Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ubud, Bali and Machakos

For one person, living is cheaper in Machakos: $520 a month against $1,349 in Ubud, Bali, rent and utilities included – about $9,900 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
25

Cost of Living Index in Machakos
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Machakos Living Index

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Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,349

/mo nomad

Machakos

🇰🇪 Kenya

$520

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,349 in Ubud, Bali versus $520 in Machakos.

Ubud, Bali $1,349
Machakos $520

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,305 in Ubud, Bali versus $802 in Machakos.

Ubud, Bali $2,305
Machakos $802

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,261 in Ubud, Bali versus $1,084 in Machakos.

Ubud, Bali $3,261
Machakos $1,084

Living in Ubud, Bali is roughly 159% more expensive than in Machakos, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.32 Rp 60.3K

$2.99 KES 389

11.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.64 Rp 646.5K

$19.26 KES 2,500

85.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.53 Rp 100.4K

$6.26 KES 812

-11.66%

Cappuccino

$2.72 Rp 49.3K

$1.97 KES 255

38.07%

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

$1.70 Rp 30.9K

$0.66 KES 85.4

157.58%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.76 Rp 13.8K

$0.54 KES 69.6

40.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 Rp 48.1K

$2.16 KES 281

22.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.38 Rp 79.5K

$2.67 KES 346

64.04%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.49 Rp 27.0K

$0.39 KES 50.9

282.05%

White Bread (500g)

$2.28 Rp 41.3K

$0.48 KES 62.7

375.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.19 Rp 21.6K

$0.80 KES 104

48.75%

Eggs

$2.04 Rp 36.9K

$1.36 KES 177

50.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.70 Rp 321.1K

$10.89 KES 1,413

62.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.96 Rp 71.9K

$6.36 KES 826

-37.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.19 Rp 221.1K

$4.71 KES 612

158.81%

Apples (1kg)

$3.66 Rp 66.3K

$1.50 KES 195

144.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.52 Rp 27.5K

$0.81 KES 105

87.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.23 Rp 40.4K

$0.37 KES 47.49

502.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.97 Rp 35.8K

$0.40 KES 51.6

392.50%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 Rp 33.5K

$0.79 KES 102

134.18%

Onion (1kg)

$2.42 Rp 44.0K

$0.76 KES 98.6

218.42%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.99 Rp 18.0K

$0.75 KES 97.6

32.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 Rp 9,313

$0.39 KES 51.1

30.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.22 Rp 40.3K

$3.51 KES 455

-36.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$22.24 Rp 403.4K

$11.31 KES 1,468

96.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 Rp 41.0K

$1.91 KES 248

18.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.97 Rp 53.9K

$2.70 KES 351

10.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 Rp 4,553

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.82 Rp 141.9K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.44 Rp 7,972

$0.74 KES 96.4

-40.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 Rp 7,801

$0.75 KES 97.8

-42.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 Rp 98.1K

$2.86 KES 371

89.16%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.82 Rp 15.0K

$1.50 KES 195

-45.33%

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

$23.8K Rp 432.4M

$19.1K KES 2.5M

24.69%

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

$31.7K Rp 575.9M

$21.7K KES 2.8M

46.12%

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

$79.1 Rp 1.4M

$57.0 KES 7,396

38.75%

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

$6.45 Rp 116.9K

$7.83 KES 1,017

-17.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.58 Rp 337.0K

$11.58 KES 1,503

60.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.48 Rp 897.5K

$38.98 KES 5,060

26.94%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.65 Rp 320.1K

Cinema Ticket

$4.27 Rp 77.5K

$7.66 KES 994

-44.26%

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

$491 Rp 8.9M

$45.51 KES 5,907

977.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,674 Rp 102.9M

$12.3K KES 1.6M

-53.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.64 Rp 809.7K

$11.62 KES 1,509

284.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.95 Rp 634.0K

$28.49 KES 3,698

22.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.9 Rp 1.4M

$68.8 KES 8,923

16.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.4 Rp 1.4M

$38.19 KES 4,956

107.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,125 Rp 20.4M

$94.2 KES 12.2K

1094.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$671 Rp 12.2M

$70.4 KES 9,132

854.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,565 Rp 64.7M

$155 KES 20.1K

2203.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,723 Rp 31.3M

$116 KES 15.1K

1380.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,732 Rp 49.5M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,284 Rp 41.4M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$164 Rp 3.0M

$385 KES 50.0K

-57.45%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.78

14.71

-6.32%

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

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 25, 2026

Last update for Machakos: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ubud, Bali

$672 49.8%

Machakos

$70 13.5% 89.5% $601

Groceries & Markets

Ubud, Bali

$288 21.4%

Machakos

$161 31% 44.2% $127

Eating Out

Ubud, Bali

$108 8%

Machakos

$87 16.8% 19% $20

Clothing & Footwear

Ubud, Bali

$108 8%

Machakos

$66 12.7% 38.5% $41

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ubud, Bali

$104 7.7%

Machakos

$76 14.7% 26.6% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Ubud, Bali

$58 4.3%

Machakos

$54 10.4% 6.4% $3.7

Getting Around

Ubud, Bali

$11 0.9%

Machakos

$4.5 * 0.9% 60.5% $6.9

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,125 in Ubud, Bali and $94 in Machakos. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Machakos pays about 2.3 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 $19 in Machakos for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $288 vs $161 per month, with Machakos cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🇰🇪 Machakos

🕒 Local time

01:36 1:36 AM

20:36 8:36 PM

5 h behind Ubud, Bali

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,800

114,109

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Kenyan Shilling KES Sh

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

1,000 KES = 7.7 USD

1,000 KES = 6.9 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KES, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

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

Kenyan Shilling exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 130 KES (1,000 KES = 7.7 USD). 1 EUR = 145 KES (1,000 KES = 6.9 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ubud, Bali Machakos 8,660 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Ubud, Bali
Machakos

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 Machakos: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Machakos wins on cost – living expenses run 61% lower than in Ubud, Bali. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Machakos the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 57% 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 $94 in Machakos. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 79% higher in Ubud, Bali. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,349 per month in Ubud, Bali versus $520 in Machakos – Machakos is about 61% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $520 in Machakos versus $1,349 in Ubud, Bali, a $800 budget is realistic in Machakos but tight or insufficient in Ubud, Bali. The gap between the two cities makes Machakos 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 Machakos are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.