Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ubud, Bali and Dessau

For one person, living is cheaper in Ubud, Bali: $1,349 a month against $1,783 in Dessau, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 less a year. The total is higher in Dessau despite lower rent and utilities.

65

Cost of Living Index in Ubud, Bali
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Ubud, Bali Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Dessau
Learn more

Dessau Living Index

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Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,349

/mo nomad

Dessau

🇩🇪 Germany

$1,783

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,349 in Ubud, Bali versus $1,783 in Dessau.

Ubud, Bali $1,349
Dessau $1,783

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,305 in Ubud, Bali versus $2,867 in Dessau.

Ubud, Bali $2,305
Dessau $2,867

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,261 in Ubud, Bali versus $3,951 in Dessau.

Ubud, Bali $3,261
Dessau $3,951

Living in Ubud, Bali costs roughly 24% less than in Dessau, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.32 Rp 60.3K

$16.48 €14.77

-79.85%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.64 Rp 646.5K

$84.5 €75.7

-57.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.53 Rp 100.4K

$15.40 €13.80

-64.09%

Cappuccino

$2.72 Rp 49.3K

$4.41 €3.95

-38.32%

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

$1.70 Rp 30.9K

$2.80 €2.51

-39.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.76 Rp 13.8K

$4.27 €3.82

-82.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 Rp 48.1K

$4.90 €4.39

-45.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.38 Rp 79.5K

$5.43 €4.87

-19.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.49 Rp 27.0K

$1.34 €1.20

11.19%

White Bread (500g)

$2.28 Rp 41.3K

$2.05 €1.84

11.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.19 Rp 21.6K

$3.85 €3.45

-69.09%

Eggs

$2.04 Rp 36.9K

$3.62 €3.25

-43.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.70 Rp 321.1K

$10.23 €9.17

73.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.96 Rp 71.9K

$11.72 €10.50

-66.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.19 Rp 221.1K

$21.39 €19.16

-43.01%

Apples (1kg)

$3.66 Rp 66.3K

$3.31 €2.97

10.57%

Banana (1kg)

$1.52 Rp 27.5K

$2.05 €1.84

-25.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.23 Rp 40.4K

$2.13 €1.91

4.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.97 Rp 35.8K

$3.60 €3.23

-45.28%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 Rp 33.5K

$1.26 €1.13

46.83%

Onion (1kg)

$2.42 Rp 44.0K

$1.11 €0.99

118.02%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.99 Rp 18.0K

$1.68 €1.51

-41.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 Rp 9,313

$1.21 €1.09

-57.85%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.22 Rp 40.3K

$9.54 €8.55

-76.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$22.24 Rp 403.4K

$6.53 €5.85

240.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 Rp 41.0K

$1.08 €0.97

109.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.97 Rp 53.9K

$1.67 €1.50

77.84%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 Rp 4,553

$2.59 €2.32

-90.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.82 Rp 141.9K

$65.3 €58.5

-88.02%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.44 Rp 7,972

$5.01 €4.49

-91.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 Rp 7,801

$2.49 €2.23

-82.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 Rp 98.1K

$33.16 €29.72

-83.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.82 Rp 15.0K

$1.94 €1.74

-57.73%

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

$23.8K Rp 432.4M

$32.9K €29.5K

-27.58%

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

$31.7K Rp 575.9M

$39.4K €35.3K

-19.42%

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

$79.1 Rp 1.4M

$279 €250

-71.63%

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

$6.45 Rp 116.9K

$25.46 €22.81

-74.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.58 Rp 337.0K

$51.1 €45.76

-63.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.48 Rp 897.5K

$68.5 €61.4

-27.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.65 Rp 320.1K

$22.08 €19.79

-20.06%

Cinema Ticket

$4.27 Rp 77.5K

$12.09 €10.84

-64.68%

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

$491 Rp 8.9M

$308 €276

59.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,674 Rp 102.9M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.64 Rp 809.7K

$74.3 €66.5

-39.88%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.95 Rp 634.0K

$46.22 €41.42

-24.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.9 Rp 1.4M

$134 €120

-40.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.4 Rp 1.4M

$171 €153

-53.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,125 Rp 20.4M

$443 €397

153.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$671 Rp 12.2M

$434 €389

54.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,565 Rp 64.7M

$733 €657

386.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,723 Rp 31.3M

$981 €879

75.71%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,732 Rp 49.5M

$3,354 €3,006

-18.56%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,284 Rp 41.4M

$1,755 €1,573

30.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$164 Rp 3.0M

$2,184 €1,957

-92.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.78

3.95

248.86%

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

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 25, 2026

Last update for Dessau: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ubud, Bali

$672 49.8%

Dessau

$434 24.4% 35.3% $237

Groceries & Markets

Ubud, Bali

$288 21.4%

Dessau

$322 18% 11.5% $33

Eating Out

Ubud, Bali

$108 8%

Dessau

$295 16.5% 174% $187

Clothing & Footwear

Ubud, Bali

$108 8%

Dessau

$191 10.7% 78.1% $84

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ubud, Bali

$104 7.7%

Dessau

$355 19.9% 241% $251

Sport & Entertainment

Ubud, Bali

$58 4.3%

Dessau

$93 5.2% 59.8% $35

Getting Around

Ubud, Bali

$11 0.9%

Dessau

$93 5.2% 715% $82

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,125 in Ubud, Bali and $443 in Dessau. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dessau pays about 13 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $36 in Ubud, Bali vs $84 in Dessau for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $288 vs $322 per month, with Ubud, Bali cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🇩🇪 Dessau

🕒 Local time

16:49 4:49 PM

09:49 9:49 AM

7 h behind Ubud, Bali

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,800

68,116

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18,138 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD). 1 EUR = 20,241 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Ubud, Bali Dessau 11,640 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Ubud, Bali
Dessau

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 Dessau: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ubud, Bali is about 24% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 92% 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,125 in Ubud, Bali versus $443 in Dessau. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 12% higher in Dessau. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Ubud, Bali – a meal for two runs $36 versus $84 in Dessau. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Ubud, Bali is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.

Safety-wise, Ubud, Bali and Dessau are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Ubud, Bali wins on affordability, Dessau on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.