Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Surabaya and Bishkek

For one person, living is cheaper in Surabaya: $677 a month against $980 in Bishkek, rent and utilities included – about $3,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

33

Cost of Living Index in Surabaya
Learn more

Surabaya Living Index
48

Cost of Living Index in Bishkek
Learn more

Bishkek Living Index

Jump to prices

Surabaya

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$677

/mo nomad

Bishkek

🇰🇬 Kyrgyzstan

$980

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Surabaya and in Bishkek

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 Bishkek actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $677 in Surabaya versus $980 in Bishkek.

Surabaya $677
Bishkek $980

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,179 in Surabaya versus $1,503 in Bishkek.

Surabaya $1,179
Bishkek $1,503

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,680 in Surabaya versus $2,026 in Bishkek.

Surabaya $1,680
Bishkek $2,026

Living in Surabaya costs roughly 31% less than in Bishkek, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Surabaya 50% lower, Bishkek 27% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.69 Rp 30.4K

$7.02 KGS 614

-75.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$11.35 Rp 204.3K

$28.73 KGS 2,513

-60.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.15 Rp 56.6K

$5.73 KGS 501

-45.03%

Cappuccino

$1.55 Rp 28.0K

$2.40 KGS 210

-35.42%

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

$0.56 Rp 10.2K

$0.75 KGS 66.0

-25.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.28 Rp 5,078

$0.40 KGS 35.19

-30.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.17 Rp 39.0K

$1.41 KGS 123

53.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.12 Rp 74.2K

$1.89 KGS 165

117.99%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.26 Rp 22.8K

$1.03 KGS 90.1

22.33%

White Bread (500g)

$1.28 Rp 23.1K

$0.38 KGS 33.63

236.84%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.88 Rp 15.9K

$1.64 KGS 144

-46.34%

Eggs

$1.20 Rp 21.7K

$1.77 KGS 155

-32.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.53 Rp 135.5K

$7.70 KGS 674

-2.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.05 Rp 54.8K

$4.51 KGS 395

-32.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.42 Rp 133.6K

$9.00 KGS 787

-17.56%

Apples (1kg)

$2.08 Rp 37.4K

$1.36 KGS 119

52.94%

Banana (1kg)

$1.24 Rp 22.4K

$1.88 KGS 165

-34.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.88 Rp 33.8K

$2.01 KGS 176

-6.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.56 Rp 28.1K

$1.53 KGS 134

1.96%

Potato (1kg)

$1.37 Rp 24.6K

$0.58 KGS 50.8

136.21%

Onion (1kg)

$1.98 Rp 35.7K

$0.48 KGS 41.73

312.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 Rp 16.0K

$0.70 KGS 61.2

27.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.40 Rp 7,119

$0.61 KGS 53.8

-34.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.91 Rp 34.4K

$2.02 KGS 177

-5.45%

Wine (Bottle)

$24.93 Rp 448.7K

$9.18 KGS 803

171.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.68 Rp 30.3K

$1.42 KGS 124

18.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.96 Rp 53.3K

$2.01 KGS 176

47.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.32 Rp 5,704

$0.22 KGS 19.13

45.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.78 KGS 1,031

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.47 Rp 8,459

$0.87 KGS 76.4

-45.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.44 Rp 7,837

$0.47 KGS 41.43

-6.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.71 Rp 48.8K

$5.65 KGS 494

-52.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.87 Rp 15.7K

$1.02 KGS 89.4

-14.71%

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

$24.4K Rp 439.3M

$30.0K KGS 2.6M

-18.53%

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

$32.0K Rp 575.4M

$33.6K KGS 2.9M

-4.77%

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

$86.9 Rp 1.6M

$50.2 KGS 4,393

73.13%

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

$4.50 Rp 81.0K

$5.62 KGS 491

-19.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.07 Rp 343.3K

$11.77 KGS 1,029

62.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$17.84 Rp 321.2K

$55.0 KGS 4,813

-67.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.64 Rp 119.5K

$14.87 KGS 1,301

-55.35%

Cinema Ticket

$2.67 Rp 48.1K

$5.68 KGS 497

-52.99%

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

$281 Rp 5.1M

$222 KGS 19.4K

26.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,385 Rp 168.9M

$7,839 KGS 685.7K

19.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.6 Rp 1.3M

$55.4 KGS 4,843

29.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.15 Rp 704.7K

$42.81 KGS 3,745

-8.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.4 Rp 1.5M

$89.6 KGS 7,841

-8.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$75.0 Rp 1.4M

$91.8 KGS 8,030

-18.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$281 Rp 5.1M

$612 KGS 53.5K

-54.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$148 Rp 2.7M

$410 KGS 35.8K

-64.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,218 Rp 21.9M

$1,041 KGS 91.1K

17.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$608 Rp 10.9M

$708 KGS 62.0K

-14.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,195 Rp 39.5M

$1,803 KGS 157.7K

21.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,063 Rp 19.1M

$1,224 KGS 107.0K

-13.10%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$272 Rp 4.9M

$514 KGS 45.0K

-47.03%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.5

20.1

-62.69%

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

Last update for Surabaya: October 13, 2026

Last update for Bishkek: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Surabaya

$208 30.7%

Bishkek

$177 18% 15% $31

Accommodation & Living

Surabaya

$148 21.8%

Bishkek

$410 41.8% 178% $262

Clothing & Footwear

Surabaya

$121 17.8%

Bishkek

$126 12.8% 4.3% $5.1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Surabaya

$111 16.3%

Bishkek

$68 6.9% 38.8% $43

Eating Out

Surabaya

$64 9.5%

Bishkek

$118 12% 83.5% $54

Sport & Entertainment

Surabaya

$23 3.4%

Bishkek

$66 6.8% 186% $43

Getting Around

Surabaya

$3.9 * 0.6%

Bishkek

$16 1.6% 307% $12

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 $281 in Surabaya and $612 in Bishkek. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bishkek pays 89% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $11.00 in Surabaya vs $29.00 in Bishkek. Groceries flip the comparison at $208 vs $177, with Bishkek cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Surabaya

🇰🇬 Bishkek

🕒 Local time

16:20 4:20 PM

15:20 3:20 PM

1 h behind Surabaya

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,765,487

1,012,500 Capital

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Kyrgyzstani Som KGS сом

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

100 KGS = 1.14 USD

100 KGS = 1.02 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KGS, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18,000 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD). 1 EUR = 20,236 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Kyrgyzstani Som exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 87.48 KGS (100 KGS = 1.14 USD). 1 EUR = 98.35 KGS (100 KGS = 1.02 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Surabaya Bishkek 6,770 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Surabaya
Bishkek

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 Bishkek: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Surabaya is cheaper overall, especially in clothing, eating out, and leisure. The 45% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 89% lower in Bishkek. 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: $281 in Surabaya versus $612 in Bishkek. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $281 in Surabaya versus $222 in Bishkek. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Surabaya – a meal for two runs $11.00 versus $29.00 in Bishkek. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $677 in Surabaya versus $980 in Bishkek, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Surabaya but tight or insufficient in Bishkek. The gap between the two cities makes Surabaya the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Surabaya is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Bishkek, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Surabaya and Bishkek are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Surabaya gentler on the wallet – expenses run 45% less than in Bishkek. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.