Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ubud, Bali and Polokwane

For one person, living is cheaper in Polokwane: $959 a month against $1,368 in Ubud, Bali, rent and utilities included – about $4,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Ubud, Bali outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

67

Cost of Living Index in Ubud, Bali
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Ubud, Bali Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in Polokwane
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Polokwane Living Index

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Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,368

/mo nomad

Polokwane

🇿🇦 South Africa

$959

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,368 per month in Ubud, Bali vs $959 in Polokwane, rent included.

Ubud, Bali $1,368
Polokwane $959

A couple spends around $2,314 per month in Ubud, Bali vs $1,417 in Polokwane, rent included.

Ubud, Bali $2,314
Polokwane $1,417

A family of three spends $3,260 per month in Ubud, Bali vs $1,875 in Polokwane, rent included.

Ubud, Bali $3,260
Polokwane $1,875

Ubud, Bali costs about 43% more than Polokwane, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Ubud, Bali sits 1% above the global median, while Polokwane is 29% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.33 Rp 59.9K

$12.24 R 202

-72.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.18 Rp 633.2K

$29.66 R 489

18.61%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.80 Rp 104.5K

$7.46 R 123

-22.25%

Cappuccino

$2.73 Rp 49.1K

$2.38 R 39.26

14.71%

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

$1.64 Rp 29.5K

$0.77 R 12.68

112.99%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 Rp 15.0K

$0.88 R 14.47

-5.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.70 Rp 48.6K

$1.68 R 27.65

60.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.30 Rp 77.4K

$1.88 R 30.95

128.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 Rp 27.1K

$1.32 R 21.71

13.64%

White Bread (500g)

$2.30 Rp 41.4K

$1.08 R 17.82

112.96%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.18 Rp 21.2K

$1.70 R 28.03

-30.59%

Eggs

$2.14 Rp 38.6K

$2.65 R 43.69

-19.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.48 Rp 314.6K

$7.84 R 129

122.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.03 Rp 72.5K

$4.59 R 75.6

-12.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.23 Rp 220.1K

$6.04 R 99.6

102.48%

Apples (1kg)

$3.55 Rp 63.9K

$2.01 R 33.19

76.62%

Banana (1kg)

$1.57 Rp 28.3K

$1.85 R 30.53

-15.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.24 Rp 40.2K

$1.81 R 29.80

23.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.93 Rp 34.7K

$1.96 R 32.30

-1.53%

Potato (1kg)

$1.88 Rp 33.9K

$1.67 R 27.49

12.57%

Onion (1kg)

$2.29 Rp 41.3K

$1.50 R 24.73

52.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.99 Rp 17.9K

$1.12 R 18.48

-11.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 Rp 9,475

$0.82 R 13.46

-35.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.28 Rp 41.1K

$2.68 R 44.22

-14.93%

Wine (Bottle)

$23.01 Rp 414.2K

$4.87 R 80.2

372.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.34 Rp 42.2K

$1.15 R 18.88

103.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.91 Rp 52.4K

$1.61 R 26.54

80.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.24 Rp 4,315

$0.92 R 15.22

-73.91%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.82 Rp 158.7K

$30.03 R 495

-70.63%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.48 Rp 8,684

$0.87 R 14.41

-44.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.46 Rp 8,233

$0.95 R 15.66

-51.58%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.45 Rp 98.2K

$14.36 R 237

-62.05%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.88 Rp 15.9K

$1.43 R 23.52

-38.46%

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

$24.6K Rp 442.2M

$26.1K R 430.1K

-5.89%

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

$31.2K Rp 561.4M

$28.5K R 469.0K

9.56%

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

$83.0 Rp 1.5M

$138 R 2,281

-40.05%

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

$6.45 Rp 116.0K

$38.10 R 628

-83.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.57 Rp 334.2K

$32.99 R 544

-43.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.8 Rp 1.0M

$23.29 R 384

139.67%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.11 Rp 326.0K

Cinema Ticket

$4.38 Rp 78.9K

$8.00 R 132

-45.25%

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

$493 Rp 8.9M

$179 R 2,946

175.68%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,754 Rp 103.6M

$1,452 R 23.9K

296.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$46.19 Rp 831.4K

$45.30 R 746

1.96%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.33 Rp 636.0K

$37.73 R 622

-6.36%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.1 Rp 1.4M

$80.6 R 1,328

-1.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.4 Rp 1.4M

$93.7 R 1,544

-16.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,142 Rp 20.6M

$290 R 4,785

293.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$676 Rp 12.2M

$203 R 3,338

233.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,503 Rp 63.1M

$420 R 6,922

733.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,700 Rp 30.6M

$284 R 4,683

498.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,784 Rp 50.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,241 Rp 40.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$165 Rp 3.0M

$1,343 R 22.1K

-87.75%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.78

10.91

26.31%

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

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 11, 2026

Last update for Polokwane: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ubud, Bali

$676 49.4%

Polokwane

$203 21.1% 70% $473

Groceries & Markets

Ubud, Bali

$290 21.2%

Polokwane

$185 19.3% 36.2% $105

Eating Out

Ubud, Bali

$109 8%

Polokwane

$168 17.5% 54.1% $59

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ubud, Bali

$108 7.9%

Polokwane

$210 21.8% 94% $102

Clothing & Footwear

Ubud, Bali

$108 7.9%

Polokwane

$116 12.1% 7.7% $8.3

Sport & Entertainment

Ubud, Bali

$65 4.7%

Polokwane

$39 4.1% 39.1% $25

Getting Around

Ubud, Bali

$13 0.9%

Polokwane

$39 4.1% 214% $27

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,142 in Ubud, Bali versus $290 in Polokwane. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 716% higher in Polokwane, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $35.00 in Ubud, Bali versus $30.00 in Polokwane. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $290 vs $185 – making Polokwane the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🇿🇦 Polokwane

🕒 Local time

01:50 1:50 AM

19:50 7:50 PM

6 h behind Ubud, Bali

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,800

628,999

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18,000 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD). 1 EUR = 20,236 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ubud, Bali Polokwane 9,200 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Ubud, Bali
Polokwane

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 Polokwane: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ubud, Bali costs about 43% more than Polokwane, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,051 per month in Ubud, Bali and $1,439 in Polokwane. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Polokwane, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $493 per month in Ubud, Bali and $179 in Polokwane. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 57% more in Ubud, Bali, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Polokwane, where all-in costs run around $959, than in Ubud, Bali at $1,368. In Polokwane it covers expenses comfortably, while in Ubud, Bali it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Polokwane costs $959 versus $1,368 in Ubud, Bali. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Polokwane. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Ubud, Bali makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.