How much is the living cost in Bali? What are your expenses? I sometimes get these questions. People are often curious about how much it cost to live in Bali. It’s a paradise island and there are many ex-pats and digital nomads on the move.
Recommended read: Indonesiaexpat.biz about Foreigners relocating to Bali
I am actually writing this because I also need to move out of the current house. So at the same time, it is handy research and I will be using last year’s expenses. All calculations are base on past spending for a family of husband, wife, and baby.
Accommodation in Bali
Looking for accommodation can be done via olx.co.id. Here they offer a wide variety of (long term) rental and even selling property and housing. Next to that, they sell a lot of new and second-hand stuff.
Accommodation can be very different from a simple studio apartment called a kost, a house, and a villa. The living cost in Bali is very much impacted by which choice you make. With a family, it’s more convenient to stay in a house or villa.
Since the space in a studio apartment is too limited I am not going to consider this. But if you are wondering the cost for this is around 1 Million IDR/Month (75USD).
Renting a house
A house around 80-100 square meters can be around 30-40 million IDR per year. Monthly this would come down to 2.5 – 3.5 million IDR. It also depends on what facilities it has and the location.
Renting a Villa
Unfortunately, this is out of my budget but villas come in so many different shapes and sizes. The cost of living in a Bali Villa makes the expenditure a lot higher (think about maintenance as well). They are easily at least 4x more and up than renting a house. It really depends on the garden size, swimming pool that comes with it.
Guesthouse
Not suitable for family with baby, but for ex-pats on a budget, this could be something. some guest houses are about 3Million IDR / Month. They vary from having your own private space to a shared housing complex. Space here is too little for a family
Location impacts the living cost in Bali
The location of accommodation impacts the living cost in Bali. The further you are from everything, the cheaper it gets. This is like everywhere I assume. The location also is important for having water. If you don’t want this to be a challenge, then don’t rent in the Bukit Peninsula (South).
Other things to look out for
When moving in someplace check if they have air conditioning, and how much Watt does the accommodation hold. Some places only can give you 900 Watt per hour. It can be enough if you are alone, but for a family, it can be a challenge.
Interesting fact: The minimum wage of Bali is around 3.2 M IDR per month.
Groceries
Groceries are a daily need and adds up to the cost of living in Bali. We do groceries mostly in supermarkets and occasionally the Indomaret/Alfamart (convenience store like 7/11). Next to this we make use of local warungs that would sell fresh vegetables, eggs, drinking water, rice and gas to cook.
To summarize groceries, we try to keep it between 2-3 million IDR a month.
Insurance, an option that will add to your living cost
Insurance works here in a way that it is optional. So some choose it and some ignore it. We chose to be insured.
The local insurance (not for ex-pats or foreigners) cost 100k IDR per month. It’s known as PBJS.
Private insurance companies for ex-pats and foreigners who stay long term in Bali is advisable. If you have any questions about this I can answer them for you. [email protected]
The prices vary differently for insurance from private companies and also the coverage is different. Taking insurance from them will increase the cost of living in Bali. The insurances that most ex-pats take are around 2 million IDR / month.
Internet, nowadays a normal part of the living cost in Bali
For the internet which is nowadays a must and should be added to the living cost in Bali, we got it via our Sim cards and via broadband (optic fibre) as of last year broadband become more competitive with each other and thus cheaper. For around 10-20Mbit you could spend 250k IDR per month.
Regarding the sim card, for prepaid internet package, I pay around 100k IDR per month. But this is also for calling.
Water, Electricity
We have two air conditioning units but we don’t really make it cold as some people do. This is our only big energy consumer. For electricity and water we pay around 400k IDR per month. (less than 30$)
Leisure and Fun
Living in Bali should also have some fun right. Of course, this will add up to the cost of living. But it should be fun and enjoyable. Going to the swimming pool, movies, and occasional activity.
How much to budget for this is flexible. Some months can be more than others. The important thing is that the quality of life is as it should be.
Other expenses
Other expenses there for our living cost in Bali.
- Cleaning
- Babysitting for those with a family
- dinner outside
- petrol money
For other expenses calculate another 2M IDR. Remember if you don’t have a baby these are a lot cheaper
Unexpected spendings
Your phone breaks or something needs maintenance or replacement in the house. These things happen. We keep aside a bit of money just in case this happens. If it didn’t happen we got extra savings.
For the unexpected expenditures, we calculate 500k IDR.
Summary of living cost in Bali
For the summary of the living cost in Bali, I am calculating it for renting a house and all prices are per month. The calculation is taken a bit more flexible.
A lot of people do this with a lot less by taking no insurance, doing fewer groceries and not paying for broadband internet.
Remember that this is for a household of 2 adults and 1 baby. Expats coming alone could have fewer spendings than the summary of living costs below.
| Accommodation | 2.500.000 |
| Groceries | 2.000.000 |
| Insurance (x3) | 1.500.000 |
| Internet | 300.000 |
| Water & Electricity | 400.000 |
| Leisure and fun | 1.000.000 |
| Other expenses | 2.000.000 |
| Unexpected expenses | 500.000 |
| TOTAL per month | 10.3 M (750$) |
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