Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Surfers Paradise and Bali

For one person, living is cheaper in Bali: $1,236 a month against $2,824 in Surfers Paradise, rent and utilities included – about $19,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

136

Cost of Living Index in Surfers Paradise
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Surfers Paradise Living Index
60

Cost of Living Index in Bali
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Bali Living Index

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Surfers Paradise

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,824

/mo nomad

Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,236

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Surfers Paradise and in Bali

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

A single person spends $2,824 per month in Surfers Paradise vs $1,236 in Bali, rent included.

Surfers Paradise $2,824
Bali $1,236

A couple spends around $4,398 per month in Surfers Paradise vs $2,086 in Bali, rent included.

Surfers Paradise $4,398
Bali $2,086

A family of three spends $5,973 per month in Surfers Paradise vs $2,937 in Bali, rent included.

Surfers Paradise $5,973
Bali $2,937

Surfers Paradise costs about 128% more than Bali, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Surfers Paradise sits 109% above the global median, while Bali is 8% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.36 A$24.87

$2.76 Rp 49.4K

528.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$105 A$150

$29.80 Rp 533.2K

252.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.85 A$15.55

$4.63 Rp 82.8K

134.34%

Cappuccino

$4.10 A$5.87

$2.32 Rp 41.4K

76.72%

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

$2.81 A$4.03

$1.40 Rp 25.0K

100.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.40 A$3.44

$0.64 Rp 11.4K

275.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.86 A$11.26

$2.19 Rp 39.2K

258.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.87 A$11.27

$3.58 Rp 64.1K

119.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 A$2.38

$1.49 Rp 26.6K

11.41%

White Bread (500g)

$2.70 A$3.87

$2.21 Rp 39.6K

22.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.41 A$3.45

$1.17 Rp 21.0K

105.98%

Eggs

$4.90 A$7.02

$2.02 Rp 36.2K

142.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.68 A$12.43

$16.52 Rp 295.6K

-47.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.09 A$13.01

$3.68 Rp 65.8K

147.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.47 A$20.73

$11.67 Rp 208.7K

23.99%

Apples (1kg)

$3.92 A$5.62

$3.44 Rp 61.6K

13.95%

Banana (1kg)

$3.08 A$4.41

$1.46 Rp 26.1K

110.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.37 A$4.83

$2.24 Rp 40.0K

50.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.84 A$6.93

$1.82 Rp 32.6K

165.93%

Potato (1kg)

$2.82 A$4.04

$1.79 Rp 32.0K

57.54%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.49

$2.27 Rp 40.7K

7.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.39 A$3.43

$0.99 Rp 17.7K

141.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.07 A$2.97

$0.51 Rp 9,131

305.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$37.58 A$53.8

$2.15 Rp 38.5K

1647.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.26 A$20.43

$21.44 Rp 383.6K

-33.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.97 A$8.55

$2.29 Rp 40.9K

160.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.12 A$7.33

$2.86 Rp 51.1K

79.02%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 A$0.49

$0.26 Rp 4,685

30.77%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.97 Rp 142.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.10 A$3.01

$0.48 Rp 8,594

337.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.62 A$2.32

$0.43 Rp 7,659

276.74%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.24 A$50.5

$5.64 Rp 101.0K

524.82%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 A$1.86

$0.82 Rp 14.8K

58.54%

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

$27.0K A$38.7K

$23.7K Rp 424.0M

14.06%

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

$28.3K A$40.6K

$31.7K Rp 567.9M

-10.68%

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

$212 A$304

$81.3 Rp 1.5M

161.02%

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

$29.92 A$42.87

$6.53 Rp 116.9K

358.19%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.4 A$79.4

$18.31 Rp 327.7K

202.68%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.1 A$94.6

$46.85 Rp 838.3K

40.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.45 A$20.70

$15.05 Rp 269.2K

-3.99%

Cinema Ticket

$17.42 A$24.95

$3.69 Rp 66.1K

372.09%

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

$1,944 A$2,785

$445 Rp 8.0M

336.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.4K A$17.7K

$5,218 Rp 93.4M

137.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$83.1 A$119

$42.66 Rp 763.2K

94.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.1 A$78.9

$33.40 Rp 597.6K

64.85%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$159

$75.0 Rp 1.3M

47.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 A$174

$73.7 Rp 1.3M

64.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,912 A$2,739

$996 Rp 17.8M

91.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,570 A$2,250

$596 Rp 10.7M

163.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,770 A$5,400

$3,054 Rp 54.6M

23.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,067 A$4,393

$1,511 Rp 27.0M

103.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,895 A$8,444

$2,430 Rp 43.5M

142.56%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,954 A$7,096

$1,963 Rp 35.1M

152.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,288 A$4,710

$220 Rp 3.9M

1392.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.81

13.78

-57.84%

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

Last update for Surfers Paradise: October 12, 2026

Last update for Bali: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Surfers Paradise

$1.6K 55.6%

Bali

$596 48.2% 62% $974

Groceries & Markets

Surfers Paradise

$380 13.5%

Bali

$277 22.4% 27.2% $103

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Surfers Paradise

$298 10.5%

Bali

$106 8.6% 64.3% $191

Eating Out

Surfers Paradise

$297 10.5%

Bali

$90 7.3% 69.6% $207

Clothing & Footwear

Surfers Paradise

$167 5.9%

Bali

$101 8.2% 39.3% $65

Sport & Entertainment

Surfers Paradise

$101 3.6%

Bali

$54 4.4% 46.2% $47

Getting Around

Surfers Paradise

$12 * 0.4%

Bali

$12 0.9% 0.7% $0.1

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,912 in Surfers Paradise versus $996 in Bali. 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 1393% higher in Surfers Paradise, 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 $105 in Surfers Paradise versus $30.00 in Bali. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $380 vs $277 – making Bali the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Surfers Paradise

🇮🇩 Bali

🕒 Local time

09:24 9:24 AM

07:24 7:24 AM

2 h behind Surfers Paradise

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

19,668

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.698 USD

1 AUD = 0.624 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.99 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.698 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.624 EUR).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 17,892 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD). 1 EUR = 20,022 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.99 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Surfers Paradise Bali 4,550 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Surfers Paradise
Bali

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

Surfers Paradise vs Bali: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Surfers Paradise costs about 128% more than Bali, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,235 per month in Surfers Paradise and $1,854 in Bali. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Bali, 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 $2,824 in Surfers Paradise and $1,236 in Bali. That's a gap of about 128%.

Kindergarten costs $1,944 per month in Surfers Paradise and $445 in Bali. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Bali, where all-in costs run around $1,236, than in Surfers Paradise at $2,824. In Bali it covers expenses comfortably, while in Surfers Paradise it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Bali costs $1,236 versus $2,824 in Surfers Paradise. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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 Bali. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Surfers Paradise makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.