Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ubud, Bali and Cape Carteret, NC

For one person, living is cheaper in Ubud, Bali: $1,353 a month against $2,709 in Cape Carteret, NC, rent and utilities included – about $16,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

66

Cost of Living Index in Ubud, Bali
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Ubud, Bali Living Index
124

Cost of Living Index in Cape Carteret, NC
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Cape Carteret, NC Living Index

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Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,353

/mo nomad

Cape Carteret, NC

🇺🇸 United States

$2,709

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ubud, Bali and in Cape Carteret, NC

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 Cape Carteret, NC actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,353 per month in Ubud, Bali vs $2,709 in Cape Carteret, NC, rent included.

Ubud, Bali $1,353
Cape Carteret, NC $2,709

A couple spends around $2,297 per month in Ubud, Bali vs $3,716 in Cape Carteret, NC, rent included.

Ubud, Bali $2,297
Cape Carteret, NC $3,716

A family of three spends $3,241 per month in Ubud, Bali vs $4,722 in Cape Carteret, NC, rent included.

Ubud, Bali $3,241
Cape Carteret, NC $4,722

Ubud, Bali is about 50% cheaper than Cape Carteret, NC, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Ubud, Bali and Cape Carteret, NC sit above the global median – Ubud, Bali by 0%, Cape Carteret, NC by 100%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.23 Rp 58.1K

$17.95 $17.95

-82.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.88 Rp 627.8K

$89.1 $89.1

-60.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.70 Rp 102.5K

$12.15 $12.15

-53.09%

Cappuccino

$2.62 Rp 47.1K

$5.91 $5.91

-55.67%

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

$1.72 Rp 31.0K

$2.78 $2.78

-38.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.81 Rp 14.6K

$2.06 $2.06

-60.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 Rp 47.7K

$6.04 $6.04

-56.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.37 Rp 78.6K

$6.95 $6.95

-37.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 Rp 28.3K

$1.04 $1.04

50.96%

White Bread (500g)

$2.19 Rp 39.5K

$3.20 $3.20

-31.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.18 Rp 21.2K

$5.30 $5.30

-77.74%

Eggs

$2.16 Rp 38.8K

$4.82 $4.82

-55.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.65 Rp 317.7K

$10.38 $10.38

70.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.78 Rp 68.0K

$10.04 $10.04

-62.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.95 Rp 215.1K

$18.65 $18.65

-35.92%

Apples (1kg)

$3.60 Rp 64.8K

$2.47 $2.47

45.75%

Banana (1kg)

$1.59 Rp 28.6K

$1.61 $1.61

-1.24%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.31 Rp 41.6K

$4.94 $4.94

-53.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.91 Rp 34.3K

$5.81 $5.81

-67.13%

Potato (1kg)

$1.78 Rp 32.1K

$2.24 $2.24

-20.54%

Onion (1kg)

$2.33 Rp 41.9K

$4.43 $4.43

-47.40%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.00 Rp 18.0K

$1.78 $1.78

-43.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 Rp 9,509

$2.33 $2.33

-77.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.29 Rp 41.1K

$9.47 $9.47

-75.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$22.07 Rp 397.3K

$12.12 $12.12

82.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.35 Rp 42.2K

$1.84 $1.84

27.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.98 Rp 53.6K

$2.12 $2.12

40.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.23 Rp 4,112

$1.81 $1.81

-87.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.90 Rp 160.2K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.47 Rp 8,466

$4.61 $4.61

-89.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 Rp 7,737

$1.32 $1.32

-67.42%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.47 Rp 98.4K

$20.14 $20.14

-72.84%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.83 Rp 14.9K

$1.00 $1.00

-17.00%

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

$23.9K Rp 429.8M

$27.7K $27.7K

-13.77%

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

$32.8K Rp 590.1M

$26.3K $26.3K

24.84%

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

$80.0 Rp 1.4M

$211 $211

-62.15%

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

$6.56 Rp 118.1K

$59.8 $59.8

-89.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.60 Rp 334.8K

$67.3 $67.3

-72.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.1 Rp 974.1K

$44.20 $44.20

22.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.28 Rp 329.0K

Cinema Ticket

$4.25 Rp 76.5K

$9.13 $9.13

-53.45%

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

$493 Rp 8.9M

$1,596 $1,596

-69.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,597 Rp 100.7M

$16.1K $16.1K

-65.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$45.58 Rp 820.4K

$61.0 $61.0

-25.28%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.96 Rp 629.4K

$47.26 $47.26

-26.03%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.7 Rp 1.4M

$116 $116

-33.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.5 Rp 1.4M

$111 $111

-28.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,131 Rp 20.4M

$1,643 $1,643

-31.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$673 Rp 12.1M

$1,446 $1,446

-53.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,613 Rp 65.0M

$2,879 $2,879

25.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,702 Rp 30.6M

$1,870 $1,870

-8.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,717 Rp 48.9M

$3,119 $3,119

-12.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,241 Rp 40.3M

$2,615 $2,615

-14.30%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$166 Rp 3.0M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.78

6.57

109.74%

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

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 19, 2026

Last update for Cape Carteret, NC: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ubud, Bali

$673 49.7%

Cape Carteret, NC

$1.4K 53.4% 115% $773

Groceries & Markets

Ubud, Bali

$287 21.2%

Cape Carteret, NC

$379 14% 32.1% $92

Clothing & Footwear

Ubud, Bali

$107 7.9%

Cape Carteret, NC

$151 5.6% 41.5% $44

Eating Out

Ubud, Bali

$106 7.9%

Cape Carteret, NC

$314 11.6% 195% $208

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ubud, Bali

$105 7.8%

Cape Carteret, NC

$338 12.5% 222% $233

Sport & Entertainment

Ubud, Bali

$63 4.6%

Cape Carteret, NC

$62 2.3% 0.3% $0.2

Getting Around

Ubud, Bali

$12 0.9%

Cape Carteret, NC

$18 * 0.7% 48.1% $6

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,131 in Ubud, Bali versus $1,643 in Cape Carteret, NC. 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 $35.00 in Ubud, Bali versus $89.0 in Cape Carteret, NC. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $287 vs $379 – making Ubud, Bali the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🇺🇸 Cape Carteret, NC

🕒 Local time

14:02 2:02 PM

02:02 2:02 AM

12 h behind Ubud, Bali

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,800

2,000

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 18,000 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD). 1 EUR = 20,236 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ubud, Bali Cape Carteret, NC 16,840 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Ubud, Bali
Cape Carteret, NC

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 Cape Carteret, NC: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Cape Carteret, NC is pricier by about 100%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,030 per month in Ubud, Bali and $4,064 in Cape Carteret, NC. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Ubud, 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 $1,353 in Ubud, Bali and $2,709 in Cape Carteret, NC. That's a gap of about 100%.

Kindergarten costs $493 per month in Ubud, Bali and $1,596 in Cape Carteret, NC. 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 Ubud, Bali, where all-in costs run around $1,353, than in Cape Carteret, NC at $2,709. In Ubud, Bali it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cape Carteret, NC it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Ubud, Bali – 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 Ubud, Bali. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Cape Carteret, NC makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.