Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ubon Ratchathani and Durban

For one person, living is cheaper in Ubon Ratchathani: $781 a month against $1,166 in Durban, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

37

Cost of Living Index in Ubon Ratchathani
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Ubon Ratchathani Living Index
56

Cost of Living Index in Durban
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Durban Living Index

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Ubon Ratchathani

🇹🇭 Thailand

$781

/mo nomad

Durban

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,166

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ubon Ratchathani and in Durban

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

A single person spends $781 per month in Ubon Ratchathani vs $1,166 in Durban, rent included.

Ubon Ratchathani $781
Durban $1,166

A couple spends around $1,444 per month in Ubon Ratchathani vs $1,788 in Durban, rent included.

Ubon Ratchathani $1,444
Durban $1,788

A family of three spends $2,106 per month in Ubon Ratchathani vs $2,411 in Durban, rent included.

Ubon Ratchathani $2,106
Durban $2,411

Ubon Ratchathani is about 33% cheaper than Durban, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both Ubon Ratchathani and Durban are more affordable than the global median – Ubon Ratchathani 42% lower, Durban 14% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.66 ฿156

$8.00 R 132

-41.75%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$20.60 ฿689

$38.82 R 640

-46.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.41 ฿248

$6.14 R 101

20.68%

Cappuccino

$1.81 ฿60.3

$2.62 R 43.15

-30.92%

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

$1.30 ฿43.60

$1.10 R 18.19

18.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 ฿17.99

$0.91 R 14.92

-40.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.40 ฿80.2

$2.46 R 40.48

-2.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.62 ฿121

$2.56 R 42.25

41.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.81 ฿60.6

$1.19 R 19.55

52.10%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿48.84

$0.93 R 15.38

56.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.15

$1.55 R 25.61

-10.97%

Eggs

$2.05 ฿68.6

$2.34 R 38.49

-12.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.08 ฿571

$8.47 R 140

101.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.35 ฿78.6

$5.21 R 85.9

-54.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.02 ฿368

$7.19 R 119

53.27%

Apples (1kg)

$2.99 ฿99.9

$2.02 R 33.21

48.02%

Banana (1kg)

$1.01 ฿33.59

$1.89 R 31.10

-46.56%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.13 ฿71.2

$1.93 R 31.79

10.36%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.06 ฿68.9

$1.66 R 27.42

24.10%

Potato (1kg)

$1.42 ฿47.54

$1.52 R 24.99

-6.58%

Onion (1kg)

$1.06 ฿35.58

$1.45 R 23.89

-26.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ฿37.44

$1.17 R 19.23

-4.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.51

$1.15 R 18.88

-57.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.25 ฿142

$3.59 R 59.1

18.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.55 ฿453

$4.99 R 82.3

171.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 ฿55.4

$1.48 R 24.37

12.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 ฿95.1

$1.94 R 31.93

46.91%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 ฿28.51

$1.86 R 30.60

-54.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.23 R 366

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.21 ฿40.40

$0.45 R 7.43

168.89%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.04 ฿34.82

$0.74 R 12.23

40.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.56 ฿219

$7.85 R 129

-16.43%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.22 ฿40.86

$1.57 R 25.80

-22.29%

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

$28.1K ฿939.2K

$36.1K R 594.9K

-22.17%

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

$31.4K ฿1.1M

$33.2K R 546.3K

-5.22%

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

$81.4 ฿2,719

$151 R 2,482

-46.00%

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

$12.16 ฿407

$36.50 R 601

-66.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$14.40 ฿481

$39.27 R 647

-63.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$47.95 ฿1,603

$32.16 R 530

49.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.14 ฿439

$8.90 R 147

47.64%

Cinema Ticket

$6.70 ฿224

$7.50 R 123

-10.67%

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

$497 ฿16.6K

$315 R 5,184

57.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.4K ฿413.4K

$7,763 R 127.9K

59.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.4 ฿1,885

$54.3 R 895

3.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.54 ฿954

$30.58 R 504

-6.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.2 ฿2,847

$98.7 R 1,627

-13.72%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$75.8 ฿2,534

$83.1 R 1,370

-8.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$235 ฿7,843

$470 R 7,738

-50.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$143 ฿4,785

$405 R 6,666

-64.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,049 ฿35.1K

$824 R 13.6K

27.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$724 ฿24.2K

$783 R 12.9K

-7.48%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,096 ฿70.0K

$906 R 14.9K

131.27%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,243 ฿41.5K

$589 R 9,707

110.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$353 ฿11.8K

$1,296 R 21.3K

-72.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

11.78

-52.72%

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

Last update for Ubon Ratchathani: October 19, 2026

Last update for Durban: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Ubon Ratchathani

$240 30.8%

Durban

$194 16.7% 19.1% $46

Accommodation & Living

Ubon Ratchathani

$143 18.3%

Durban

$405 34.7% 183% $261

Clothing & Footwear

Ubon Ratchathani

$111 14.2%

Durban

$120 10.3% 8.4% $9.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ubon Ratchathani

$108 13.8%

Durban

$226 19.4% 110% $119

Eating Out

Ubon Ratchathani

$108 13.8%

Durban

$139 12% 29.2% $31

Sport & Entertainment

Ubon Ratchathani

$61 7.9%

Durban

$47 4.1% 23.2% $14

Getting Around

Ubon Ratchathani

$9.8 * 1.3%

Durban

$34 2.9% 244% $24

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $235 in Ubon Ratchathani versus $470 in Durban. 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 267% higher in Durban, 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 $21.00 in Ubon Ratchathani versus $39.00 in Durban. Groceries tell a different story – $240 in Ubon Ratchathani vs $194 in Durban – so Durban wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Ubon Ratchathani

🇿🇦 Durban

🕒 Local time

10:18 10:18 AM

05:18 5:18 AM

5 h behind Ubon Ratchathani

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,977

3,442,361

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ubon Ratchathani Durban 9,360 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Ubon Ratchathani
Durban

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

Ubon Ratchathani vs Durban: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Durban is pricier by about 49%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in utilities.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,171 per month in Ubon Ratchathani and $1,749 in Durban. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Ubon Ratchathani, 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 $21.00 in Ubon Ratchathani and $39.00 in Durban. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 24% cheaper in Durban – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Ubon Ratchathani, where all-in costs run around $781, than in Durban at $1,166. In Ubon Ratchathani it covers expenses comfortably, while in Durban it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Ubon Ratchathani – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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