Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Upington and Ubud, Bali

For one person, living is cheaper in Upington: $1,111 a month against $1,349 in Ubud, Bali, rent and utilities included – about $2,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Ubud, Bali outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

53

Cost of Living Index in Upington
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Upington Living Index
65

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

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Upington

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,111

/mo nomad

Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,349

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Upington and in Ubud, Bali actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,111 in Upington versus $1,349 in Ubud, Bali.

Upington $1,111
Ubud, Bali $1,349

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,731 in Upington versus $2,305 in Ubud, Bali.

Upington $1,731
Ubud, Bali $2,305

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,350 in Upington versus $3,261 in Ubud, Bali.

Upington $2,350
Ubud, Bali $3,261

Living in Upington costs roughly 18% less than in Ubud, Bali, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.13 R 202

$3.32 Rp 60.4K

265.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.62 R 594

$35.64 Rp 647.8K

-0.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.83 R 97.2

$5.53 Rp 100.6K

5.42%

Cappuccino

$1.75 R 29.17

$2.72 Rp 49.4K

-35.66%

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

$1.02 R 17.06

$1.70 Rp 30.9K

-40.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.77 R 12.87

$0.76 Rp 13.8K

1.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.70 R 28.38

$2.65 Rp 48.2K

-35.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.76 R 45.95

$4.38 Rp 79.6K

-36.99%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.93 R 15.45

$1.49 Rp 27.1K

-37.58%

White Bread (500g)

$1.22 R 20.27

$2.28 Rp 41.4K

-46.49%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.61 R 26.83

$1.19 Rp 21.6K

35.29%

Eggs

$2.22 R 36.95

$2.04 Rp 37.0K

8.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.31 R 138

$17.70 Rp 321.7K

-53.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.40 R 89.9

$3.96 Rp 72.0K

36.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.17 R 136

$12.19 Rp 221.6K

-32.98%

Apples (1kg)

$2.06 R 34.27

$3.66 Rp 66.4K

-43.72%

Banana (1kg)

$1.49 R 24.76

$1.52 Rp 27.6K

-1.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.64 R 27.37

$2.23 Rp 40.5K

-26.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.76 R 29.31

$1.97 Rp 35.9K

-10.66%

Potato (1kg)

$1.34 R 22.33

$1.85 Rp 33.6K

-27.57%

Onion (1kg)

$1.39 R 23.11

$2.42 Rp 44.1K

-42.56%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.11 R 18.43

$0.99 Rp 18.0K

12.12%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 R 20.33

$0.51 Rp 9,332

139.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.76 R 46.01

$2.22 Rp 40.4K

24.32%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.73 R 62.1

$22.24 Rp 404.2K

-83.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 R 25.67

$2.26 Rp 41.1K

-31.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 R 34.77

$2.97 Rp 54.0K

-29.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.46 R 24.31

$0.25 Rp 4,562

484.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.82 Rp 142.2K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.64 R 10.64

$0.44 Rp 7,989

45.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.79 R 13.16

$0.43 Rp 7,817

83.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.30 R 188

$5.41 Rp 98.3K

108.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 R 24.20

$0.82 Rp 15.0K

76.83%

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

$40.3K R 671.8K

$23.8K Rp 433.3M

69.09%

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

$34.8K R 579.4K

$31.7K Rp 577.0M

9.51%

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

$148 R 2,472

$79.1 Rp 1.4M

87.67%

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

$39.28 R 655

$6.45 Rp 117.2K

508.99%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$37.62 R 627

$18.58 Rp 337.7K

102.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.10 R 468

$49.48 Rp 899.4K

-43.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.70 R 195

$17.65 Rp 320.8K

-33.71%

Cinema Ticket

$8.00 R 133

$4.27 Rp 77.7K

87.35%

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

$103 R 1,709

$491 Rp 8.9M

-79.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,540 R 92.3K

$5,674 Rp 103.1M

-2.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.8 R 929

$44.64 Rp 811.4K

24.89%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.07 R 534

$34.95 Rp 635.3K

-8.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 R 1,736

$79.9 Rp 1.5M

30.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.3 R 1,405

$79.4 Rp 1.4M

6.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$389 R 6,474

$1,125 Rp 20.4M

-65.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$358 R 5,958

$671 Rp 12.2M

-46.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$613 R 10.2K

$3,565 Rp 64.8M

-82.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$736 R 12.3K

$1,723 Rp 31.3M

-57.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$917 R 15.3K

$2,732 Rp 49.6M

-66.42%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$739 R 12.3K

$2,284 Rp 41.5M

-67.62%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$781 R 13.0K

$164 Rp 3.0M

376.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.38

13.78

-17.42%

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

Last update for Upington: October 24, 2026

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Upington

$358 32.2%

Ubud, Bali

$672 49.8% 87.8% $314

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Upington

$225 20.3%

Ubud, Bali

$104 7.7% 53.8% $121

Groceries & Markets

Upington

$193 17.4%

Ubud, Bali

$288 21.4% 49.5% $96

Eating Out

Upington

$157 14.1%

Ubud, Bali

$108 8% 31.3% $49

Clothing & Footwear

Upington

$124 11.2%

Ubud, Bali

$108 8% 13.5% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Upington

$44 4%

Ubud, Bali

$58 4.3% 31.6% $14

Getting Around

Upington

$10 * 0.9%

Ubud, Bali

$11 0.9% 9.6% $1

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 $389 in Upington and $1,125 in Ubud, Bali. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Upington pays about 4.8 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 Upington vs $36 in Ubud, Bali for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $193 vs $288 per month, with Upington cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Upington

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🕒 Local time

22:49 10:49 PM

04:49 4:49 AM

6 h ahead of Upington

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,834

74,800

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.5 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

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).

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).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Upington Ubud, Bali 9,950 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Upington
Ubud, Bali

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

Upington vs Ubud, Bali: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Upington wins on cost – living expenses run 18% lower than in Ubud, Bali. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Upington the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Upington is about 4.8 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $389 in Upington versus $1,125 in Ubud, Bali. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,111 per month in Upington versus $1,349 in Ubud, Bali – Upington is about 18% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Supermarket bills run roughly 50% higher in Ubud, Bali. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Upington 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.