Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ubud, Bali and Dalian

For one person, living is cheaper in Dalian: $917 a month against $1,349 in Ubud, Bali, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Ubud, Bali outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

Ubud, Bali, Indonesia
Dalian, China
Ubud, Bali
🇮🇩 Indonesia
$1,349
/mo nomad
Dalian
🇨🇳 China
$917
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,349 in Ubud, Bali versus $917 in Dalian.

  • Ubud, Bali $1,349
  • Dalian $917

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,305 in Ubud, Bali versus $1,453 in Dalian.

  • Ubud, Bali $2,305
  • Dalian $1,453

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,261 in Ubud, Bali versus $1,989 in Dalian.

  • Ubud, Bali $3,261
  • Dalian $1,989

Living in Ubud, Bali is roughly 47% more expensive than in Dalian, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Ubud, Bali
Dalian
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$3.32 Rp 60.2K
$3.66 ¥24.36
-9.29%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$35.64 Rp 645.8K
$25.01 ¥166
42.50%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.53 Rp 100.3K
$5.38 ¥35.82
2.79%
Cappuccino
$2.72 Rp 49.3K
$3.43 ¥22.82
-20.70%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.70 Rp 30.8K
$0.48 ¥3.19
254.17%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.76 Rp 13.8K
$0.23 ¥1.52
230.43%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.65 Rp 48.1K
$0.99 ¥6.57
167.68%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.38 Rp 79.4K
$1.51 ¥10.05
190.07%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Ubud, Bali
Dalian
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.49 Rp 27.0K
$1.64 ¥10.91
-9.15%
White Bread (500g)
$2.28 Rp 41.2K
$1.50 ¥9.95
52.00%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.19 Rp 21.6K
$0.95 ¥6.33
25.26%
Eggs
$2.04 Rp 36.9K
$1.57 ¥10.46
29.94%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$17.70 Rp 320.8K
$20.12 ¥134
-12.03%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$3.96 Rp 71.8K
$3.50 ¥23.32
13.14%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$12.19 Rp 220.9K
$12.81 ¥85.2
-4.84%
Apples (1kg)
$3.66 Rp 66.2K
$1.28 ¥8.55
185.94%
Banana (1kg)
$1.52 Rp 27.5K
$1.09 ¥7.25
39.45%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.23 Rp 40.4K
$1.97 ¥13.08
13.20%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.97 Rp 35.7K
$0.89 ¥5.94
121.35%
Potato (1kg)
$1.85 Rp 33.5K
$0.89 ¥5.92
107.87%
Onion (1kg)
$2.42 Rp 43.9K
$0.69 ¥4.58
250.72%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.99 Rp 17.9K
$1.31 ¥8.71
-24.43%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.51 Rp 9,303
$0.63 ¥4.19
-19.05%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.22 Rp 40.3K
$3.83 ¥25.46
-42.04%
Wine (Bottle)
$22.24 Rp 403.0K
$15.01 ¥99.9
48.17%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.26 Rp 41.0K
$1.12 ¥7.46
101.79%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.97 Rp 53.8K
$1.86 ¥12.36
59.68%
🚌 Getting Around
Ubud, Bali
Dalian
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.25 Rp 4,548
$0.29 ¥1.92
-13.79%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$7.82 Rp 141.8K
$29.71 ¥198
-73.68%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.44 Rp 7,964
$1.54 ¥10.25
-71.43%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.43 Rp 7,793
$0.43 ¥2.86
-
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.41 Rp 98.0K
$4.24 ¥28.23
27.59%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$0.82 Rp 14.9K
$1.27 ¥8.44
-35.43%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$23.8K Rp 432.0M
$19.2K ¥127.7K
24.20%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$31.7K Rp 575.3M
$17.3K ¥115.3K
83.19%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Ubud, Bali
Dalian
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$79.1 Rp 1.4M
$66.0 ¥439
19.82%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$6.45 Rp 116.8K
$9.51 ¥63.3
-32.18%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$18.58 Rp 336.7K
$13.65 ¥90.8
36.12%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Ubud, Bali
Dalian
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$49.48 Rp 896.7K
$40.42 ¥269
22.41%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$17.65 Rp 319.8K
$36.60 ¥244
-51.78%
Cinema Ticket
$4.27 Rp 77.4K
$6.94 ¥46.21
-38.47%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Ubud, Bali
Dalian
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$491 Rp 8.9M
$403 ¥2,678
21.87%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,674 Rp 102.8M
$20.6K ¥137.1K
-72.46%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Ubud, Bali
Dalian
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$44.64 Rp 808.9K
$76.0 ¥505
-41.23%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$34.95 Rp 633.4K
$55.9 ¥372
-37.52%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$79.9 Rp 1.4M
$112 ¥746
-28.69%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$79.4 Rp 1.4M
$121 ¥808
-34.56%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Ubud, Bali
Dalian
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,125 Rp 20.4M
$406 ¥2,703
176.91%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$671 Rp 12.2M
$238 ¥1,583
182.23%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$3,565 Rp 64.6M
$701 ¥4,666
408.31%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,723 Rp 31.2M
$450 ¥2,992
283.29%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,732 Rp 49.5M
$2,636 ¥17.5K
3.62%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,284 Rp 41.4M
$1,644 ¥10.9K
38.97%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Ubud, Bali
Dalian
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$164 Rp 3.0M
$1,077 ¥7,168
-84.79%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
13.78
3.89
254.24%

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

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 25, 2026

Last update for Dalian: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Ubud, Bali
$672
Dalian
$238 64.6% $434
Groceries & Markets
Ubud, Bali
$288
Dalian
$239 17.1% $49
Eating Out
Ubud, Bali
$108
Dalian
$97 9.6% $10
Clothing & Footwear
Ubud, Bali
$108
Dalian
$164 52.9% $57
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Ubud, Bali
$104
Dalian
$89 14.4% $15
Sport & Entertainment
Ubud, Bali
$58
Dalian
$54 6.4% $3.7
Getting Around
Ubud, Bali
$11
Dalian
$35 203% $23

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,125 in Ubud, Bali and $406 in Dalian. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dalian pays about 6.6 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $36 in Ubud, Bali vs $25 in Dalian for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $288 vs $239 per month, with Dalian cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali
🇨🇳 Dalian
🕒 Local time
01:47 1:47 AM
01:47 1:47 AM
Same time as Ubud, Bali
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
74,800
7,450,785
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 18,120 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.52 USD). 1 EUR = 20,232 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 6.65 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.43 CNY (1 CNY = 0.135 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Ubud, Bali Dalian 5,310 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Ubud, Bali
  • Dalian

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 Dalian: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Ubud, Bali and in Dalian?
Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,349 in Ubud, Bali and $917 in Dalian, so Dalian is about 32% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city has better-paying jobs?
On paper, salaries run 85% lower in Ubud, Bali. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.
How do apartment prices compare in Ubud, Bali and in Dalian?
Rent for a central apartment: $1,125 in Ubud, Bali versus $406 in Dalian. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Ubud, Bali and Dalian?
Childcare runs $491 in Ubud, Bali versus $403 in Dalian. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Which city has cheaper grocery shopping?
Supermarket bills run roughly 21% higher in Ubud, Bali. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.
Which city is more doable on $1,200 per month?
At $917 in Dalian versus $1,349 in Ubud, Bali, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Dalian but tight or insufficient in Ubud, Bali. The gap between the two cities makes Dalian the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
How does quality of life compare between Ubud, Bali and Dalian?
Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

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