Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Xining and Ubud, Bali

For one person, living is cheaper in Xining: $714 a month against $1,353 in Ubud, Bali, rent and utilities included – about $7,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Xining
Learn more

Xining Living Index
66

Cost of Living Index in Ubud, Bali
Learn more

Ubud, Bali Living Index

Jump to prices

Xining

🇨🇳 China

$714

/mo nomad

Ubud, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,353

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $714 in Xining versus $1,353 in Ubud, Bali.

Xining $714
Ubud, Bali $1,353

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,130 in Xining versus $2,297 in Ubud, Bali.

Xining $1,130
Ubud, Bali $2,297

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,545 in Xining versus $3,241 in Ubud, Bali.

Xining $1,545
Ubud, Bali $3,241

Living in Xining costs roughly 47% less than in Ubud, Bali, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Xining is 47% below, Ubud, Bali is 0% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.82 ¥18.87

$3.23 Rp 58.1K

-12.69%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$21.76 ¥145

$34.88 Rp 627.8K

-37.61%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.77 ¥31.89

$5.70 Rp 102.5K

-16.32%

Cappuccino

$3.11 ¥20.77

$2.62 Rp 47.1K

18.70%

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

$0.44 ¥2.94

$1.72 Rp 31.0K

-74.42%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 ¥1.80

$0.81 Rp 14.6K

-66.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.87 ¥5.80

$2.65 Rp 47.7K

-67.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.10 ¥14.05

$4.37 Rp 78.6K

-51.95%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.78 ¥11.88

$1.57 Rp 28.3K

13.38%

White Bread (500g)

$1.55 ¥10.39

$2.19 Rp 39.5K

-29.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.91 ¥6.08

$1.18 Rp 21.2K

-22.88%

Eggs

$1.56 ¥10.42

$2.16 Rp 38.8K

-27.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.75 ¥85.2

$17.65 Rp 317.7K

-27.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.24 ¥21.67

$3.78 Rp 68.0K

-14.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.02 ¥67.0

$11.95 Rp 215.1K

-16.15%

Apples (1kg)

$1.85 ¥12.40

$3.60 Rp 64.8K

-48.61%

Banana (1kg)

$1.20 ¥7.99

$1.59 Rp 28.6K

-24.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.54 ¥10.26

$2.31 Rp 41.6K

-33.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.09 ¥7.30

$1.91 Rp 34.3K

-42.93%

Potato (1kg)

$0.70 ¥4.70

$1.78 Rp 32.1K

-60.67%

Onion (1kg)

$0.94 ¥6.30

$2.33 Rp 41.9K

-59.66%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.59 ¥3.97

$1.00 Rp 18.0K

-41.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ¥3.69

$0.53 Rp 9,509

3.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.18 ¥21.26

$2.29 Rp 41.1K

38.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.61 ¥70.9

$22.07 Rp 397.3K

-51.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.75 ¥5.02

$2.35 Rp 42.2K

-68.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.66 ¥11.13

$2.98 Rp 53.6K

-44.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.27 ¥1.79

$0.23 Rp 4,112

17.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.78 ¥112

$8.90 Rp 160.2K

88.54%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.40 ¥9.36

$0.47 Rp 8,466

197.87%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.36 ¥2.38

$0.43 Rp 7,737

-16.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.50 ¥43.46

$5.47 Rp 98.4K

18.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.16 ¥7.76

$0.83 Rp 14.9K

39.76%

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

$19.4K ¥129.6K

$23.9K Rp 429.8M

-18.79%

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

$17.1K ¥114.2K

$32.8K Rp 590.1M

-47.90%

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

$45.89 ¥307

$80.0 Rp 1.4M

-42.63%

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

$9.55 ¥63.9

$6.56 Rp 118.1K

45.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.58 ¥77.4

$18.60 Rp 334.8K

-37.74%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.43 ¥284

$54.1 Rp 974.1K

-21.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.68 ¥91.5

$18.28 Rp 329.0K

-25.16%

Cinema Ticket

$5.99 ¥40.04

$4.25 Rp 76.5K

40.94%

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

$329 ¥2,201

$493 Rp 8.9M

-33.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K ¥111.1K

$5,597 Rp 100.7M

196.84%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.59 ¥291

$45.58 Rp 820.4K

-4.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.36 ¥203

$34.96 Rp 629.4K

-13.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.9 ¥474

$77.7 Rp 1.4M

-8.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$70.9 ¥474

$78.5 Rp 1.4M

-9.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$274 ¥1,831

$1,131 Rp 20.4M

-75.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$192 ¥1,283

$673 Rp 12.1M

-71.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$593 ¥3,968

$3,613 Rp 65.0M

-83.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$356 ¥2,379

$1,702 Rp 30.6M

-79.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,085 ¥20.6K

$2,717 Rp 48.9M

13.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,043 ¥13.7K

$2,241 Rp 40.3M

-8.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$166 Rp 3.0M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.89

13.78

-71.77%

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

Last update for Xining: October 17, 2026

Last update for Ubud, Bali: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Xining

$197 27.6%

Ubud, Bali

$287 21.2% 45.7% $90

Accommodation & Living

Xining

$192 26.9%

Ubud, Bali

$673 49.7% 251% $481

Clothing & Footwear

Xining

$97 13.6%

Ubud, Bali

$107 7.9% 9.7% $9.5

Eating Out

Xining

$86 12%

Ubud, Bali

$106 7.9% 24.4% $21

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Xining

$67 9.4%

Ubud, Bali

$105 7.8% 56.9% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Xining

$54 7.6%

Ubud, Bali

$63 4.6% 15.1% $8.2

Getting Around

Xining

$21 3%

Ubud, Bali

$12 0.9% 40.9% $8.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $274 in Xining and $1,131 in Ubud, Bali. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $22.00 in Xining vs $35.00 in Ubud, Bali for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $197 vs $287 per month, with Xining cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Xining

🇮🇩 Ubud, Bali

🕒 Local time

10:19 10:19 AM

Same time as Xining

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,333,700

74,800

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 24, 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 24, 2026: 1 USD = 18,000 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD). 1 EUR = 20,236 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Xining Ubud, Bali 5,210 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Xining
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

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

Xining wins on cost – living expenses run 90% lower than in Ubud, Bali. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Xining the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $1,071 in Xining and $2,030 in Ubud, Bali 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: $274 in Xining versus $1,131 in Ubud, Bali. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $329 in Xining versus $493 in Ubud, Bali. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 46% higher in Ubud, Bali. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $714 in Xining versus $1,353 in Ubud, Bali, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Xining but tight or insufficient in Ubud, Bali. The gap between the two cities makes Xining the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Xining delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $714 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Xining hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Xining 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.

Expats usually find Xining gentler on the wallet – expenses run 90% less than in Ubud, Bali. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.