Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ubud, Bali and Ha Long Bay

For one person, living is cheaper in Ha Long Bay: $759 a month against $1,353 in Ubud, Bali, rent and utilities included – about $7,100 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
37

Cost of Living Index in Ha Long Bay
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Ha Long Bay Living Index

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Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,353

/mo nomad

Ha Long Bay

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$759

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ubud, Bali and in Ha Long Bay

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 Ha Long Bay actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,353 in Ubud, Bali versus $759 in Ha Long Bay.

Ubud, Bali $1,353
Ha Long Bay $759

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,297 in Ubud, Bali versus $1,224 in Ha Long Bay.

Ubud, Bali $2,297
Ha Long Bay $1,224

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,241 in Ubud, Bali versus $1,688 in Ha Long Bay.

Ubud, Bali $3,241
Ha Long Bay $1,688

Living in Ubud, Bali is roughly 78% more expensive than in Ha Long Bay, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.23 Rp 58.3K

$2.06 ₫53.2K

56.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.88 Rp 629.5K

$19.24 ₫497.1K

81.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.70 Rp 102.8K

$4.35 ₫112.4K

31.03%

Cappuccino

$2.62 Rp 47.2K

$1.60 ₫41.4K

63.75%

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

$1.72 Rp 31.1K

$0.38 ₫9,810

352.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.81 Rp 14.6K

$0.35 ₫9,088

131.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 Rp 47.8K

$0.88 ₫22.7K

201.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.37 Rp 78.8K

$1.33 ₫34.4K

228.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 Rp 28.4K

$1.52 ₫39.3K

3.29%

White Bread (500g)

$2.19 Rp 39.6K

$1.12 ₫29.0K

95.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.18 Rp 21.2K

$0.89 ₫23.1K

32.58%

Eggs

$2.16 Rp 38.9K

$1.13 ₫29.2K

91.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.65 Rp 318.5K

$10.47 ₫270.6K

68.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.78 Rp 68.2K

$3.80 ₫98.2K

-0.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.95 Rp 215.7K

$10.88 ₫281.2K

9.83%

Apples (1kg)

$3.60 Rp 65.0K

$2.94 ₫75.9K

22.45%

Banana (1kg)

$1.59 Rp 28.7K

$0.94 ₫24.2K

69.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.31 Rp 41.7K

$1.37 ₫35.3K

68.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.91 Rp 34.4K

$1.18 ₫30.4K

61.86%

Potato (1kg)

$1.78 Rp 32.1K

$0.98 ₫25.3K

81.63%

Onion (1kg)

$2.33 Rp 42.0K

$1.13 ₫29.2K

106.19%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.00 Rp 18.0K

$0.65 ₫16.8K

53.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 Rp 9,536

$0.51 ₫13.3K

3.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.29 Rp 41.3K

$1.37 ₫35.5K

67.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$22.07 Rp 398.4K

$11.37 ₫293.8K

94.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.35 Rp 42.4K

$0.87 ₫22.4K

170.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.98 Rp 53.7K

$1.65 ₫42.7K

80.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.23 Rp 4,123

$0.34 ₫8,888

-32.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.90 Rp 160.6K

$6.31 ₫163.2K

41.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.47 Rp 8,490

$0.71 ₫18.4K

-33.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 Rp 7,759

$0.61 ₫15.7K

-29.51%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.47 Rp 98.7K

$2.71 ₫70.0K

101.85%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.83 Rp 14.9K

$1.02 ₫26.5K

-18.63%

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

$23.9K Rp 431.0M

$33.2K ₫858.7M

-28.15%

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

$32.8K Rp 591.8M

$30.2K ₫779.2M

8.72%

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

$80.0 Rp 1.4M

$71.9 ₫1.9M

11.31%

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

$6.56 Rp 118.4K

$6.52 ₫168.4K

0.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.60 Rp 335.8K

$8.58 ₫221.6K

116.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.1 Rp 976.8K

$22.65 ₫585.3K

138.94%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.28 Rp 329.9K

$6.89 ₫178.0K

165.31%

Cinema Ticket

$4.25 Rp 76.8K

$3.11 ₫80.3K

36.66%

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

$493 Rp 8.9M

$191 ₫4.9M

157.59%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,597 Rp 101.0M

$14.2K ₫367.5M

-60.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$45.58 Rp 822.6K

$48.88 ₫1.3M

-6.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.96 Rp 631.1K

$26.10 ₫674.5K

33.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.7 Rp 1.4M

$78.7 ₫2.0M

-1.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.5 Rp 1.4M

$85.3 ₫2.2M

-7.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,131 Rp 20.4M

$386 ₫10.0M

193.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$673 Rp 12.1M

$272 ₫7.0M

147.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,613 Rp 65.2M

$881 ₫22.8M

310.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,702 Rp 30.7M

$612 ₫15.8M

178.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,717 Rp 49.0M

$2,009 ₫51.9M

35.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,241 Rp 40.5M

$1,215 ₫31.4M

84.42%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$166 Rp 3.0M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.78

8.28

66.43%

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

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 19, 2026

Last update for Ha Long Bay: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ubud, Bali

$673 49.7%

Ha Long Bay

$272 35.8% 59.6% $401

Groceries & Markets

Ubud, Bali

$287 21.2%

Ha Long Bay

$194 25.5% 32.6% $94

Clothing & Footwear

Ubud, Bali

$107 7.9%

Ha Long Bay

$108 14.2% 0.9% $1

Eating Out

Ubud, Bali

$106 7.9%

Ha Long Bay

$59 7.7% 44.8% $48

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ubud, Bali

$105 7.8%

Ha Long Bay

$87 11.5% 17.3% $18

Sport & Entertainment

Ubud, Bali

$63 4.6%

Ha Long Bay

$29 3.8% 53.9% $34

Getting Around

Ubud, Bali

$12 0.9%

Ha Long Bay

$11 1.5% 8% $1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,131 in Ubud, Bali and $386 in Ha Long Bay. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $35 in Ubud, Bali vs $19 in Ha Long Bay for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $287 vs $194 per month, with Ha Long Bay cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🇻🇳 Ha Long Bay

🕒 Local time

02:01 2:01 AM

01:01 1:01 AM

1 h behind Ubud, Bali

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,800

270,054

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.54 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.87 USD

100,000 VND = 3.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VND, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 25, 2026: 1 USD = 18,050 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.54 USD). 1 EUR = 20,224 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 25, 2026: 1 USD = 25,840 VND (100,000 VND = 3.87 USD). 1 EUR = 28,952 VND (100,000 VND = 3.45 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Ubud, Bali Ha Long Bay 3,400 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Ubud, Bali
Ha Long Bay

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 Ha Long Bay: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ha Long Bay is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. The 78% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $2,030 in Ubud, Bali and $1,138 in Ha Long Bay to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,131 in Ubud, Bali versus $386 in Ha Long Bay. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Ha Long Bay runs roughly 29% less than in Ubud, Bali. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you’re watching your budget.

Childcare runs $493 in Ubud, Bali versus $191 in Ha Long Bay. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $759 in Ha Long Bay versus $1,353 in Ubud, Bali, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Ha Long Bay but tight or insufficient in Ubud, Bali. The gap between the two cities makes Ha Long Bay the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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 Ha Long Bay are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Ha Long Bay gentler on the wallet – expenses run 44% less than in Ubud, Bali. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.