Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Urumqi and Ubud, Bali

For one person, living is cheaper in Urumqi: $605 a month against $1,353 in Ubud, Bali, rent and utilities included – about $9,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Urumqi
🇨🇳 China
$605
/mo nomad
Ubud, Bali
🇮🇩 Indonesia
$1,353
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Urumqi 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 Urumqi and in Ubud, Bali actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $605 in Urumqi versus $1,353 in Ubud, Bali.

  • Urumqi $605
  • Ubud, Bali $1,353

Estimated couple costs with rent: $960 in Urumqi versus $2,297 in Ubud, Bali.

  • Urumqi $960
  • Ubud, Bali $2,297

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,316 in Urumqi versus $3,241 in Ubud, Bali.

  • Urumqi $1,316
  • Ubud, Bali $3,241

Living in Urumqi costs roughly 55% less than in Ubud, Bali, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Urumqi is 55% below, Ubud, Bali is 0% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Urumqi
Ubud, Bali
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$3.29 ¥21.98
$3.23 Rp 58.1K
1.86%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$18.16 ¥121
$34.88 Rp 627.8K
-47.94%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.28 ¥35.30
$5.70 Rp 102.5K
-7.37%
Cappuccino
$2.87 ¥19.19
$2.62 Rp 47.1K
9.54%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.46 ¥3.08
$1.72 Rp 31.0K
-73.26%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.24 ¥1.59
$0.81 Rp 14.6K
-70.37%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.14 ¥7.63
$2.65 Rp 47.7K
-56.98%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.77 ¥11.83
$4.37 Rp 78.6K
-59.50%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Urumqi
Ubud, Bali
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.24 ¥8.26
$1.57 Rp 28.3K
-21.02%
White Bread (500g)
$0.93 ¥6.22
$2.19 Rp 39.5K
-57.53%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$0.62 ¥4.12
$1.18 Rp 21.2K
-47.46%
Eggs
$1.54 ¥10.28
$2.16 Rp 38.8K
-28.70%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$6.13 ¥40.96
$17.65 Rp 317.7K
-65.27%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$2.49 ¥16.63
$3.78 Rp 68.0K
-34.13%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$9.61 ¥64.3
$11.95 Rp 215.1K
-19.58%
Apples (1kg)
$2.04 ¥13.62
$3.60 Rp 64.8K
-43.33%
Banana (1kg)
$1.23 ¥8.22
$1.59 Rp 28.6K
-22.64%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.86 ¥12.43
$2.31 Rp 41.6K
-19.48%
Tomato (1kg)
$0.76 ¥5.11
$1.91 Rp 34.3K
-60.21%
Potato (1kg)
$0.54 ¥3.61
$1.78 Rp 32.1K
-69.66%
Onion (1kg)
$0.62 ¥4.17
$2.33 Rp 41.9K
-73.39%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.50 ¥3.33
$1.00 Rp 18.0K
-50.00%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.45 ¥3.00
$0.53 Rp 9,509
-15.09%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.93 ¥19.57
$2.29 Rp 41.1K
27.95%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.51 ¥70.3
$22.07 Rp 397.3K
-52.38%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.09 ¥7.30
$2.35 Rp 42.2K
-53.62%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.47 ¥9.84
$2.98 Rp 53.6K
-50.67%
🚌 Getting Around
Urumqi
Ubud, Bali
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.29 ¥1.93
$0.23 Rp 4,112
26.09%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$18.08 ¥121
$8.90 Rp 160.2K
103.15%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.47 ¥9.81
$0.47 Rp 8,466
212.77%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.29 ¥1.94
$0.43 Rp 7,737
-32.56%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$7.30 ¥48.80
$5.47 Rp 98.4K
33.46%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.23 ¥8.23
$0.83 Rp 14.9K
48.19%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$17.9K ¥119.5K
$23.9K Rp 429.8M
-25.18%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$13.9K ¥93.2K
$32.8K Rp 590.1M
-57.50%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Urumqi
Ubud, Bali
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$66.5 ¥444
$80.0 Rp 1.4M
-16.93%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$5.43 ¥36.33
$6.56 Rp 118.1K
-17.23%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$11.29 ¥75.5
$18.60 Rp 334.8K
-39.30%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Urumqi
Ubud, Bali
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$22.12 ¥148
$54.1 Rp 974.1K
-59.13%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$9.40 ¥62.8
$18.28 Rp 329.0K
-48.58%
Cinema Ticket
$5.82 ¥38.90
$4.25 Rp 76.5K
36.94%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Urumqi
Ubud, Bali
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$161 ¥1,078
$493 Rp 8.9M
-67.29%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$9,005 ¥60.2K
$5,597 Rp 100.7M
60.89%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Urumqi
Ubud, Bali
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$52.6 ¥351
$45.58 Rp 820.4K
15.29%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$22.05 ¥147
$34.96 Rp 629.4K
-36.93%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$106 ¥712
$77.7 Rp 1.4M
37.02%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$44.33 ¥296
$78.5 Rp 1.4M
-43.54%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Urumqi
Ubud, Bali
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$261 ¥1,748
$1,131 Rp 20.4M
-76.90%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$117 ¥784
$673 Rp 12.1M
-82.58%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$405 ¥2,708
$3,613 Rp 65.0M
-88.79%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$251 ¥1,678
$1,702 Rp 30.6M
-85.25%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$1,834 ¥12.3K
$2,717 Rp 48.9M
-32.52%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,159 ¥7,748
$2,241 Rp 40.3M
-48.30%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Urumqi
Ubud, Bali
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,114 ¥7,449
$166 Rp 3.0M
569.65%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
3.39
13.78
-75.40%

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

Last update for Urumqi: October 18, 2026

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Groceries & Markets
Urumqi
$158
Ubud, Bali
$287 81.3% $129
Accommodation & Living
Urumqi
$117
Ubud, Bali
$673 474% $556
Clothing & Footwear
Urumqi
$101
Ubud, Bali
$107 5% $5.1
Eating Out
Urumqi
$89
Ubud, Bali
$106 20.1% $18
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Urumqi
$83
Ubud, Bali
$105 26.4% $22
Sport & Entertainment
Urumqi
$34
Ubud, Bali
$63 85.5% $29
Getting Around
Urumqi
$22
Ubud, Bali
$12 43.9% $9.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $261 in Urumqi and $1,131 in Ubud, Bali. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Urumqi pays 570% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $18.00 in Urumqi vs $35.00 in Ubud, Bali for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $158 vs $287 per month, with Urumqi cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇨🇳 Urumqi
🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali
🕒 Local time
22:12 10:12 PM
00:12 12:12 AM
2 h ahead of Urumqi
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
4,054,369
74,800
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

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

On the map
Between locations
  • Urumqi Ubud, Bali 6,450 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Urumqi
  • 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
Urumqi vs Ubud, Bali: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which city is more expensive, Urumqi or Ubud, Bali?
Urumqi wins on cost – living expenses run 124% lower than in Ubud, Bali. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Urumqi the obvious pick if budget is a priority.
Are salaries higher in Urumqi or in Ubud, Bali?
Average pay runs 570% higher in Urumqi, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.
How much does a 1-bedroom apartment cost in Urumqi compared to Ubud, Bali?
Rent for a central apartment: $261 in Urumqi versus $1,131 in Ubud, Bali. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
How do childcare costs compare in Urumqi and in Ubud, Bali?
Childcare runs $161 in Urumqi versus $493 in Ubud, Bali. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Are groceries more expensive in Urumqi or in Ubud, Bali?
Supermarket bills run roughly 81% higher in Ubud, Bali. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.
Can you live on $1,500/month in Urumqi or in Ubud, Bali?
At $605 in Urumqi versus $1,353 in Ubud, Bali, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Urumqi but tight or insufficient in Ubud, Bali. The gap between the two cities makes Urumqi the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Which city is better for digital nomads, Urumqi or Ubud, Bali?
Both work as nomad bases, but Urumqi delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $605 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Urumqi hard to pass up.
How safe is Urumqi compared to Ubud, Bali?
Safety-wise, Urumqi and Ubud, Bali 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 Urumqi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 124% 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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