Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Surabaya and Hong Kong

For one person, living is cheaper in Surabaya: $688 a month against $2,984 in Hong Kong, rent and utilities included – about $27,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

33

Cost of Living Index in Surabaya
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Surabaya Living Index
144

Cost of Living Index in Hong Kong
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Hong Kong Living Index

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Surabaya

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$688

/mo nomad

Hong Kong

🇭🇰 Hong Kong (China)

$2,984

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Surabaya and in Hong Kong

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

A single person spends $688 per month in Surabaya vs $2,984 in Hong Kong, rent included.

Surabaya $688
Hong Kong $2,984

A couple spends around $1,191 per month in Surabaya vs $4,558 in Hong Kong, rent included.

Surabaya $1,191
Hong Kong $4,558

A family of three spends $1,695 per month in Surabaya vs $6,132 in Hong Kong, rent included.

Surabaya $1,695
Hong Kong $6,132

Surabaya is about 77% cheaper than Hong Kong, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Surabaya sits 49% below the global median, while Hong Kong is 123% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.69 Rp 30.2K

$8.46 HK$66.4

-80.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$11.40 Rp 203.9K

$63.2 HK$496

-81.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.05 Rp 54.6K

$6.20 HK$48.66

-50.81%

Cappuccino

$1.57 Rp 28.0K

$4.90 HK$38.41

-67.96%

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

$0.61 Rp 10.8K

$1.27 HK$10.01

-51.97%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.28 Rp 5,026

$1.06 HK$8.31

-73.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.26 Rp 40.5K

$7.68 HK$60.3

-70.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.09 Rp 73.1K

$6.28 HK$49.24

-34.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.22 Rp 21.8K

$2.86 HK$22.45

-57.34%

White Bread (500g)

$1.27 Rp 22.8K

$2.43 HK$19.10

-47.74%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.84 Rp 15.0K

$2.18 HK$17.09

-61.47%

Eggs

$1.20 Rp 21.5K

$3.54 HK$27.80

-66.10%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.66 Rp 136.9K

$25.12 HK$197

-69.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.08 Rp 55.0K

$8.89 HK$69.8

-65.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.85 Rp 140.3K

$17.63 HK$138

-55.47%

Apples (1kg)

$2.09 Rp 37.4K

$4.11 HK$32.22

-49.15%

Banana (1kg)

$1.30 Rp 23.2K

$2.72 HK$21.32

-52.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.82 Rp 32.6K

$4.59 HK$36.05

-60.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.56 Rp 27.8K

$4.02 HK$31.52

-61.19%

Potato (1kg)

$1.30 Rp 23.3K

$3.25 HK$25.50

-60.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.91 Rp 34.2K

$3.27 HK$25.70

-41.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.96 Rp 17.2K

$1.60 HK$12.54

-40.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.43 Rp 7,679

$1.73 HK$13.56

-75.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.94 Rp 34.6K

$13.14 HK$103

-85.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$24.67 Rp 441.1K

$16.59 HK$130

48.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.73 Rp 30.9K

$2.01 HK$15.80

-13.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.00 Rp 53.5K

$2.18 HK$17.13

37.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.32 Rp 5,669

$1.44 HK$11.31

-77.78%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$89.1 HK$699

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.48 Rp 8,519

$3.64 HK$28.53

-86.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 Rp 7,679

$1.31 HK$10.29

-67.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.61 Rp 46.7K

$15.82 HK$124

-83.50%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.83 Rp 14.8K

$4.06 HK$31.89

-79.56%

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

$25.0K Rp 446.0M

$44.4K HK$348.2K

-43.76%

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

$32.8K Rp 585.5M

$37.4K HK$293.2K

-12.33%

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

$86.2 Rp 1.5M

$247 HK$1,942

-65.18%

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

$4.58 Rp 81.9K

$15.89 HK$125

-71.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.24 Rp 343.9K

$21.46 HK$168

-10.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$17.96 Rp 321.0K

$91.4 HK$717

-80.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.82 Rp 121.9K

$9.08 HK$71.3

-24.89%

Cinema Ticket

$2.72 Rp 48.7K

$13.96 HK$110

-80.52%

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

$280 Rp 5.0M

$1,155 HK$9,067

-75.77%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,557 Rp 170.8M

$22.3K HK$174.6K

-57.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.0 Rp 1.3M

$68.9 HK$541

1.61%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.31 Rp 702.6K

$40.44 HK$317

-2.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$81.4 Rp 1.5M

$79.9 HK$627

1.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.4 Rp 1.3M

$118 HK$923

-37.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$279 Rp 5.0M

$2,180 HK$17.1K

-87.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$147 Rp 2.6M

$1,718 HK$13.5K

-91.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,247 Rp 22.3M

$5,047 HK$39.6K

-75.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$620 Rp 11.1M

$3,543 HK$27.8K

-82.51%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,155 Rp 38.5M

$29.1K HK$228.7K

-92.61%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,047 Rp 18.7M

$17.6K HK$137.9K

-94.04%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$273 Rp 4.9M

$3,228 HK$25.3K

-91.54%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.5

3.91

91.82%

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

Last update for Surabaya: October 5, 2026

Last update for Hong Kong: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Surabaya

$209 30.9%

Hong Kong

$415 13.9% 98.5% $206

Accommodation & Living

Surabaya

$147 21.7%

Hong Kong

$1.7K 57.5% 1070% $1.6K

Clothing & Footwear

Surabaya

$119 17.6%

Hong Kong

$138 4.6% 16.2% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Surabaya

$110 16.3%

Hong Kong

$285 9.5% 159% $175

Eating Out

Surabaya

$65 9.5%

Hong Kong

$205 6.9% 218% $141

Sport & Entertainment

Surabaya

$23 3.5%

Hong Kong

$119 4% 410% $96

Getting Around

Surabaya

$3.9 * 0.6%

Hong Kong

$105 3.5% 2600% $101

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 $2,180 in Hong Kong. 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 1082% higher in Hong Kong, 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 $63.0 in Hong Kong. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $209 vs $415 – making Surabaya the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Surabaya

🇭🇰 Hong Kong

🕒 Local time

15:43 3:43 PM

16:43 4:43 PM

1 h ahead of Surabaya

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,765,487

1,367,900 Capital

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Hong Kong Dollar HKD $

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.99 EUR

1 HKD = 0.127 USD

1 HKD = 0.114 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HKD, 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).

Hong Kong Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 7.85 HKD (1 HKD = 0.127 USD). 1 EUR = 8.8 HKD (1 HKD = 0.114 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Surabaya Hong Kong 3,290 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Surabaya
Hong Kong

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 Hong Kong: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $688 in Surabaya, $2,984 in Hong Kong – roughly 334% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,032 per month in Surabaya and $4,476 in Hong Kong. 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $11.00 in Surabaya and $63.0 in Hong Kong. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 98% more in Hong Kong, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Surabaya, where all-in costs run around $688, than in Hong Kong at $2,984. In Surabaya it covers expenses comfortably, while in Hong Kong it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Hong Kong has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $688 in Surabaya to $2,984 in Hong Kong. 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, Hong Kong makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.