Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Surabaya and Bansko

For one person, living is cheaper in Surabaya: $688 a month against $970 in Bansko, rent and utilities included – about $3,400 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Bansko outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

33

Cost of Living Index in Surabaya
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Surabaya Living Index
47

Cost of Living Index in Bansko
Learn more

Bansko Living Index

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Surabaya

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$688

/mo nomad

Bansko

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$970

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Surabaya and in Bansko

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

A single person spends $688 per month in Surabaya vs $970 in Bansko, rent included.

Surabaya $688
Bansko $970

A couple spends around $1,191 per month in Surabaya vs $1,464 in Bansko, rent included.

Surabaya $1,191
Bansko $1,464

A family of three spends $1,695 per month in Surabaya vs $1,957 in Bansko, rent included.

Surabaya $1,695
Bansko $1,957

Surabaya is about 29% cheaper than Bansko, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Surabaya and Bansko are more affordable than the global median – Surabaya 49% lower, Bansko 28% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.69 Rp 30.2K

$8.66 BGN 15.15

-80.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$11.40 Rp 203.9K

$46.63 BGN 81.6

-75.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.05 Rp 54.6K

$9.01 BGN 15.77

-66.15%

Cappuccino

$1.57 Rp 28.0K

$2.24 BGN 3.92

-29.91%

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

$0.61 Rp 10.8K

$1.50 BGN 2.63

-59.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.28 Rp 5,026

$0.86 BGN 1.51

-67.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.26 Rp 40.5K

$1.76 BGN 3.07

28.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.09 Rp 73.1K

$2.00 BGN 3.51

104.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.22 Rp 21.8K

$1.79 BGN 3.14

-31.84%

White Bread (500g)

$1.27 Rp 22.8K

$0.81 BGN 1.42

56.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.84 Rp 15.0K

$1.52 BGN 2.66

-44.74%

Eggs

$1.20 Rp 21.5K

$2.30 BGN 4.02

-47.83%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.66 Rp 136.9K

$9.60 BGN 16.81

-20.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.08 Rp 55.0K

$6.32 BGN 11.06

-51.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.85 Rp 140.3K

$8.64 BGN 15.12

-9.14%

Apples (1kg)

$2.09 Rp 37.4K

$1.28 BGN 2.24

63.28%

Banana (1kg)

$1.30 Rp 23.2K

$1.68 BGN 2.95

-22.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.82 Rp 32.6K

$1.70 BGN 2.98

7.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.56 Rp 27.8K

$1.89 BGN 3.30

-17.46%

Potato (1kg)

$1.30 Rp 23.3K

$0.93 BGN 1.63

39.78%

Onion (1kg)

$1.91 Rp 34.2K

$0.76 BGN 1.32

151.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.96 Rp 17.2K

$0.54 BGN 0.95

77.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.43 Rp 7,679

$0.58 BGN 1.02

-25.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.94 Rp 34.6K

$3.44 BGN 6.02

-43.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$24.67 Rp 441.1K

$5.14 BGN 9.00

379.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.73 Rp 30.9K

$1.11 BGN 1.94

55.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.00 Rp 53.5K

$1.70 BGN 2.97

76.47%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.32 Rp 5,669

$0.88 BGN 1.55

-63.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.76 BGN 46.83

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.48 Rp 8,519

$1.29 BGN 2.26

-62.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 Rp 7,679

$0.65 BGN 1.14

-33.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.61 Rp 46.7K

$10.18 BGN 17.81

-74.36%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.83 Rp 14.8K

$1.50 BGN 2.63

-44.67%

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

$25.0K Rp 446.0M

$28.8K BGN 50.4K

-13.39%

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

$32.8K Rp 585.5M

$21.5K BGN 37.5K

52.70%

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

$86.2 Rp 1.5M

$91.4 BGN 160

-5.77%

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

$4.58 Rp 81.9K

$14.68 BGN 25.68

-68.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.24 Rp 343.9K

$12.07 BGN 21.12

59.40%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$17.96 Rp 321.0K

$32.28 BGN 56.5

-44.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.82 Rp 121.9K

$8.60 BGN 15.05

-20.70%

Cinema Ticket

$2.72 Rp 48.7K

$5.63 BGN 9.86

-51.69%

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

$280 Rp 5.0M

$228 BGN 400

22.57%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,557 Rp 170.8M

$2,311 BGN 4,045

313.51%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.0 Rp 1.3M

$30.48 BGN 53.3

129.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.31 Rp 702.6K

$19.01 BGN 33.26

106.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$81.4 Rp 1.5M

$45.53 BGN 79.7

78.87%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.4 Rp 1.3M

$48.67 BGN 85.2

50.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$279 Rp 5.0M

$521 BGN 913

-46.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$147 Rp 2.6M

$367 BGN 643

-60.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,247 Rp 22.3M

$634 BGN 1,110

96.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$620 Rp 11.1M

$558 BGN 976

11.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,155 Rp 38.5M

$1,204 BGN 2,106

79.09%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,047 Rp 18.7M

$971 BGN 1,699

7.82%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$273 Rp 4.9M

$1,670 BGN 2,923

-83.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.5

2.99

150.84%

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

Last update for Surabaya: October 5, 2026

Last update for Bansko: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Surabaya

$209 30.9%

Bansko

$193 20% 7.6% $16

Accommodation & Living

Surabaya

$147 21.7%

Bansko

$367 38% 150% $221

Clothing & Footwear

Surabaya

$119 17.6%

Bansko

$65 6.7% 45.6% $54

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Surabaya

$110 16.3%

Bansko

$118 12.2% 7.5% $8.2

Eating Out

Surabaya

$65 9.5%

Bansko

$145 15% 125% $81

Sport & Entertainment

Surabaya

$23 3.5%

Bansko

$44 4.5% 86% $20

Getting Around

Surabaya

$3.9 * 0.6%

Bansko

$35 3.6% 796% $31

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $279 in Surabaya versus $521 in Bansko. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 512% higher in Bansko, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $11.00 in Surabaya versus $47.00 in Bansko. Groceries tell a different story – $209 in Surabaya vs $193 in Bansko – so Bansko wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Surabaya

🇧🇬 Bansko

🕒 Local time

08:54 8:54 AM

04:54 4:54 AM

4 h behind Surabaya

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,765,487

8,000

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.99 EUR

1 BGN = 0.571 USD

1 BGN = 0.509 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BGN, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 17,875 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD). 1 EUR = 20,048 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.99 EUR).

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.75 BGN (1 BGN = 0.571 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.509 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Surabaya Bansko 10,480 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Surabaya
Bansko

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

Surabaya vs Bansko: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $688 in Surabaya, $970 in Bansko – roughly 41% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,032 per month in Surabaya and $1,455 in Bansko. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Surabaya, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $688 in Surabaya and $970 in Bansko. That's a gap of about 41%.

Kindergarten costs $280 per month in Surabaya and $228 in Bansko. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Surabaya, where all-in costs run around $688, than in Bansko at $970. In Surabaya it covers expenses comfortably, while in Bansko it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Bansko has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $688 in Surabaya to $970 in Bansko. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Surabaya. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Bansko makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.