Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ubud, Bali and Samara, Costa Rica

For one person, living is cheaper in Ubud, Bali: $1,349 a month against $2,032 in Samara, rent and utilities included – about $8,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

65

Cost of Living Index in Ubud, Bali
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Ubud, Bali Living Index
97

Cost of Living Index in Samara
Learn more

Samara Living Index

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Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,349

/mo nomad

Samara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,032

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,349 in Ubud, Bali versus $2,032 in Samara.

Ubud, Bali $1,349
Samara $2,032

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,305 in Ubud, Bali versus $3,533 in Samara.

Ubud, Bali $2,305
Samara $3,533

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,261 in Ubud, Bali versus $5,034 in Samara.

Ubud, Bali $3,261
Samara $5,034

Living in Ubud, Bali costs roughly 34% less than in Samara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.32 Rp 60.2K

$11.07 ₡4,997

-70.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.64 Rp 645.8K

$62.2 ₡28.1K

-42.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.53 Rp 100.3K

$11.70 ₡5,282

-52.74%

Cappuccino

$2.72 Rp 49.3K

$4.34 ₡1,960

-37.33%

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

$1.70 Rp 30.8K

$2.72 ₡1,229

-37.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.76 Rp 13.8K

$1.92 ₡866

-60.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 Rp 48.1K

$3.32 ₡1,501

-20.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.38 Rp 79.4K

$4.51 ₡2,036

-2.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.49 Rp 27.0K

$2.42 ₡1,095

-38.43%

White Bread (500g)

$2.28 Rp 41.2K

$3.05 ₡1,376

-25.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.19 Rp 21.6K

$2.50 ₡1,129

-52.40%

Eggs

$2.04 Rp 36.9K

$3.46 ₡1,561

-41.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.70 Rp 320.8K

$10.78 ₡4,868

64.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.96 Rp 71.8K

$10.49 ₡4,736

-62.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.19 Rp 220.9K

$10.82 ₡4,885

12.66%

Apples (1kg)

$3.66 Rp 66.2K

$5.01 ₡2,263

-26.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.52 Rp 27.5K

$1.65 ₡745

-7.88%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.23 Rp 40.4K

$4.72 ₡2,129

-52.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.97 Rp 35.7K

$3.82 ₡1,723

-48.43%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 Rp 33.5K

$3.72 ₡1,679

-50.27%

Onion (1kg)

$2.42 Rp 43.9K

$3.69 ₡1,665

-34.42%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.99 Rp 17.9K

$1.08 ₡487

-8.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 Rp 9,303

$3.09 ₡1,397

-83.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.22 Rp 40.3K

$5.57 ₡2,516

-60.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$22.24 Rp 403.0K

$18.86 ₡8,513

17.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 Rp 41.0K

$2.78 ₡1,255

-18.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.97 Rp 53.8K

$2.48 ₡1,119

19.76%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 Rp 4,548

$1.40 ₡630

-82.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.82 Rp 141.8K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.44 Rp 7,964

$2.48 ₡1,118

-82.26%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 Rp 7,793

$1.57 ₡709

-72.61%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 Rp 98.0K

$8.51 ₡3,843

-36.43%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.82 Rp 14.9K

$1.52 ₡686

-46.05%

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

$23.8K Rp 432.0M

$34.3K ₡15.5M

-30.52%

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

$31.7K Rp 575.3M

$41.2K ₡18.6M

-23.01%

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

$79.1 Rp 1.4M

$94.0 ₡42.4K

-15.88%

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

$6.45 Rp 116.8K

$35.45 ₡16.0K

-81.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.58 Rp 336.7K

$59.0 ₡26.6K

-68.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.48 Rp 896.7K

$66.9 ₡30.2K

-25.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.65 Rp 319.8K

Cinema Ticket

$4.27 Rp 77.4K

$7.88 ₡3,556

-45.81%

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

$491 Rp 8.9M

$502 ₡226.4K

-2.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,674 Rp 102.8M

$6,013 ₡2.7M

-5.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.64 Rp 808.9K

$67.1 ₡30.3K

-33.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.95 Rp 633.4K

$55.5 ₡25.1K

-37.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.9 Rp 1.4M

$129 ₡58.4K

-38.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.4 Rp 1.4M

$133 ₡60.0K

-40.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,125 Rp 20.4M

$1,373 ₡619.7K

-18.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$671 Rp 12.2M

$967 ₡436.4K

-30.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,565 Rp 64.6M

$3,769 ₡1.7M

-5.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,723 Rp 31.2M

$2,611 ₡1.2M

-33.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,732 Rp 49.5M

$4,955 ₡2.2M

-44.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,284 Rp 41.4M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$164 Rp 3.0M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.78

8.62

59.86%

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

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 25, 2026

Last update for Samara: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ubud, Bali

$672 49.8%

Samara

$967 47.6% 44% $295

Groceries & Markets

Ubud, Bali

$288 21.4%

Samara

$385 19% 33.6% $97

Eating Out

Ubud, Bali

$108 8%

Samara

$220 10.8% 104% $112

Clothing & Footwear

Ubud, Bali

$108 8%

Samara

$173 8.5% 61.1% $66

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ubud, Bali

$104 7.7%

Samara

$188 9.3% 81% $84

Sport & Entertainment

Ubud, Bali

$58 4.3%

Samara

$83 4.1% 42.3% $25

Getting Around

Ubud, Bali

$11 0.9%

Samara

$16 * 0.8% 39.2% $4.5

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 $1,373 in Samara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $36 in Ubud, Bali vs $62 in Samara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $288 vs $385 per month, with Ubud, Bali cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🇨🇷 Samara

🕒 Local time

10:37 10:37 AM

20:37 8:37 PM

14 h behind Ubud, Bali

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,800

1,071

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.52 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18,120 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.52 USD). 1 EUR = 20,232 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ubud, Bali Samara 17,730 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

Ubud, Bali
Samara

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 Samara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,349 in Ubud, Bali and $2,032 in Samara, so Ubud, Bali is about 34% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,023 in Ubud, Bali and $3,048 in Samara 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 $1,373 in Samara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $491 in Ubud, Bali versus $502 in Samara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Ubud, Bali – a meal for two runs $36 versus $62 in Samara. 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 Samara are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.