Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Semarang and Encarnacion

For one person, living is cheaper in Semarang: $593 a month against $830 in Encarnacion, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

29

Cost of Living Index in Semarang
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Semarang Living Index
40

Cost of Living Index in Encarnacion
Learn more

Encarnacion Living Index

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Semarang

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$593

/mo nomad

Encarnacion

🇵🇾 Paraguay

$830

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Semarang and in Encarnacion

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $593 in Semarang versus $830 in Encarnacion.

Semarang $593
Encarnacion $830

Estimated couple costs with rent: $938 in Semarang versus $1,285 in Encarnacion.

Semarang $938
Encarnacion $1,285

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,282 in Semarang versus $1,739 in Encarnacion.

Semarang $1,282
Encarnacion $1,739

Living in Semarang costs roughly 29% less than in Encarnacion, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Semarang 56% lower, Encarnacion 39% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.34 Rp 24.2K

$4.42 ₲25.7K

-69.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$10.53 Rp 189.7K

$34.62 ₲200.9K

-69.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.04 Rp 54.9K

$7.09 ₲41.1K

-57.12%

Cappuccino

$1.28 Rp 23.0K

$2.59 ₲15.0K

-50.58%

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

$0.43 Rp 7,744

$1.49 ₲8,636

-71.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.16 Rp 2,823

$0.54 ₲3,152

-70.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.64 Rp 29.5K

$0.96 ₲5,591

70.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.25 Rp 58.6K

$2.11 ₲12.2K

54.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.05 Rp 18.9K

$1.10 ₲6,363

-4.55%

White Bread (500g)

$0.92 Rp 16.5K

$0.92 ₲5,362

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.79 Rp 14.3K

$1.75 ₲10.1K

-54.86%

Eggs

$1.18 Rp 21.2K

$1.56 ₲9,063

-24.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.86 Rp 69.6K

$5.17 ₲30.0K

-25.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.33 Rp 42.0K

$3.28 ₲19.0K

-28.96%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.55 Rp 136.1K

$5.62 ₲32.6K

34.34%

Apples (1kg)

$1.96 Rp 35.4K

$2.15 ₲12.5K

-8.84%

Banana (1kg)

$1.28 Rp 23.1K

$0.85 ₲4,916

50.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.80 Rp 32.5K

$0.86 ₲4,984

109.30%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.47 Rp 26.5K

$1.68 ₲9,721

-12.50%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 Rp 23.1K

$0.89 ₲5,178

43.82%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 Rp 34.1K

$0.88 ₲5,083

114.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.93 Rp 16.8K

$0.56 ₲3,235

66.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.40 Rp 7,298

$0.52 ₲3,033

-23.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.87 Rp 33.8K

$1.46 ₲8,486

28.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$25.05 Rp 451.5K

$5.62 ₲32.6K

345.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.64 Rp 29.6K

$0.85 ₲4,935

92.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.95 Rp 35.1K

$1.54 ₲8,944

26.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.21 Rp 3,785

$0.84 ₲4,892

-75.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$13.93 Rp 251.0K

$35.00 ₲203.1K

-60.20%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.50 Rp 9,053

$1.29 ₲7,473

-61.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.29 Rp 5,287

$0.72 ₲4,176

-59.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.69 Rp 48.4K

$6.74 ₲39.1K

-60.09%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.77 Rp 13.9K

$1.19 ₲6,912

-35.29%

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

$24.5K Rp 442.3M

$13.8K ₲80.4M

77.23%

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

$32.2K Rp 580.7M

$25.8K ₲150.0M

24.62%

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

$86.1 Rp 1.6M

$43.84 ₲254.4K

96.46%

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

$2.67 Rp 48.0K

$13.41 ₲77.8K

-80.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.96 Rp 341.8K

$18.79 ₲109.1K

0.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$20.30 Rp 365.9K

$30.45 ₲176.7K

-33.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.49 Rp 80.9K

$13.14 ₲76.3K

-65.83%

Cinema Ticket

$2.25 Rp 40.6K

$6.08 ₲35.3K

-62.99%

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

$49.33 Rp 889.2K

$201 ₲1.2M

-75.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,076 Rp 37.4M

$3,299 ₲19.1M

-37.07%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$34.61 Rp 623.9K

$56.7 ₲329.2K

-38.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.31 Rp 528.3K

$28.01 ₲162.6K

4.64%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$56.4 Rp 1.0M

$69.1 ₲401.1K

-18.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$38.07 Rp 686.2K

$70.2 ₲407.5K

-45.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$226 Rp 4.1M

$508 ₲2.9M

-55.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$136 Rp 2.5M

$321 ₲1.9M

-57.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$477 Rp 8.6M

$680 ₲3.9M

-29.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$380 Rp 6.8M

$535 ₲3.1M

-29.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,223 Rp 22.0M

$1,583 ₲9.2M

-22.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$833 Rp 15.0M

$1,409 ₲8.2M

-40.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$186 Rp 3.3M

$367 ₲2.1M

-49.43%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.82

9.5

-7.16%

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

Last update for Semarang: October 24, 2026

Last update for Encarnacion: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Semarang

$184 31%

Encarnacion

$141 17% 23.1% $43

Accommodation & Living

Semarang

$136 23%

Encarnacion

$321 38.7% 136% $185

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Semarang

$108 18.2%

Encarnacion

$76 9.2% 29.4% $32

Clothing & Footwear

Semarang

$71 12%

Encarnacion

$101 12.1% 41.5% $30

Eating Out

Semarang

$52 8.8%

Encarnacion

$105 12.6% 101% $53

Sport & Entertainment

Semarang

$25 4.2%

Encarnacion

$43 5.1% 71.8% $18

Getting Around

Semarang

$17 2.8%

Encarnacion

$43 5.2% 158% $27

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $226 in Semarang and $508 in Encarnacion. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Encarnacion pays 98% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $11 in Semarang vs $35 in Encarnacion. Groceries flip the comparison at $184 vs $141, with Encarnacion cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Semarang

🇵🇾 Encarnacion

🕒 Local time

15:44 3:44 PM

05:44 5:44 AM

10 h behind Semarang

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,555,984

127,600

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Paraguayan Guarani PYG ₲

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.55 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.98 EUR

10,000 PYG = 1.72 USD

10,000 PYG = 1.55 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PYG, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18,025 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.55 USD). 1 EUR = 20,061 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.98 EUR).

Paraguayan Guarani exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 5,803 PYG (10,000 PYG = 1.72 USD). 1 EUR = 6,459 PYG (10,000 PYG = 1.55 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Semarang Encarnacion 15,920 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Semarang
Encarnacion

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

Semarang vs Encarnacion: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Semarang and Encarnacion differ by about 40% in total monthly costs ($593 vs $830 including rent). Semarang is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 49% lower in Semarang. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $226 in Semarang versus $508 in Encarnacion. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $593 per month in Semarang versus $830 in Encarnacion – a 40% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Semarang runs roughly 60% less than in Encarnacion. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you’re watching your budget.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Semarang gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.

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