Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santa Barbara and Ubud, Bali

For one person, living is cheaper in Ubud, Bali: $1,331 a month against $1,725 in Santa Barbara, rent and utilities included – about $4,700 less a year. The total is higher in Santa Barbara despite lower rent and utilities.

83

Cost of Living Index in Santa Barbara
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Santa Barbara Living Index
64

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

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Santa Barbara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,725

/mo nomad

Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,331

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,725 in Santa Barbara versus $1,331 in Ubud, Bali.

Santa Barbara $1,725
Ubud, Bali $1,331

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,738 in Santa Barbara versus $2,255 in Ubud, Bali.

Santa Barbara $2,738
Ubud, Bali $2,255

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,750 in Santa Barbara versus $3,180 in Ubud, Bali.

Santa Barbara $3,750
Ubud, Bali $3,180

Living in Santa Barbara is roughly 30% more expensive than in Ubud, Bali, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Santa Barbara is 28% above, Ubud, Bali is 2% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.36 ₡5,558

$3.38 Rp 61.2K

265.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.2 ₡28.0K

$34.65 Rp 628.6K

79.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.72 ₡5,270

$5.57 Rp 101.1K

110.41%

Cappuccino

$4.39 ₡1,974

$2.62 Rp 47.5K

67.56%

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

$2.76 ₡1,241

$1.54 Rp 27.9K

79.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.92 ₡862

$0.64 Rp 11.6K

200.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 ₡1,523

$2.67 Rp 48.4K

26.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 ₡1,959

$4.26 Rp 77.3K

2.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.43 ₡1,093

$1.46 Rp 26.5K

66.44%

White Bread (500g)

$3.14 ₡1,411

$2.29 Rp 41.6K

37.12%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.48 ₡1,116

$1.11 Rp 20.1K

123.42%

Eggs

$3.46 ₡1,557

$2.10 Rp 38.1K

64.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.74 ₡4,828

$15.94 Rp 289.2K

-32.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.34 ₡4,651

$3.88 Rp 70.4K

166.49%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.93 ₡6,265

$11.40 Rp 206.8K

22.19%

Apples (1kg)

$5.25 ₡2,362

$3.55 Rp 64.4K

47.89%

Banana (1kg)

$1.59 ₡714

$1.54 Rp 27.9K

3.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.64 ₡2,086

$2.23 Rp 40.5K

108.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.89 ₡1,751

$1.97 Rp 35.8K

97.46%

Potato (1kg)

$3.84 ₡1,728

$1.86 Rp 33.7K

106.45%

Onion (1kg)

$3.72 ₡1,671

$2.42 Rp 43.9K

53.72%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.11 ₡499

$1.02 Rp 18.6K

8.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.19 ₡1,436

$0.52 Rp 9,475

513.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.00 ₡2,696

$2.20 Rp 39.9K

172.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.13 ₡9,055

$21.79 Rp 395.2K

-7.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.78 ₡1,249

$2.33 Rp 42.2K

19.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.51 ₡1,580

$2.97 Rp 53.9K

18.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.35 ₡608

$0.25 Rp 4,542

440.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.17 Rp 148.3K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.41 ₡1,085

$0.44 Rp 7,941

447.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.63 ₡734

$0.47 Rp 8,489

246.81%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.72 ₡3,922

$5.60 Rp 101.6K

55.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 ₡680

$0.83 Rp 15.0K

81.93%

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

$33.4K ₡15.0M

$24.4K Rp 443.5M

36.81%

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

$41.6K ₡18.7M

$31.7K Rp 575.0M

31.37%

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

$96.6 ₡43.5K

$77.5 Rp 1.4M

24.72%

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

$36.11 ₡16.2K

$6.14 Rp 111.5K

488.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$60.0 ₡27.0K

$18.92 Rp 343.1K

217.28%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.0 ₡30.6K

$51.0 Rp 925.0K

33.28%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.25 Rp 331.0K

Cinema Ticket

$7.62 ₡3,426

$4.38 Rp 79.5K

73.97%

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

$967 ₡434.7K

$492 Rp 8.9M

96.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.2K ₡7.7M

$12.2K Rp 221.7M

40.49%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.4 ₡32.1K

$45.16 Rp 819.2K

58.04%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.8 ₡25.5K

$34.89 Rp 632.9K

62.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 ₡57.3K

$78.3 Rp 1.4M

62.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 ₡58.8K

$77.9 Rp 1.4M

67.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$815 ₡366.6K

$1,078 Rp 19.5M

-24.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$627 ₡281.8K

$665 Rp 12.1M

-5.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,878 ₡844.5K

$3,510 Rp 63.7M

-46.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,256 ₡564.9K

$1,671 Rp 30.3M

-24.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,340 Rp 42.4M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,236 Rp 40.6M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$166 Rp 3.0M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

13.78

-37.45%

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

Last update for Santa Barbara: November 2, 2026

Last update for Ubud, Bali: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Santa Barbara

$627 36.3%

Ubud, Bali

$665 50% 6.1% $38

Groceries & Markets

Santa Barbara

$402 23.3%

Ubud, Bali

$279 21% 30.5% $122

Eating Out

Santa Barbara

$231 13.4%

Ubud, Bali

$106 8% 54.2% $125

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santa Barbara

$193 11.2%

Ubud, Bali

$103 7.7% 46.8% $90

Clothing & Footwear

Santa Barbara

$174 10.1%

Ubud, Bali

$106 8% 38.8% $67

Sport & Entertainment

Santa Barbara

$83 4.8%

Ubud, Bali

$60 4.5% 28.2% $23

Getting Around

Santa Barbara

$16 * 0.9%

Ubud, Bali

$12 0.9% 25.2% $4

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 $815 in Santa Barbara and $1,078 in Ubud, Bali. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $62 in Santa Barbara vs $35 in Ubud, Bali for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $402 vs $279 per month, with Ubud, Bali cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Santa Barbara

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🕒 Local time

20:21 8:21 PM

10:21 10:21 AM

14 h ahead of Santa Barbara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,000

74,800

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.93 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, USD, EUR to CRC – Costa Rican Colón Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 450 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 503 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18,140 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD). 1 EUR = 20,286 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.93 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Santa Barbara Ubud, Bali 17,880 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

Santa Barbara
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

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

Ubud, Bali is about 23% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $2,588 in Santa Barbara and $1,996 in Ubud, Bali to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $815 in Santa Barbara versus $1,078 in Ubud, Bali. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 44% higher in Santa Barbara. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,725 per month in Santa Barbara versus $1,331 in Ubud, Bali – Ubud, Bali is about 23% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

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.

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, Santa Barbara and Ubud, Bali are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.