Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ubud, Bali and Santiago del Estero

For one person, living is cheaper in Santiago del Estero: $1,250 a month against $1,349 in Ubud, Bali, rent and utilities included – about $1,200 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Ubud, Bali outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

65

Cost of Living Index in Ubud, Bali
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Ubud, Bali Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Santiago del Estero
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Santiago del Estero Living Index

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Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,349

/mo nomad

Santiago del Estero

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,250

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ubud, Bali and in Santiago del Estero

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 Santiago del Estero actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,349 in Ubud, Bali versus $1,250 in Santiago del Estero.

Ubud, Bali $1,349
Santiago del Estero $1,250

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,305 in Ubud, Bali versus $2,041 in Santiago del Estero.

Ubud, Bali $2,305
Santiago del Estero $2,041

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,261 in Ubud, Bali versus $2,831 in Santiago del Estero.

Ubud, Bali $3,261
Santiago del Estero $2,831

Living in Ubud, Bali is roughly 8% more expensive than in Santiago del Estero, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.32 Rp 60.4K

$15.19 ARS 23.4K

-78.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.64 Rp 648.1K

$58.3 ARS 89.9K

-38.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.53 Rp 100.6K

$12.14 ARS 18.7K

-54.45%

Cappuccino

$2.72 Rp 49.4K

$4.25 ARS 6,552

-36.00%

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

$1.70 Rp 30.9K

$2.24 ARS 3,447

-24.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.76 Rp 13.8K

$2.01 ARS 3,099

-62.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 Rp 48.3K

$4.23 ARS 6,525

-37.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.38 Rp 79.7K

$4.24 ARS 6,531

3.30%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.49 Rp 27.1K

$1.39 ARS 2,147

7.19%

White Bread (500g)

$2.28 Rp 41.4K

$1.93 ARS 2,976

18.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.19 Rp 21.6K

$1.79 ARS 2,767

-33.52%

Eggs

$2.04 Rp 37.0K

$2.72 ARS 4,198

-25.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.70 Rp 321.9K

$13.15 ARS 20.3K

34.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.96 Rp 72.1K

$8.50 ARS 13.1K

-53.41%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.19 Rp 221.7K

$11.08 ARS 17.1K

10.02%

Apples (1kg)

$3.66 Rp 66.5K

$2.20 ARS 3,397

66.36%

Banana (1kg)

$1.52 Rp 27.6K

$2.44 ARS 3,759

-37.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.23 Rp 40.5K

$1.33 ARS 2,052

67.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.97 Rp 35.9K

$2.68 ARS 4,127

-26.49%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 Rp 33.6K

$1.14 ARS 1,756

62.28%

Onion (1kg)

$2.42 Rp 44.1K

$0.99 ARS 1,523

144.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.99 Rp 18.0K

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 Rp 9,336

$1.40 ARS 2,153

-63.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.22 Rp 40.4K

$3.03 ARS 4,671

-26.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$22.24 Rp 404.4K

$5.16 ARS 7,955

331.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 Rp 41.1K

$2.01 ARS 3,099

12.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.97 Rp 54.0K

$2.94 ARS 4,527

1.02%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 Rp 4,564

$0.86 ARS 1,318

-70.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.82 Rp 142.3K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.44 Rp 7,992

$1.29 ARS 1,982

-65.89%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 Rp 7,821

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 Rp 98.4K

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.82 Rp 15.0K

$1.37 ARS 2,117

-40.15%

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

$23.8K Rp 433.5M

$25.4K ARS 39.1M

-6.03%

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

$31.7K Rp 577.3M

$28.4K ARS 43.8M

11.71%

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

$79.1 Rp 1.4M

$112 ARS 172.3K

-29.28%

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

$6.45 Rp 117.2K

$16.69 ARS 25.7K

-61.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.58 Rp 337.8K

$27.28 ARS 42.0K

-31.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.48 Rp 899.8K

$30.77 ARS 47.4K

60.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.65 Rp 320.9K

$20.24 ARS 31.2K

-12.80%

Cinema Ticket

$4.27 Rp 77.7K

$8.02 ARS 12.4K

-46.76%

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

$491 Rp 8.9M

$211 ARS 325.5K

132.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,674 Rp 103.2M

$4,592 ARS 7.1M

23.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.64 Rp 811.7K

$118 ARS 181.3K

-62.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.95 Rp 635.6K

$84.8 ARS 130.7K

-58.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.9 Rp 1.5M

$103 ARS 159.3K

-22.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.4 Rp 1.4M

$107 ARS 165.2K

-25.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,125 Rp 20.5M

$520 ARS 802.0K

116.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$671 Rp 12.2M

$342 ARS 527.9K

96.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,565 Rp 64.8M

$1,033 ARS 1.6M

245.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,723 Rp 31.3M

$713 ARS 1.1M

141.73%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,732 Rp 49.7M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,284 Rp 41.5M

$1,266 ARS 2.0M

80.42%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$164 Rp 3.0M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.78

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

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 25, 2026

Last update for Santiago del Estero: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ubud, Bali

$672 49.8%

Santiago del Estero

$342 27.4% 49% $329

Groceries & Markets

Ubud, Bali

$288 21.4%

Santiago del Estero

$259 * 20.7% 10.1% $29

Eating Out

Ubud, Bali

$108 8%

Santiago del Estero

$256 20.4% 137% $148

Clothing & Footwear

Ubud, Bali

$108 8%

Santiago del Estero

$186 14.9% 72.8% $78

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ubud, Bali

$104 7.7%

Santiago del Estero

$156 12.5% 49.7% $52

Sport & Entertainment

Ubud, Bali

$58 4.3%

Santiago del Estero

$47 3.7% 19.4% $11

Getting Around

Ubud, Bali

$11 0.9%

Santiago del Estero

$4.7 * 0.4% 58.8% $6.7

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 $520 in Santiago del Estero. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $36 in Ubud, Bali vs $58 in Santiago del Estero. Groceries flip the comparison at $288 vs $259, with Santiago del Estero cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🇦🇷 Santiago del Estero

🕒 Local time

09:29 9:29 AM

22:29 10:29 PM

11 h behind Ubud, Bali

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,800

252,192

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.5 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.49 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.83 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 18,183 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.5 USD). 1 EUR = 20,242 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 1,541 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.49 USD). 1 EUR = 1,716 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.83 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ubud, Bali Santiago del Estero 15,980 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Ubud, Bali
Santiago del Estero

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 Santiago del Estero: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,349 in Ubud, Bali and $1,250 in Santiago del Estero, so Santiago del Estero is about 7% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,023 in Ubud, Bali and $1,876 in Santiago del Estero 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 $520 in Santiago del Estero. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $491 in Ubud, Bali versus $211 in Santiago del Estero. 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 $58 in Santiago del Estero. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Santiago del Estero gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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 Santiago del Estero are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.