-18.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.89 R 14.86

$0.56 Rp 10.2K

58.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.46 R 24.35

$2.23 Rp 40.5K

-34.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.84 R 30.69

$3.55 Rp 64.4K

-48.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.11 R 18.52

$1.41 Rp 25.5K

-21.28%

White Bread (500g)

$0.97 R 16.09

$2.18 Rp 39.5K

-55.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.66

$1.05 Rp 19.0K

40.95%

Eggs

$2.20 R 36.72

$1.92 Rp 34.9K

14.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.43 R 107

$14.84 Rp 269.2K

-56.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.35 R 72.5

$3.86 Rp 70.1K

12.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.75 R 112

$10.69 Rp 193.8K

-36.86%

Apples (1kg)

$1.97 R 32.88

$3.34 Rp 60.5K

-41.02%

Banana (1kg)

$1.65 R 27.53

$1.46 Rp 26.5K

13.01%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.94 R 32.38

$2.22 Rp 40.3K

-12.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.64 R 27.26

$1.80 Rp 32.7K

-8.89%

Potato (1kg)

$0.93 R 15.52

$1.72 Rp 31.2K

-45.93%

Onion (1kg)

$1.16 R 19.39

$2.23 Rp 40.4K

-47.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 R 19.11

$0.92 Rp 16.6K

25.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 R 20.46

$0.46 Rp 8,350

167.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.46 R 40.96

$2.06 Rp 37.3K

19.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.96 R 82.7

$20.38 Rp 369.6K

-75.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.53 R 25.50

$2.16 Rp 39.3K

-29.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.00 R 33.28

$2.85 Rp 51.7K

-29.82%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 Rp 4,554

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$101 R 1,675

$8.68 Rp 157.5K

1057.95%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.40 R 6.66

$0.44 Rp 7,996

-9.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.70 R 11.72

$0.43 Rp 7,805

62.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.53 R 125

$5.38 Rp 97.7K

39.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.37 R 22.90

$0.85 Rp 15.4K

61.18%

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

$21.4K R 356.9K

$23.7K Rp 430.7M

-9.79%

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

$28.7K R 478.0K

$32.9K Rp 595.9M

-12.68%

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

$132 R 2,205

$76.7 Rp 1.4M

72.45%

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

$30.04 R 501

$6.33 Rp 114.8K

374.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$38.86 R 647

$18.93 Rp 343.4K

105.28%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.59 R 593

$41.65 Rp 755.5K

-14.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.78 Rp 268.0K

Cinema Ticket

$7.39 R 123

$3.58 Rp 64.9K

106.42%

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

$106 R 1,774

$437 Rp 7.9M

-75.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,665 R 44.4K

$11.0K Rp 200.2M

-75.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.4 R 840

$43.09 Rp 781.6K

17.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$18.89 R 315

$33.51 Rp 607.8K

-43.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.0 R 1,250

$75.0 Rp 1.4M

0.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$81.3 R 1,355

$73.9 Rp 1.3M

10.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$366 R 6,104

$957 Rp 17.4M

-61.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$255 R 4,249

$570 Rp 10.3M

-55.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$686 R 11.4K

$3,028 Rp 54.9M

-77.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$548 R 9,134

$1,446 Rp 26.2M

-62.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$341 R 5,675

$2,096 Rp 38.0M

-83.75%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$502 R 8,372

$1,885 Rp 34.2M

-73.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,199 R 20.0K

$215 Rp 3.9M

456.84%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.5

13.78

-45.57%

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

Last update for Richards Bay: October 31, 2026

Last update for Bali: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Richards Bay

$255 25%

Bali

$570 48% 124% $315

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Richards Bay

$201 19.7%

Bali

$102 8.6% 49.3% $99

Groceries & Markets

Richards Bay

$179 17.5%

Bali

$263 22.2% 47.3% $85

Eating Out

Richards Bay

$131 12.8%

Bali

$89 7.5% 31.7% $41

Getting Around

Richards Bay

$104 * 10.2%

Bali

$12 1% 88.2% $92

Clothing & Footwear

Richards Bay

$102 9.9%

Bali

$101 8.6% 0.1% $0.1

Sport & Entertainment

Richards Bay

$50 4.9%

Bali

$49 4.1% 3.1% $1.5

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $366 in Richards Bay versus $957 in Bali. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Richards Bay are about 5.6 times higher, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $38 in Richards Bay versus $29 in Bali. Groceries tell a different story – $179 in Richards Bay vs $263 in Bali – so Richards Bay wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Richards Bay

🇮🇩 Bali

🕒 Local time

19:31 7:31 PM

01:31 1:31 AM

6 h ahead of Richards Bay

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

57,387

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6 USD

100 ZAR = 5.36 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 3, 2026: 1 USD = 16.66 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6 USD). 1 EUR = 18.66 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.36 EUR).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18,140 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD). 1 EUR = 20,309 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.92 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Richards Bay Bali 8,900 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Richards Bay
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

Richards Bay vs Bali: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bali costs about 16% more than Richards Bay, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,533 per month in Richards Bay and $1,780 in Bali. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Richards Bay, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $366 there versus $957 in Bali.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $38 in Richards Bay and $29 in Bali. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,022 in Richards Bay and $1,187 in Bali. That makes Richards Bay about 14% cheaper.

$1,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,022 in Richards Bay and $1,187 in Bali, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Richards Bay – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.