Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ubud, Bali and Butterworth

For one person, living is cheaper in Butterworth: $913 a month against $1,349 in Ubud, Bali, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

65

Cost of Living Index in Ubud, Bali
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Ubud, Bali Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Butterworth
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Butterworth Living Index

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Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,349

/mo nomad

Butterworth

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$913

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,349 per month in Ubud, Bali vs $913 in Butterworth, rent included.

Ubud, Bali $1,349
Butterworth $913

A couple spends around $2,305 per month in Ubud, Bali vs $1,408 in Butterworth, rent included.

Ubud, Bali $2,305
Butterworth $1,408

A family of three spends $3,261 per month in Ubud, Bali vs $1,902 in Butterworth, rent included.

Ubud, Bali $3,261
Butterworth $1,902

Ubud, Bali costs about 48% more than Butterworth, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.32 Rp 60.3K

$3.72 MYR 15.16

-10.75%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.64 Rp 646.7K

$19.36 MYR 78.8

84.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.53 Rp 100.4K

$4.77 MYR 19.43

15.93%

Cappuccino

$2.72 Rp 49.3K

$2.89 MYR 11.76

-5.88%

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

$1.70 Rp 30.9K

$0.73 MYR 2.96

132.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.76 Rp 13.8K

$0.36 MYR 1.48

111.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 Rp 48.2K

$4.12 MYR 16.78

-35.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.38 Rp 79.5K

$4.38 MYR 17.82

Milk (1 liter)

$1.49 Rp 27.1K

$2.12 MYR 8.61

-29.72%

White Bread (500g)

$2.28 Rp 41.3K

$1.10 MYR 4.48

107.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.19 Rp 21.6K

$1.69 MYR 6.88

-29.59%

Eggs

$2.04 Rp 36.9K

$2.24 MYR 9.13

-8.93%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.70 Rp 321.2K

$13.69 MYR 55.7

29.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.96 Rp 71.9K

$4.49 MYR 18.26

-11.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.19 Rp 221.2K

$8.64 MYR 35.18

41.09%

Apples (1kg)

$3.66 Rp 66.3K

$3.06 MYR 12.47

19.61%

Banana (1kg)

$1.52 Rp 27.5K

$1.71 MYR 6.95

-11.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.23 Rp 40.4K

$2.23 MYR 9.07

Tomato (1kg)

$1.97 Rp 35.8K

$1.47 MYR 5.98

34.01%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 Rp 33.5K

$1.06 MYR 4.33

74.53%

Onion (1kg)

$2.42 Rp 44.0K

$1.09 MYR 4.42

122.02%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.99 Rp 18.0K

$1.09 MYR 4.43

-9.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 Rp 9,316

$0.58 MYR 2.38

-12.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.22 Rp 40.3K

$4.36 MYR 17.76

-49.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$22.24 Rp 403.6K

$19.00 MYR 77.3

17.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 Rp 41.0K

$2.93 MYR 11.91

-22.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.97 Rp 53.9K

$4.98 MYR 20.27

-40.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 Rp 4,555

$0.70 MYR 2.84

-64.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.82 Rp 142.0K

$10.85 MYR 44.18

-27.93%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.44 Rp 7,975

$1.19 MYR 4.83

-63.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 Rp 7,804

$0.38 MYR 1.53

13.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 Rp 98.2K

$4.85 MYR 19.72

11.55%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.82 Rp 15.0K

$0.89 MYR 3.61

-7.87%

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

$23.8K Rp 432.6M

$43.5K MYR 177.0K

-45.17%

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

$31.7K Rp 576.1M

$35.5K MYR 144.4K

-10.48%

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

$79.1 Rp 1.4M

$36.81 MYR 150

114.78%

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

$6.45 Rp 117.0K

$8.61 MYR 35.03

-25.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.58 Rp 337.1K

$26.45 MYR 108

-29.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.48 Rp 897.9K

$32.93 MYR 134

50.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.65 Rp 320.2K

$5.90 MYR 24.00

199.15%

Cinema Ticket

$4.27 Rp 77.6K

$4.79 MYR 19.52

-10.86%

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

$491 Rp 8.9M

$240 MYR 977

104.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,674 Rp 103.0M

$10.9K MYR 44.3K

-47.90%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.64 Rp 810.0K

$59.8 MYR 243

-25.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.95 Rp 634.2K

$35.01 MYR 143

-0.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.9 Rp 1.4M

$82.5 MYR 336

-3.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.4 Rp 1.4M

$69.5 MYR 283

14.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,125 Rp 20.4M

$412 MYR 1,678

172.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$671 Rp 12.2M

$300 MYR 1,223

123.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,565 Rp 64.7M

$813 MYR 3,309

338.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,723 Rp 31.3M

$563 MYR 2,292

206.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,732 Rp 49.6M

$1,966 MYR 8,002

38.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,284 Rp 41.4M

$1,205 MYR 4,905

89.53%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$164 Rp 3.0M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.78

4.04

241.09%

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

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 25, 2026

Last update for Butterworth: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ubud, Bali

$672 49.8%

Butterworth

$300 32.9% 55.3% $371

Groceries & Markets

Ubud, Bali

$288 21.4%

Butterworth

$258 28.3% 10.4% $30

Eating Out

Ubud, Bali

$108 8%

Butterworth

$113 12.3% 4.5% $4.8

Clothing & Footwear

Ubud, Bali

$108 8%

Butterworth

$111 12.2% 3.3% $3.6

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ubud, Bali

$104 7.7%

Butterworth

$72 7.9% 30.9% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Ubud, Bali

$58 4.3%

Butterworth

$43 4.7% 26.7% $16

Getting Around

Ubud, Bali

$11 0.9%

Butterworth

$17 1.8% 46.2% $5.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,125 in Ubud, Bali versus $412 in Butterworth. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $36 in Ubud, Bali versus $19 in Butterworth. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $288 vs $258 – making Butterworth the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🇲🇾 Butterworth

🕒 Local time

02:23 2:23 AM

Same time as Ubud, Bali

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,800

339,132

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

1 MYR = 0.246 USD

1 MYR = 0.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MYR, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18,145 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD). 1 EUR = 20,249 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 4.07 MYR (1 MYR = 0.246 USD). 1 EUR = 4.54 MYR (1 MYR = 0.22 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Ubud, Bali Butterworth 2,260 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Ubud, Bali
Butterworth

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 Butterworth: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,349 in Ubud, Bali, $913 in Butterworth – Butterworth comes out roughly 32% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,023 per month in Ubud, Bali and $1,370 in Butterworth. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Butterworth, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $412 there versus $1,125 in Ubud, Bali.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,349 in Ubud, Bali and $913 in Butterworth. That makes Butterworth about 32% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 28% less in Ubud, Bali. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Butterworth, where all-in costs run around $913, than in Ubud, Bali at $1,349. In Butterworth it covers expenses comfortably, while in Ubud, Bali it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.