Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Surakarta and Butuan

For one person, living is cheaper in Butuan: $569 a month against $589 in Surakarta, rent and utilities included – about $240 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Surakarta outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

28

Cost of Living Index in Surakarta
Learn more

Surakarta Living Index
27

Cost of Living Index in Butuan
Learn more

Butuan Living Index

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Surakarta

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$589

/mo nomad

Butuan

🇵🇭 Philippines

$569

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Surakarta and in Butuan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $589 in Surakarta versus $569 in Butuan.

Surakarta $589
Butuan $569

Estimated couple costs with rent: $933 in Surakarta versus $899 in Butuan.

Surakarta $933
Butuan $899

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,278 in Surakarta versus $1,229 in Butuan.

Surakarta $1,278
Butuan $1,229

Living in Surakarta is roughly 3% more expensive than in Butuan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Surakarta 57% lower, Butuan 58% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.70 Rp 30.9K

$4.66 ₱297

-63.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$11.39 Rp 206.6K

$26.45 ₱1,685

-56.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.06 Rp 55.4K

$2.32 ₱148

31.90%

Cappuccino

$1.55 Rp 28.2K

$2.04 ₱130

-24.02%

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

$0.53 Rp 9,664

$0.30 ₱19.08

76.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.23 Rp 4,147

$0.24 ₱15.29

-4.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.40 Rp 25.5K

$1.58 ₱100

-11.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 Rp 50.4K

$2.37 ₱151

17.30%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.86 Rp 15.6K

$1.92 ₱122

-55.21%

White Bread (500g)

$0.74 Rp 13.4K

$1.11 ₱70.7

-33.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.75 Rp 13.5K

$0.90 ₱57.0

-16.67%

Eggs

$1.00 Rp 18.1K

$1.83 ₱117

-45.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.78 Rp 141.1K

$6.42 ₱409

21.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$1.62 Rp 29.4K

$4.75 ₱302

-65.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$5.32 Rp 96.5K

$9.41 ₱599

-43.46%

Apples (1kg)

$1.97 Rp 35.8K

$2.65 ₱169

-25.66%

Banana (1kg)

$1.30 Rp 23.7K

$1.09 ₱69.5

19.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.80 Rp 32.6K

$2.40 ₱153

-25.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.41 Rp 25.5K

$1.17 ₱74.4

20.51%

Potato (1kg)

$1.36 Rp 24.7K

$1.97 ₱125

-30.96%

Onion (1kg)

$1.64 Rp 29.8K

$3.40 ₱217

-51.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.53 Rp 9,568

$1.18 ₱75.1

-55.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.43 Rp 7,783

$0.70 ₱44.55

-38.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.93 Rp 34.9K

$2.42 ₱154

-20.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.23 Rp 149.3K

$7.68 ₱489

7.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 Rp 29.3K

$1.27 ₱81.1

26.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.97 Rp 53.8K

$1.60 ₱102

85.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.41 Rp 7,401

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.35 Rp 205.8K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.47 Rp 8,488

$0.81 ₱51.5

-41.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 Rp 7,747

$0.24 ₱15.33

79.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.58 Rp 46.8K

$1.93 ₱123

33.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.78 Rp 14.1K

$1.06 ₱67.8

-26.42%

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

$25.0K Rp 454.0M

$20.8K ₱1.3M

20.44%

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

$32.9K Rp 596.8M

$19.1K ₱1.2M

72.02%

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

$77.7 Rp 1.4M

$106 ₱6,734

-26.50%

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

$2.06 Rp 37.3K

$18.42 ₱1,173

-88.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.73 Rp 339.7K

$30.63 ₱1,951

-38.85%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$16.13 Rp 292.6K

$23.59 ₱1,502

-31.62%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.31 Rp 150.7K

Cinema Ticket

$1.88 Rp 34.1K

$4.18 ₱266

-55.02%

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

$33.22 Rp 602.5K

$106 ₱6,747

-68.64%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,841 Rp 33.4M

$7,473 ₱476.0K

-75.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.8 Rp 1.1M

$59.6 ₱3,793

-1.31%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.70 Rp 665.7K

$30.15 ₱1,920

21.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.2 Rp 1.2M

$69.0 ₱4,397

-1.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$65.7 Rp 1.2M

$60.7 ₱3,866

8.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$223 Rp 4.0M

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$147 Rp 2.7M

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$559 Rp 10.1M

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$367 Rp 6.7M

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,102 Rp 20.0M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$712 Rp 12.9M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$155 Rp 2.8M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.5

8.31

-9.75%

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

Last update for Surakarta: October 26, 2026

Last update for Butuan: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Surakarta

$147 25%

Butuan

$198 34.9% 34.6% $51

Accommodation & Living

Surakarta

$147 25%

Butuan

- * 0% 100%

Clothing & Footwear

Surakarta

$103 17.5%

Butuan

$99 17.3% 4.3% $4.5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Surakarta

$98 16.7%

Butuan

$155 27.2% 57.2% $56

Eating Out

Surakarta

$57 9.7%

Butuan

$84 14.7% 46.4% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Surakarta

$20 3.4%

Butuan

$32 5.6% 60.5% $12

Getting Around

Surakarta

$16 2.7%

Butuan

$2 * 0.4% 87.1% $14

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $11 in Surakarta vs $26 in Butuan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $147 vs $198 per month, with Surakarta cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Surakarta

🇵🇭 Butuan

🕒 Local time

10:01 10:01 AM

11:01 11:01 AM

1 h ahead of Surakarta

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

503,421

337,063

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

100 PHP = 1.57 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18,138 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD). 1 EUR = 20,252 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 63.69 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.12 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Surakarta Butuan 2,460 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Surakarta
Butuan

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

Surakarta vs Butuan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Butuan wins on cost – living expenses run 3% lower than in Surakarta. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Butuan the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $883 in Surakarta and $854 in Butuan to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Childcare runs $33 in Surakarta versus $106 in Butuan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Surakarta – a meal for two runs $11 versus $26 in Butuan. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $800 a month, though Butuan gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.