Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ubud, Bali and Arad

For one person, living is cheaper in Arad: $873 a month against $1,368 in Ubud, Bali, rent and utilities included – about $5,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

67

Cost of Living Index in Ubud, Bali
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Ubud, Bali Living Index
43

Cost of Living Index in Arad
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Arad Living Index

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Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,368

/mo nomad

Arad

🇷🇴 Romania

$873

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ubud, Bali and in Arad

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

A single person spends $1,368 per month in Ubud, Bali vs $873 in Arad, rent included.

Ubud, Bali $1,368
Arad $873

A couple spends around $2,314 per month in Ubud, Bali vs $1,366 in Arad, rent included.

Ubud, Bali $2,314
Arad $1,366

A family of three spends $3,260 per month in Ubud, Bali vs $1,858 in Arad, rent included.

Ubud, Bali $3,260
Arad $1,858

Ubud, Bali costs about 57% more than Arad, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Ubud, Bali sits 1% above the global median, while Arad is 35% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.33 Rp 59.9K

$8.16 RON 38.63

-59.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.18 Rp 633.2K

$32.35 RON 153

8.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.80 Rp 104.5K

$7.15 RON 33.83

-18.88%

Cappuccino

$2.73 Rp 49.1K

$2.63 RON 12.45

3.80%

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

$1.64 Rp 29.5K

$1.48 RON 7.00

10.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 Rp 15.0K

$1.59 RON 7.53

-47.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.70 Rp 48.6K

$2.14 RON 10.15

26.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.30 Rp 77.4K

$2.48 RON 11.71

73.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 Rp 27.1K

$1.12 RON 5.32

33.93%

White Bread (500g)

$2.30 Rp 41.4K

$1.22 RON 5.76

88.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.18 Rp 21.2K

$1.72 RON 8.16

-31.40%

Eggs

$2.14 Rp 38.6K

$2.57 RON 12.17

-16.73%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.48 Rp 314.6K

$7.17 RON 33.94

143.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.03 Rp 72.5K

$4.87 RON 23.03

-17.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.23 Rp 220.1K

$10.13 RON 47.93

20.73%

Apples (1kg)

$3.55 Rp 63.9K

$1.60 RON 7.59

121.87%

Banana (1kg)

$1.57 Rp 28.3K

$1.70 RON 8.05

-7.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.24 Rp 40.2K

$1.69 RON 8.02

32.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.93 Rp 34.7K

$1.40 RON 6.60

37.86%

Potato (1kg)

$1.88 Rp 33.9K

$0.76 RON 3.59

147.37%

Onion (1kg)

$2.29 Rp 41.3K

$0.85 RON 4.04

169.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.99 Rp 17.9K

$1.18 RON 5.60

-16.10%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 Rp 9,475

$0.77 RON 3.63

-31.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.28 Rp 41.1K

$5.95 RON 28.14

-61.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$23.01 Rp 414.2K

$5.73 RON 27.10

301.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.34 Rp 42.2K

$1.22 RON 5.78

91.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.91 Rp 52.4K

$1.78 RON 8.40

63.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.24 Rp 4,315

$0.87 RON 4.11

-72.41%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.82 Rp 158.7K

$29.34 RON 139

-69.94%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.48 Rp 8,684

$0.79 RON 3.71

-39.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.46 Rp 8,233

$1.07 RON 5.06

-57.01%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.45 Rp 98.2K

$10.40 RON 49.22

-47.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.88 Rp 15.9K

$1.84 RON 8.72

-52.17%

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

$24.6K Rp 442.2M

$27.8K RON 131.8K

-11.79%

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

$31.2K Rp 561.4M

$24.9K RON 117.8K

25.21%

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

$83.0 Rp 1.5M

$125 RON 590

-33.42%

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

$6.45 Rp 116.0K

$8.19 RON 38.74

-21.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.57 Rp 334.2K

$7.28 RON 34.42

155.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.8 Rp 1.0M

$34.12 RON 161

63.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.11 Rp 326.0K

$30.83 RON 146

-41.26%

Cinema Ticket

$4.38 Rp 78.9K

$5.27 RON 24.91

-16.89%

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

$493 Rp 8.9M

$159 RON 752

210.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,754 Rp 103.6M

$3,847 RON 18.2K

49.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$46.19 Rp 831.4K

$42.29 RON 200

9.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.33 Rp 636.0K

$21.47 RON 102

64.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.1 Rp 1.4M

$70.9 RON 335

11.58%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.4 Rp 1.4M

$72.6 RON 343

8.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,142 Rp 20.6M

$332 RON 1,571

243.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$676 Rp 12.2M

$222 RON 1,052

204.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,503 Rp 63.1M

$529 RON 2,505

561.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,700 Rp 30.6M

$412 RON 1,951

312.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,784 Rp 50.1M

$1,420 RON 6,719

96.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,241 Rp 40.3M

$1,062 RON 5,027

110.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$165 Rp 3.0M

$919 RON 4,349

-82.10%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.78

7.35

87.48%

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

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 11, 2026

Last update for Arad: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ubud, Bali

$676 49.4%

Arad

$222 25.5% 67.1% $453

Groceries & Markets

Ubud, Bali

$290 21.2%

Arad

$188 21.5% 35.3% $103

Eating Out

Ubud, Bali

$109 8%

Arad

$146 16.8% 34.5% $38

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ubud, Bali

$108 7.9%

Arad

$140 16% 29.7% $32

Clothing & Footwear

Ubud, Bali

$108 7.9%

Arad

$93 10.7% 13.3% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Ubud, Bali

$65 4.7%

Arad

$45 5.1% 30.9% $20

Getting Around

Ubud, Bali

$13 0.9%

Arad

$39 4.5% 210% $26

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,142 in Ubud, Bali versus $332 in Arad. 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 459% higher in Arad, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $35.00 in Ubud, Bali versus $32.00 in Arad. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $290 vs $188 – making Arad the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🇷🇴 Arad

🕒 Local time

06:09 6:09 AM

01:09 1:09 AM

5 h behind Ubud, Bali

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,800

159,074

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 18,000 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD). 1 EUR = 20,236 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ubud, Bali Arad 10,990 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Ubud, Bali
Arad

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

Ubud, Bali vs Arad: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ubud, Bali costs about 57% more than Arad, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,051 per month in Ubud, Bali and $1,310 in Arad. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Arad, 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 $35.00 in Ubud, Bali and $32.00 in Arad. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,368 in Ubud, Bali and $873 in Arad. That's a gap of about 57%.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Arad, where all-in costs run around $873, than in Ubud, Bali at $1,368. In Arad it covers expenses comfortably, while in Ubud, Bali it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Arad costs $873 versus $1,368 in Ubud, Bali. 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 Arad. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Ubud, Bali makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.