Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ubud, Bali and Surin

For one person, living is cheaper in Surin: $869 a month against $1,353 in Ubud, Bali, rent and utilities included – about $5,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Ubud, Bali
🇮🇩 Indonesia
$1,353
/mo nomad
Surin
🇹🇭 Thailand
$869
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,353 in Ubud, Bali versus $869 in Surin.

  • Ubud, Bali $1,353
  • Surin $869

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,297 in Ubud, Bali versus $1,444 in Surin.

  • Ubud, Bali $2,297
  • Surin $1,444

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,241 in Ubud, Bali versus $2,018 in Surin.

  • Ubud, Bali $3,241
  • Surin $2,018

Living in Ubud, Bali is roughly 56% more expensive than in Surin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Ubud, Bali is 0% above, Surin is 36% below.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Ubud, Bali
Surin
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$3.23 Rp 58.1K
$3.03 ฿101
6.60%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$34.88 Rp 627.8K
$24.70 ฿826
41.21%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.70 Rp 102.5K
$7.23 ฿242
-21.16%
Cappuccino
$2.62 Rp 47.1K
$1.74 ฿58.3
50.57%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.72 Rp 31.0K
$0.61 ฿20.30
181.97%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.81 Rp 14.6K
$0.33 ฿10.89
145.45%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.65 Rp 47.7K
$2.20 ฿73.5
20.45%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.37 Rp 78.6K
$3.42 ฿114
27.78%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Ubud, Bali
Surin
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.57 Rp 28.3K
$1.57 ฿52.4
-
White Bread (500g)
$2.19 Rp 39.5K
$1.31 ฿43.79
67.18%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.18 Rp 21.2K
$1.47 ฿48.98
-19.73%
Eggs
$2.16 Rp 38.8K
$1.90 ฿63.5
13.68%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$17.65 Rp 317.7K
$17.41 ฿582
1.38%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$3.78 Rp 68.0K
$2.48 ฿83.0
52.42%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$11.95 Rp 215.1K
$8.89 ฿297
34.42%
Apples (1kg)
$3.60 Rp 64.8K
$2.57 ฿86.0
40.08%
Banana (1kg)
$1.59 Rp 28.6K
$1.02 ฿34.23
55.88%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.31 Rp 41.6K
$2.48 ฿82.9
-6.85%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.91 Rp 34.3K
$2.05 ฿68.5
-6.83%
Potato (1kg)
$1.78 Rp 32.1K
$1.44 ฿48.20
23.61%
Onion (1kg)
$2.33 Rp 41.9K
$0.95 ฿31.77
145.26%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.00 Rp 18.0K
$0.94 ฿31.37
6.38%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.53 Rp 9,509
$0.44 ฿14.59
20.45%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.29 Rp 41.1K
$4.27 ฿143
-46.37%
Wine (Bottle)
$22.07 Rp 397.3K
$16.36 ฿547
34.90%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.35 Rp 42.2K
$1.57 ฿52.4
49.68%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.98 Rp 53.6K
$3.01 ฿100
-1.00%
🚌 Getting Around
Ubud, Bali
Surin
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.23 Rp 4,112
$0.92 ฿30.79
-75.00%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$8.90 Rp 160.2K
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.47 Rp 8,466
$1.37 ฿45.65
-65.69%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.43 Rp 7,737
$1.01 ฿33.73
-57.43%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.47 Rp 98.4K
$6.04 ฿202
-9.44%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$0.83 Rp 14.9K
$1.35 ฿45.06
-38.52%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$23.9K Rp 429.8M
$22.7K ฿758.4K
5.21%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$32.8K Rp 590.1M
$27.1K ฿904.4K
21.15%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Ubud, Bali
Surin
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$80.0 Rp 1.4M
$77.8 ฿2,601
2.79%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$6.56 Rp 118.1K
$11.53 ฿385
-43.10%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$18.60 Rp 334.8K
$18.68 ฿624
-0.43%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Ubud, Bali
Surin
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$54.1 Rp 974.1K
$41.58 ฿1,390
30.16%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.28 Rp 329.0K
$11.45 ฿383
59.65%
Cinema Ticket
$4.25 Rp 76.5K
$6.51 ฿218
-34.72%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Ubud, Bali
Surin
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$493 Rp 8.9M
$628 ฿21.0K
-21.49%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,597 Rp 100.7M
$12.1K ฿405.0K
-53.81%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Ubud, Bali
Surin
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$45.58 Rp 820.4K
$53.1 ฿1,773
-14.10%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$34.96 Rp 629.4K
$27.95 ฿934
25.08%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$77.7 Rp 1.4M
$73.3 ฿2,451
5.97%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$78.5 Rp 1.4M
$68.0 ฿2,274
15.40%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Ubud, Bali
Surin
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,131 Rp 20.4M
$440 ฿14.7K
157.17%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$673 Rp 12.1M
$273 ฿9,126
146.42%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$3,613 Rp 65.0M
$1,185 ฿39.6K
204.94%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,702 Rp 30.6M
$714 ฿23.9K
138.30%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,717 Rp 48.9M
$1,730 ฿57.8K
57.10%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,241 Rp 40.3M
$1,518 ฿50.7K
47.63%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Ubud, Bali
Surin
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$166 Rp 3.0M
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
13.78
5.57
147.40%

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

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 19, 2026

Last update for Surin: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Ubud, Bali
$673
Surin
$273 59.4% $400
Groceries & Markets
Ubud, Bali
$287
Surin
$235 18.3% $53
Clothing & Footwear
Ubud, Bali
$107
Surin
$100 6.1% $6.5
Eating Out
Ubud, Bali
$106
Surin
$88 16.9% $18
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Ubud, Bali
$105
Surin
$108 2.7% $2.9
Sport & Entertainment
Ubud, Bali
$63
Surin
$55 12.8% $8
Getting Around
Ubud, Bali
$12
Surin
$10 * 18.7% $2.3

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 $1,131 in Ubud, Bali and $440 in Surin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $35.00 in Ubud, Bali vs $25.00 in Surin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $287 vs $235 per month, with Surin cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali
🇹🇭 Surin
🕒 Local time
14:28 2:28 PM
13:28 1:28 PM
1 h behind Ubud, Bali
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
74,800
40,104
💱 Currency
Thai Baht THB ฿
Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 18,000 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD). 1 EUR = 20,236 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Ubud, Bali Surin 2,910 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Ubud, Bali
  • Surin

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 Surin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which city is more expensive, Ubud, Bali or Surin?
Surin wins on cost – living expenses run 56% lower than in Ubud, Bali. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Surin the obvious pick if budget is a priority.
How much do you need to earn to live comfortably in Ubud, Bali and in Surin?
You'd need roughly $2,030 in Ubud, Bali and $1,303 in Surin 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.
How much does a 1-bedroom apartment cost in Ubud, Bali compared to Surin?
Rent for a central apartment: $1,131 in Ubud, Bali versus $440 in Surin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
Are groceries more expensive in Ubud, Bali or in Surin?
Supermarket bills run roughly 22% higher in Ubud, Bali. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.
How much does it cost to live in Ubud, Bali compared to Surin?
All in, you'll spend $1,353 per month in Ubud, Bali versus $869 in Surin – a 56% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.
Can you live on $1,000/month in Ubud, Bali or in Surin?
At $869 in Surin versus $1,353 in Ubud, Bali, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Surin but tight or insufficient in Ubud, Bali. The gap between the two cities makes Surin the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Which city is better for digital nomads, Ubud, Bali or Surin?
Both work as nomad bases, but Surin delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $869 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Surin hard to pass up.
How safe is Ubud, Bali compared to Surin?
Safety-wise, Ubud, Bali and Surin are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.
Which city is more affordable for expats?
Expats usually find Surin gentler on the wallet – expenses run 56% less than in Ubud, Bali. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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