Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ubud, Bali and Ninh Binh

For one person, living is cheaper in Ninh Binh: $734 a month against $1,349 in Ubud, Bali, rent and utilities included – about $7,400 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
35

Cost of Living Index in Ninh Binh
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Ninh Binh Living Index

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Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,349

/mo nomad

Ninh Binh

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$734

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ubud, Bali and in Ninh Binh

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,349 in Ubud, Bali versus $734 in Ninh Binh.

Ubud, Bali $1,349
Ninh Binh $734

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,305 in Ubud, Bali versus $1,173 in Ninh Binh.

Ubud, Bali $2,305
Ninh Binh $1,173

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,261 in Ubud, Bali versus $1,612 in Ninh Binh.

Ubud, Bali $3,261
Ninh Binh $1,612

Living in Ubud, Bali is roughly 84% more expensive than in Ninh Binh, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.32 Rp 60.4K

$1.89 ₫48.8K

75.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.64 Rp 647.8K

$21.29 ₫550.1K

67.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.53 Rp 100.6K

$4.53 ₫117.1K

22.08%

Cappuccino

$2.72 Rp 49.4K

$1.79 ₫46.3K

51.96%

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

$1.70 Rp 30.9K

$0.47 ₫12.2K

261.70%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.76 Rp 13.8K

$0.30 ₫7,777

153.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 Rp 48.2K

$0.92 ₫23.6K

188.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.38 Rp 79.6K

$1.51 ₫39.0K

190.07%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.49 Rp 27.1K

$1.42 ₫36.7K

4.93%

White Bread (500g)

$2.28 Rp 41.4K

$0.97 ₫25.0K

135.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.19 Rp 21.6K

$0.95 ₫24.5K

25.26%

Eggs

$2.04 Rp 37.0K

$1.40 ₫36.3K

45.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.70 Rp 321.7K

$11.65 ₫300.8K

51.93%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.96 Rp 72.0K

$3.66 ₫94.5K

8.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.19 Rp 221.6K

$9.94 ₫256.8K

22.64%

Apples (1kg)

$3.66 Rp 66.4K

$2.79 ₫72.0K

31.18%

Banana (1kg)

$1.52 Rp 27.6K

$1.06 ₫27.5K

43.40%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.23 Rp 40.5K

$1.35 ₫34.8K

65.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.97 Rp 35.9K

$1.11 ₫28.8K

77.48%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 Rp 33.6K

$1.04 ₫26.9K

77.88%

Onion (1kg)

$2.42 Rp 44.1K

$1.01 ₫26.0K

139.60%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.99 Rp 18.0K

$0.65 ₫16.7K

52.31%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 Rp 9,332

$0.48 ₫12.4K

6.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.22 Rp 40.4K

$1.32 ₫34.1K

68.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$22.24 Rp 404.2K

$11.36 ₫293.4K

95.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 Rp 41.1K

$0.75 ₫19.3K

201.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.97 Rp 54.0K

$1.58 ₫40.8K

87.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 Rp 4,562

$0.32 ₫8,176

-21.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.82 Rp 142.2K

$6.37 ₫164.5K

22.76%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.44 Rp 7,989

$0.70 ₫18.1K

-37.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 Rp 7,817

$0.62 ₫16.1K

-30.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 Rp 98.3K

$2.75 ₫71.0K

96.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.82 Rp 15.0K

$0.84 ₫21.6K

-2.38%

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

$23.8K Rp 433.3M

$34.5K ₫891.1M

-30.89%

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

$31.7K Rp 577.0M

$32.4K ₫836.0M

-1.90%

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

$79.1 Rp 1.4M

$75.5 ₫2.0M

4.70%

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

$6.45 Rp 117.2K

$5.88 ₫151.8K

9.69%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.58 Rp 337.7K

$8.71 ₫225.1K

113.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.48 Rp 899.4K

$21.58 ₫557.5K

129.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.65 Rp 320.8K

$7.61 ₫196.5K

131.93%

Cinema Ticket

$4.27 Rp 77.7K

$3.01 ₫77.7K

41.86%

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

$491 Rp 8.9M

$262 ₫6.8M

87.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,674 Rp 103.1M

$11.7K ₫302.4M

-51.54%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.64 Rp 811.4K

$41.29 ₫1.1M

8.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.95 Rp 635.3K

$23.38 ₫604.0K

49.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.9 Rp 1.5M

$85.2 ₫2.2M

-6.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.4 Rp 1.4M

$74.2 ₫1.9M

7.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,125 Rp 20.4M

$358 ₫9.3M

213.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$671 Rp 12.2M

$252 ₫6.5M

165.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,565 Rp 64.8M

$732 ₫18.9M

386.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,723 Rp 31.3M

$542 ₫14.0M

218.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,732 Rp 49.6M

$2,090 ₫54.0M

30.70%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,284 Rp 41.5M

$1,224 ₫31.6M

86.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$164 Rp 3.0M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.78

9.1

51.43%

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

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 25, 2026

Last update for Ninh Binh: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ubud, Bali

$672 49.8%

Ninh Binh

$252 34.4% 62.4% $419

Groceries & Markets

Ubud, Bali

$288 21.4%

Ninh Binh

$191 26% 33.9% $98

Eating Out

Ubud, Bali

$108 8%

Ninh Binh

$61 8.3% 43.4% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Ubud, Bali

$108 8%

Ninh Binh

$101 13.7% 6.2% $6.7

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ubud, Bali

$104 7.7%

Ninh Binh

$90 12.3% 13.4% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Ubud, Bali

$58 4.3%

Ninh Binh

$28 3.8% 52.4% $30

Getting Around

Ubud, Bali

$11 0.9%

Ninh Binh

$11 1.6% 0.3% $0

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,125 in Ubud, Bali and $358 in Ninh Binh. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $36 in Ubud, Bali vs $21 in Ninh Binh for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $288 vs $191 per month, with Ninh Binh cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🇻🇳 Ninh Binh

🕒 Local time

03:59 3:59 AM

02:59 2:59 AM

1 h behind Ubud, Bali

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,800

148,406

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.5 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.87 USD

100,000 VND = 3.48 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 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18,175 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.5 USD). 1 EUR = 20,233 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 25,832 VND (100,000 VND = 3.87 USD). 1 EUR = 28,757 VND (100,000 VND = 3.48 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Ubud, Bali Ninh Binh 3,360 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Ubud, Bali
Ninh Binh

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 Ninh Binh: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ninh Binh is about 46% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $2,023 in Ubud, Bali and $1,101 in Ninh Binh 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: $1,125 in Ubud, Bali versus $358 in Ninh Binh. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $491 in Ubud, Bali versus $262 in Ninh Binh. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 51% higher in Ubud, Bali. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $734 in Ninh Binh versus $1,349 in Ubud, Bali, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Ninh Binh but tight or insufficient in Ubud, Bali. The gap between the two cities makes Ninh Binh 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 Ninh Binh are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Ninh Binh gentler on the wallet – expenses run 46% less than in Ubud, Bali. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.