Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between South Tangerang and Surabaya

For one person, living is cheaper in South Tangerang: $654 a month against $685 in Surabaya, rent and utilities included – about $370 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

31

Cost of Living Index in South Tangerang
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South Tangerang Living Index
33

Cost of Living Index in Surabaya
Learn more

Surabaya Living Index

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South Tangerang

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$654

/mo nomad

Surabaya

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$685

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in South Tangerang and in Surabaya

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $654 in South Tangerang versus $685 in Surabaya.

South Tangerang $654
Surabaya $685

Estimated couple costs with rent: $997 in South Tangerang versus $1,189 in Surabaya.

South Tangerang $997
Surabaya $1,189

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,341 in South Tangerang versus $1,693 in Surabaya.

South Tangerang $1,341
Surabaya $1,693

Living in South Tangerang costs roughly 5% less than in Surabaya, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: South Tangerang 52% lower, Surabaya 50% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.69 Rp 30.6K

$1.68 Rp 30.4K

0.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$13.56 Rp 245.8K

$11.51 Rp 208.6K

17.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.38 Rp 61.3K

$3.11 Rp 56.4K

8.68%

Cappuccino

$1.53 Rp 27.7K

$1.54 Rp 27.9K

-0.65%

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

$0.45 Rp 8,136

$0.59 Rp 10.6K

-23.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.24 Rp 4,374

$0.28 Rp 5,116

-14.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.53 Rp 45.8K

$2.23 Rp 40.4K

13.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.10 Rp 56.2K

$4.20 Rp 76.2K

-26.19%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 Rp 21.1K

$1.25 Rp 22.6K

-6.40%

White Bread (500g)

$1.02 Rp 18.5K

$1.25 Rp 22.7K

-18.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.89 Rp 16.1K

$0.81 Rp 14.8K

9.88%

Eggs

$1.72 Rp 31.1K

$1.18 Rp 21.4K

45.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.98 Rp 126.4K

$7.35 Rp 133.1K

-5.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.99 Rp 54.2K

$3.02 Rp 54.8K

-0.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.00 Rp 144.9K

$7.40 Rp 134.1K

8.11%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 Rp 49.8K

$2.04 Rp 37.0K

34.80%

Banana (1kg)

$1.19 Rp 21.6K

$1.24 Rp 22.5K

-4.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.93 Rp 34.9K

$1.86 Rp 33.8K

3.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.20 Rp 21.8K

$1.47 Rp 26.6K

-18.37%

Potato (1kg)

$1.37 Rp 24.9K

$1.34 Rp 24.3K

2.24%

Onion (1kg)

$2.03 Rp 36.8K

$1.88 Rp 34.1K

7.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.85 Rp 15.4K

$0.96 Rp 17.3K

-11.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.47 Rp 8,467

$0.39 Rp 7,100

20.51%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.62 Rp 47.5K

$1.95 Rp 35.3K

34.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$21.04 Rp 381.3K

$24.42 Rp 442.5K

-13.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 Rp 34.1K

$1.72 Rp 31.1K

9.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.10 Rp 56.1K

$2.97 Rp 53.8K

4.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.20 Rp 3,639

$0.27 Rp 4,839

-25.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.31 Rp 295.5K

$16.60 Rp 300.8K

-1.75%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.53 Rp 9,662

$0.47 Rp 8,485

12.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.32 Rp 5,775

$0.45 Rp 8,170

-28.89%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.20 Rp 39.8K

$2.56 Rp 46.4K

-14.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.91 Rp 16.5K

$0.81 Rp 14.6K

12.35%

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

$22.1K Rp 399.7M

$24.3K Rp 441.1M

-9.39%

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

$32.3K Rp 586.1M

$31.7K Rp 573.8M

2.14%

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

$52.5 Rp 951.7K

$86.6 Rp 1.6M

-39.32%

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

$6.19 Rp 112.1K

$4.57 Rp 82.7K

35.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.22 Rp 348.3K

$19.49 Rp 353.1K

-1.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.57 Rp 463.4K

$15.35 Rp 278.2K

66.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.08 Rp 164.5K

$6.53 Rp 118.2K

39.05%

Cinema Ticket

$2.72 Rp 49.4K

$2.62 Rp 47.5K

3.82%

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

$116 Rp 2.1M

$270 Rp 4.9M

-57.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,091 Rp 146.6M

$9,294 Rp 168.4M

-12.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$38.89 Rp 704.6K

$69.1 Rp 1.3M

-43.69%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.19 Rp 510.7K

$38.24 Rp 693.0K

-26.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71.0 Rp 1.3M

$78.8 Rp 1.4M

-9.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$70.6 Rp 1.3M

$74.5 Rp 1.4M

-5.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$208 Rp 3.8M

$274 Rp 5.0M

-24.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$166 Rp 3.0M

$148 Rp 2.7M

12.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$373 Rp 6.8M

$1,204 Rp 21.8M

-69.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$307 Rp 5.6M

$607 Rp 11.0M

-49.49%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,143 Rp 20.7M

$2,146 Rp 38.9M

-46.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$927 Rp 16.8M

$1,065 Rp 19.3M

-12.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$437 Rp 7.9M

$266 Rp 4.8M

64.63%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.46

7.5

26.13%

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

Last update for South Tangerang: October 25, 2026

Last update for Surabaya: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

South Tangerang

$202 30.8%

Surabaya

$205 29.8% 1.4% $2.8

Accommodation & Living

South Tangerang

$166 25.4%

Surabaya

$148 21.5% 11.3% $19

Clothing & Footwear

South Tangerang

$94 14.4%

Surabaya

$117 17.1% 24.9% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

South Tangerang

$78 11.9%

Surabaya

$111 16.1% 41.9% $33

Eating Out

South Tangerang

$64 9.7%

Surabaya

$64 9.4% 0.9% $0.6

Sport & Entertainment

South Tangerang

$31 4.8%

Surabaya

$21 3% 33.6% $10

Getting Around

South Tangerang

$19 2.9%

Surabaya

$20 3% 6% $1.2

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $208 in South Tangerang and $274 in Surabaya. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

South Tangerang pays 65% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $14 in South Tangerang vs $12 in Surabaya. Groceries flip the comparison at $202 vs $205, with South Tangerang cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇮🇩 South Tangerang

🇮🇩 Surabaya

🕒 Local time

21:01 9:01 PM

Same time as South Tangerang

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,290,322

2,765,487

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.52 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.52 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

South Tangerang Surabaya 670 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

South Tangerang
Surabaya

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

South Tangerang vs Surabaya: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

South Tangerang is about 5% cheaper overall, especially in clothing and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 65% higher in South Tangerang, 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: $208 in South Tangerang versus $274 in Surabaya. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Surabaya – a meal for two runs $12 versus $14 in South Tangerang. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Childcare runs $116 in South Tangerang versus $270 in Surabaya. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though South Tangerang 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.