Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ubud, Bali and Worcester, South Africa

For one person, living is cheaper in Worcester: $688 a month against $1,349 in Ubud, Bali, rent and utilities included – about $7,900 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
33

Cost of Living Index in Worcester
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Worcester Living Index

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Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,349

/mo nomad

Worcester

🇿🇦 South Africa

$688

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,349 in Ubud, Bali versus $688 in Worcester.

Ubud, Bali $1,349
Worcester $688

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,305 in Ubud, Bali versus $1,543 in Worcester.

Ubud, Bali $2,305
Worcester $1,543

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,261 in Ubud, Bali versus $2,398 in Worcester.

Ubud, Bali $3,261
Worcester $2,398

Living in Ubud, Bali is roughly 96% more expensive than in Worcester, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.32 Rp 60.4K

$5.05 R 84.2

-34.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.64 Rp 647.8K

$33.13 R 552

7.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.53 Rp 100.6K

$4.42 R 73.7

25.11%

Cappuccino

$2.72 Rp 49.4K

$1.54 R 25.65

76.62%

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

$1.70 Rp 30.9K

$0.80 R 13.41

112.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.76 Rp 13.8K

$0.71 R 11.75

7.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 Rp 48.2K

$2.42 R 40.29

9.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.38 Rp 79.6K

$2.15 R 35.77

103.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.49 Rp 27.1K

$0.81 R 13.53

83.95%

White Bread (500g)

$2.28 Rp 41.4K

$1.00 R 16.67

128.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.19 Rp 21.6K

$1.23 R 20.50

-3.25%

Eggs

$2.04 Rp 37.0K

$1.71 R 28.48

19.30%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.70 Rp 321.7K

$8.90 R 148

98.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.96 Rp 72.0K

$6.86 R 114

-42.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.19 Rp 221.6K

$5.47 R 91.2

122.85%

Apples (1kg)

$3.66 Rp 66.4K

$1.84 R 30.61

98.91%

Banana (1kg)

$1.52 Rp 27.6K

$1.87 R 31.19

-18.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.23 Rp 40.5K

$1.68 R 27.91

32.74%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.97 Rp 35.9K

$2.07 R 34.43

-4.83%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 Rp 33.6K

$0.69 R 11.53

168.12%

Onion (1kg)

$2.42 Rp 44.1K

$1.49 R 24.86

62.42%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.99 Rp 18.0K

$1.28 R 21.29

-22.66%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 Rp 9,332

$1.18 R 19.73

-56.78%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.22 Rp 40.4K

$3.63 R 60.5

-38.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$22.24 Rp 404.2K

$6.14 R 102

262.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 Rp 41.1K

$1.17 R 19.44

93.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.97 Rp 54.0K

$2.19 R 36.53

35.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 Rp 4,562

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.82 Rp 142.2K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.44 Rp 7,989

$0.58 R 9.59

-24.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 Rp 7,817

$1.48 R 24.65

-70.95%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 Rp 98.3K

$4.82 R 80.3

12.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.82 Rp 15.0K

$1.57 R 26.20

-47.77%

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

$23.8K Rp 433.3M

$34.6K R 576.9K

-31.14%

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

$31.7K Rp 577.0M

$33.4K R 557.3K

-5.06%

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

$79.1 Rp 1.4M

$117 R 1,941

-32.14%

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

$6.45 Rp 117.2K

$28.46 R 474

-77.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.58 Rp 337.7K

$40.51 R 675

-54.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.48 Rp 899.4K

$50.4 R 840

-1.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.65 Rp 320.8K

$12.25 R 204

44.08%

Cinema Ticket

$4.27 Rp 77.7K

$8.78 R 146

-51.37%

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

$491 Rp 8.9M

$301 R 5,021

62.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,674 Rp 103.1M

$6,767 R 112.8K

-16.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.64 Rp 811.4K

$55.0 R 916

-18.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.95 Rp 635.3K

$32.40 R 540

7.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.9 Rp 1.5M

$122 R 2,026

-34.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.4 Rp 1.4M

$104 R 1,727

-23.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,125 Rp 20.4M

$395 R 6,589

184.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$671 Rp 12.2M

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,565 Rp 64.8M

$787 R 13.1K

352.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,723 Rp 31.3M

$915 R 15.2K

88.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,732 Rp 49.6M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,284 Rp 41.5M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$164 Rp 3.0M

$966 R 16.1K

-83.04%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.78

10.97

25.62%

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

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 25, 2026

Last update for Worcester: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ubud, Bali

$672 49.8%

Worcester

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Ubud, Bali

$288 21.4%

Worcester

$192 27.8% 33.6% $97

Eating Out

Ubud, Bali

$108 8%

Worcester

$95 13.7% 12.1% $13

Clothing & Footwear

Ubud, Bali

$108 8%

Worcester

$141 20.4% 30.9% $33

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ubud, Bali

$104 7.7%

Worcester

$185 27% 78.2% $81

Sport & Entertainment

Ubud, Bali

$58 4.3%

Worcester

$68 9.9% 17.1% $9.9

Getting Around

Ubud, Bali

$11 0.9%

Worcester

$8 * 1.2% 30.2% $3.5

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 $395 in Worcester. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Worcester pays about 5.9 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $36 in Ubud, Bali vs $33 in Worcester for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $288 vs $192 per month, with Worcester cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🇿🇦 Worcester

🕒 Local time

05:35 5:35 AM

23:35 11:35 PM

6 h behind Ubud, Bali

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,800

97,098

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.5 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

100 ZAR = 6 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 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 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18,175 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.5 USD). 1 EUR = 20,233 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 16.66 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6 USD). 1 EUR = 18.55 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Ubud, Bali Worcester 10,020 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Ubud, Bali
Worcester

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 Worcester: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Worcester wins on cost – living expenses run 49% lower than in Ubud, Bali. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Worcester the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 83% lower in Ubud, Bali. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,125 in Ubud, Bali versus $395 in Worcester. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

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

All in, you’ll spend $1,349 per month in Ubud, Bali versus $688 in Worcester – Worcester is about 49% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $688 in Worcester versus $1,349 in Ubud, Bali, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Worcester but tight or insufficient in Ubud, Bali. The gap between the two cities makes Worcester 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.